WHAT MAKES A BRAND EXTRAORDINARY? GLAD YOU ASKED.

In winemaking, only wines from the finest vineyards are given the distinguished classification of ‹Cru›. It’s a designation that the winemakers of France revere with grave significance and one that we also hold in the highest esteem. It stands for an unflinching dedication to extraordinary quality—and so do we. We are CRU, and we create extraordinary brands.

Team of 11 2 Locations 100+ Projects Team of 11 2 Locations 100+ Projects

Principles

Since 2018 we’ve been building brands in our own way and we’ve refined our approach. Here are just a few of the ingredients that go into accomplishing the extraordinary:

1 Quality Over
Everything

Like the stringent quality standards of cru wines, we have high expectations for everything: from the qualifications of the senior staff that make up our team, to the work that we put out, and the dedication that we expect from our clients. If it’s not CRU Quality, we won’t put our name on it.

2 Growth
is Good

‹Cru› literally translates to growth, which is what an extraordinary brand brings: growth in business, goals, and aspirations. And growth is a good thing—every organism is naturally striving for it. It makes our proud that our team keeps growing too, both in numbers and in mind.

3 Collaboration
is Crucial

We know: that’s hardly breaking news. But we don’t take it for granted either. Without the ongoing commitment of our clients—their courage, and their time—we simply can’t achieve what we are striving for. As they say, it takes two to tango towards an extraordinary brand.

4 Don’t renovate: celebrate

Great brands exude confidence and optimism. They hold the promise of making things better for those who use them. That’s why we are making sure the branding process feels like a celebration: to help us bottle your can-do spirit so that we can distill it through storytelling and design.

5 Keep it
curious

At CRU, it’s been a good day if it has taught us something genuinely new: about our clients, or their industries, or indeed our crafts. That is also the reason why your brand designer joins the strategy meetings, and vice versa. Keeping it curious means to allow for as many perspectives as possible.

6 Default
to help

At its core this means to come up with solutions in the face of problems. But it goes further than that. Does a colleague need critique, or encouragement? Does a client need what was ordered, or do they need something else just now? We want to influence every situation for the better.

7 Don’t be
A Dick

Working at CRU means to balance ambition and amicability. Yes, we strive for the extraordinary in our work. No, that does not mean we tolerate tyrants. Every CRU member is equipped to meet with Triumph and Disaster, and treat those two imposters just the same.

project teams

We begin every branding project by selecting the CRU team members that will be the perfect fit, and will work on it from start to finish. By getting to know the inner workings of your organization this dedicated project team will be able to create something that’s distinct to your brand and with the greatest business impact.

The final, most crucial ingredient to extraordinary quality is quality time. Because at the end of the day we’re in the people business. The people you find at CRU are not only the finest people in their craft, but also fine people, full stop.

Our Clients

Here are the clients who have trusted us to guide them out of the ordinary sector.

Fintechs

Ultramarin
Ultrascope
Trade Republic
OWWN
Bitwala 2.0
Nuri (Strategy & Product)
FlatexDegiro
Shush
Bitvavo
Nelly

Hi-Techs

AppliedAI Institute
AI Campus
G2K Group
Merantix
Merantix Momentum
Kausa
One Thousand
Certif.ai
Signatrix
Pacta

Mittelstand

KMC Kroatien
Mondo Möbel
SDK Versicherungen
Monin
Landwärme
Symbioworld
Neumann

Public Sector

Science & Startups
GovTech Campus Deutschland
Deutsche Aidshilfe
Heimathafen Berlin
zlb — Zentrale Landesbibilothek Berlin
K.I.E.Z.

consultancies

LEAD Forward
Arieli & Company
pwc
Elaboratum
Management Partner
east Agency
WIN Creating Images

other

La Mæson
Monin
Micky Oye
LingoAce
Eykt
Ithaka
Valuecase
Dealcode
Careville
Die Unendliche

Invests

While we love working on branding projects for clients, we can’t help building a few brands ourselves. From tiny homes, to AI-assisted finances, here are a few ventures that we’ve been exploring for ourselves.

Out of Business

WHAT MAKES A BRAND EXTRAORDINARY? GLAD YOU ASKED.

Team of 11 2 Locations 100+ Projects Team of 11 2 Locations 100+ Projects

Team of 11 2 Locations 100+ Projects Team of 11 2 Locations 100+ Projects

Jan Erlinghagen

Lasse Giese

Benjamin Clemens Nuebel

Liridona Salihi

Dorothea Baumann

Peter Rauh

Klara Hieronimus

Nikola John

Kevin Chow

Sandra Stäbler

Jonathan Robrecht

Principles

1

Quality OverEverything

2

Growthis Good

3

Collaborationis Crucial

4

Don’t renovate: celebrate

5

Keep itcurious

6

Defaultto help

7

Don’t be A Dick

project teams

Our Clients

Fintechs

Hi-Techs

Mittelstand

Public Sector

consultancies

other

Invests

Quality Over
Everything

Growth
is Good

Collaboration
is Crucial

Keep it
curious

Default
to help

Don’t be
A Dick