Cancer Support New Zealand

A brand that defines cancer support

Cancer Support New Zealand work – Brand workshops | Consumer research | Staff Engagement | Brand research | Competitive Analysis | Positioning | Brand Strategy | Brand Naming | Brand design | Collateral

Overview

For more than 30 years, Look Good Feel Better New Zealand had helped people navigate the visible effects of cancer treatment through skincare and appearance workshops. But over time, the organisation had evolved into something far broader.

Today, it delivers 19 free programmes supporting the physical, emotional and practical realities of cancer, making it one of New Zealand’s broadest providers of non-medical cancer support.

The challenge was that public perception had not evolved alongside the organisation itself.

Re:brand partnered with the organisation to reposition it for the future, creating a new strategy, name, visual identity and brand system that better reflected its role within New Zealand’s cancer support landscape.

You can view their full website here.

The Challenge

Look Good Feel Better is one of the world’s best recognised cancer support programmes.

While the international organisation remains focused primarily on appearance-related services, the New Zealand organisation had steadily expanded its offering in response to the changing needs of people living with cancer.

Movement. Mindfulness. Confidence. Education. Emotional support. Community connection.

The organisation had changed.

Its brand had not.

Long-term perception research undertaken with IPSOS, combined with leadership workshops, facilitator research, stakeholder engagement and category analysis, consistently revealed the same disconnect.

People who knew the organisation described confidence, connection and practical support. Those less familiar with it continued to associate it primarily with make-up and appearance.

The challenge wasn’t to reinvent the organisation.

It was to align public perception with organisational reality.

Our Approach

As with every Re:brand project, we began with evidence.

Working alongside the organisation’s existing IPSOS research programme, we combined quantitative perception data with leadership workshops, facilitator surveys, audience personas, competitive review and strategic analysis to understand where the organisation had come from and where it needed to go.

One insight appeared repeatedly throughout the research.

People weren’t simply seeking skincare advice or movement classes.

They wanted practical support, meaningful connection and the confidence to feel like themselves again.

That insight became the foundation of the strategy.

Strategic Thinking

The challenge wasn’t simply to rename the organisation.

It was to reposition it.

Our strategy shifted the organisation away from being perceived as a single appearance-focused programme towards a broader role supporting the whole person through cancer.

Multiple naming territories were explored, ranging from emotional propositions through to institutional and descriptive naming. Each was evaluated against agreed strategic criteria including clarity, authority, scalability, future growth and stakeholder acceptance.

The research consistently pointed towards one conclusion.

The organisation didn’t need a more creative name.

It needed a more truthful one.

The result was Cancer Support New Zealand.

A name that reflects the organisation it has become rather than the programme from which it evolved.

Identity System

The visual identity was built around a single idea.

Connection.

Research consistently showed that participants valued feeling connected, understood and less alone throughout their cancer journey. Rather than relying on clinical symbolism or familiar cancer charity conventions, the identity expresses these ideas through people.

Four interconnected hands form the letter “C”, representing every cancer, every person and every stage of the journey. Together they create a flexible visual language that extends across programme icons, illustrations, communications and digital experiences.

Supported by an accessible colour palette, confident typography and authentic photography, the identity balances credibility with warmth while creating a scalable system capable of supporting the organisation’s continued growth.

Rollout

The new brand launched across every major organisational touchpoint, including the website, programme communications, printed collateral, fundraising materials, social media, templates and brand guidelines.

The project also introduced a clearer service architecture, helping patients, healthcare professionals and partners better understand the breadth of support available.

Outcome

Cancer Support New Zealand now has a brand that reflects the organisation it has become.

The repositioning aligns public perception with organisational reality, strengthens understanding of the organisation’s expanding role and provides a scalable platform for future growth.

More than a new name or identity, the project gave the organisation a clearer voice, stronger positioning and a brand capable of supporting its next chapter.