White pines, cool blue lakes, a red canoe, misty rain, rocky shores, a campfire, chipmunks, wolf howls, the eerie call of the Loon. Our natural northern heritage. It can take many forms for different people. However, it is the unique quality of a Canadian. Everyone deep down has a passion for our natural heritage.
It took my marketing guy, Brendan, to set the framework for how I was going to arrive at a name. It all starts in a name. It has to be well chosen. It, in itself, is a journey of identity and recognition. We went through many variations. I wanted a northern image. Brendan suggested that it had to have a strong direction or flow. I wanted a bold and clear message. I wanted minimalism and simplicity. Crisp, clean and bold. Like the Canadian north, I needed it to be away from normal naming conventions in my industry.
I was looking for something people could associate with and see that the depth in meaning came from wholesome values and that had a holistic identity. Much like a financial plan should. It is certainly more than just about the numbers. People need to see the vision and not a name.
I had suggested West Wind later realizing a Tom Thomson affiliation. It wasn’t until after we settled on Northern River that I recognized the similarity. Both are Tom Thomson paintings. I have them in my homes. I look at them each day. Everyone can see it is his paintings. I spend a lot of my solitude in his at Canoe Lake and Algonquin. He has been recognized as the face for all that is the Canadian wilderness. It didn’t happen when he was senselessly killed in 1917. It took half a century before his pre-eminence rose.
When I decided on this branding journey for my new venture, I was reading a book about the mystery of Tom Thomson, Northern Light by Roy McGregor. I was going through this subliminal process as I turned each page without realizing it. It didn’t dawn on me until I almost finished the book, that my new identity and vision would be drawn from here. I identify with his vision. I now continue that journey.
