When the merger leading to the formation of Nctm took place in 2000, very few people were fully aware of what brand identity meant for a law firm.
For Nctm, it was a question of giving an appropriate connotation to an entirely new reality, capable of bringing together and condensing the reputation of the founders, imagining its univocal expression in the new millennium.
The choice of the name, an acronym based on the initials of the founders’ surnames (Gianfranco Negri-Clementi, Alberto Toffoletto and Paolo Montironi) was a conscious decision based on the principle that, before any necessary individual protagonism, the organisation should have the central role. Nctm project was one of the first to focus on the creation of a law firm “culture”.
When designing the first logotype and the primary identification elements (sign, font and colours), a traditional approach was chosen with codes typical of the world of professionals.
The composition was based on capital letters so as to propose a sign with a “solid” and, at the same time, concise structure. The geometry and serifs generated a very rigorous sign, almost in the style of Roman numerals.
In 2015, the firm’s top management decided to carry out a survey on the consistency of the brand with internal/external perceptions. The entire firm was involved.
The result of the analysis showed, in short, a substantial proximity to the founding values and perspective, but also the need for a formal adaptation of the brand in terms of greater contemporaneity and user-friendliness, particularly in its use on digital media. Moreover, the brand was by then regarded as distant from the innovative attitude acknowledged as a peculiarity of the firm.
It was decided to re-brand. The new brand, which is the one currently used, has characteristics that can be outlined as follows: Nctm changed from an acronym to “just” a name and, like any name, its composition is in upper/lower case. The name is accompanied by a graphic sign, a symbol, which becomes a primary element of recognition.
The name, in all the positions for which its use is contemplated, always has a relationship of visual dependence on the sign. So, the symbol is the new protagonist of Nctm’s brand identity.
Nctm is certainly not the first law firm to adopt a distinctive graphic sign, but it is certainly the only one to envisage its prominent role, which, with an eye to the future, may even become independent of its name. The symbol is based on the stylisation of three scenes of Alberto Burri’s Teatro Continuo.
From a symbolic point of view, the Teatro Continuo is a metaphor for what Nctm wants to be: an open space where anyone can be a free protagonist. A non-structure structure.
In the 15 years between the founding of the law firm and its re-branding, it is worth noting the choice of an exclusive and somewhat desecrating visual expression, represented by the illustrations of Carlo Stanga.
A specific note should be made about the colours of the new brand identity. The institutional colour has been replaced by a range of colours that is quite unusual for professional firms. The choice of a range rather than a single colour allows different options for use, from a “random” use of the brand, to the connotation of events, initiatives, activities, companies and anything else belonging to the Nctm universe (for example the use of the green logo for green initiatives).
The first logotype and the coordinated image of Nctm was created by the firm of Alberto Troilo, previously head of the Milan office of AR&A - Antonio Romano & Associati, now at Inarea Strategic Design, which created the current brand identity with Alberto Troilo as project manager.
