Boundless Brand

A New Brand, Telling our Story to the World

We are a border town; we are at the beginning of everything.

We have always been the industrial capital of Northwest Ontario, and we will strengthen that role. We always were more than a mill town and we will be so much more than a mining town – aided by the lowest cost power and the most affordable industrial land in Ontario. We are the diversified industrial heartbeat of forestry, mining, agriculture, and tourism.    

We live in a time of revived spirit of entrepreneurialism. We are hands on….we make things forged from the land, and from determination of spirit.  We are Do It Yourself.

We are also more….

We are the Great Canadian Experience. When nature calls, we answer – inspired by blue lakes, rocky shores and the outdoors in all four seasons.

We are resilient, tough and proud.  

We are Fort Frances Strong.
We are BOUNDLESS.     

From a spirit perspective we claim that NW Ontario (and by inference Fort Frances) is the place Canada was “made.” It is mythologically at the heart and soul of what it has meant to be Canadian – land of the silver birch home of the beaver. It’s where Canadians can get back to its roots…loud and proud.

From an economic development perspective we celebrate tough independent, freedom loving spirits who are mythological “hewers of wood.” Fort Frances and area is exceptional in the making of things…forged from hand and mind.

From a tourism perspective we take ownership of the Canada hat, the made in Canada tattoo…talk about things we do with wild abandon in places of untamed wild…experiences that deeply connect us with land that we love. We are the place where nature is raw, inspired, and inspiring. We are the quiet…a place to get lost to find a spiritual centre to knowing who we are and why we matter.

Questions and Answers about the Brand

Why did Fort Frances need a new brand?

The Town of Fort Frances had never completed an exercise whereby it defined itself as a unique entity in a competitive world with thousands of marketing messages competing for attention. A brand is also a powerful way to pursue a strategic direction for the community. Just as commercial entities understand – we needed to find a way to stand out from a crowd.  Our brand, and our marketing activity, is dedicated to pursing our vision: to strengthen our role as the industrial capital of Northwest Ontario. Having a brand will help the community attract new investment and sell ourselves to the world more effectively.   

What will happen with the Town Crest?

The image previously used on letterhead and Town of Fort Frances material will be replaced with the Boundless logo. The Crest, however, will remain the Town’s official Crest.    

Will it be expensive to convert all the Town’s materials?

The Town will budget annually for the costs of conversion. The Town’s Economic Development Office and divisions will begin use of the new logo and identity within existing expenditures.  The Town has applied for a number grants and those funds from the Federal and Provincial government will offset any costs involved in projects like the revamp of the website. 

Most importantly, we believe the Brand’s integration with our economic development efforts is an important investment that will provide tremendous long term returns.

What does the new visual image represent?

The colours spring leaf green and deep grey describe Fort Frances as the meeting place between the wilderness landscape and an industrial center.  The wings of the bird which has been interpreted as either an eagle or a phoenix are the F’s from Fort Frances.  The bird is stretching to take flight.  The word Boundless describes our human spirit of entrepreneurship and the opportunity ahead of us.      

Mayor's Comments at Adoption

The recent years have been a struggle for our community.  We have watched as the pulp and paper industry fell prey to global forces. Those impacts have rippled through the very core of community.  The mill which once employed 1700 people stands idled.

So, as we search for our future path, we know we are more than a mill town. We always were. We will find a future filled with boundless opportunity together – if we work together….if we challenge ourselves to stretch our minds around new possibilities.  We are a community whose history is that of entrepreneurs building a home from the bounty of the forest.  Our first people, who wisely used the resources of the region to build strong communities, were followed by the voyageurs and Metis people who trapped and traded and then to the lumber mills. Great businessmen like JA Mathieu, Backus laid our entrepreneurial foundation.  Great visionaries like Noden, opened the vast expanses of the region for the use of industry and created a new future for the citizens of this community.

Today in the Spring of 2014, we find ourselves wound back a hundred years, in the time before the paper mill.   As we were then, we are faced with the opportunities of a new era….in a globalized world connected by internet, amidst economic transition. To seize on those opportunities we have integrated our economic development plan with this new identity.  Members of Council and community, I am excited about what we will do tonight.

We have always been the industrial capital of Northwest Ontario, and we will strengthen that role. Fort Frances has the lowest cost power and industrial land in Ontario. We are the regional   hub for forestry, mining, agriculture and tourism.

But we are more.

Our relationship with the forest and lake is not only commercial – it is why we live here.   When nature calls, we answer – inspired by blue lakes, rocky shores and the outdoors. We have an opportunity to re-connect visitors to our Great Canadian experience.

We will flourish amidst a newly revived spirit of entrepreneurialism.

We are hands on….we make things forged from the land, and from determination of spirit. 

Council working with the economic development office and community have already aggressively begun pursuing strategic investments that will leverage this brand into economic growth. 

We have prioritized working with area producers and the BIA to create a downtown market square that will open the international border to the retail business zone. This summer, we will work with the Chamber of Commerce and Sunset Country Tourism to reopen the Tourist information center on the border. And we will be the next home town to the many new faces that join our community as a result of New Gold’s investment in the west end of the district. 

The identity that we adopt today is not just a new logo; it is the promise of a renewed spirit in our community. This is just the beginning of the story, much is yet to come.