Sustainability
2023.07.12
Vargas Holding, the investors behind Northvolt, Polarium, and H2 Green Steel, has launched its fourth venture – Aira, a direct-to-consumer brand disrupting the residential energy market. Aira is one step closer to accelerating the electrification of residential heating, which is a major source of global carbon emissions. Kurppa Hosk, together with its ARC sister company Cupole, partnered with Aira to take it from idea to reality.
Heat pumps can be four to five times more efficient than gas boilers and are thus a highly efficient alternative. However, more widespread adoption of heat pumps in Europe has been hindered by high up-front costs, low awareness, and a lack of urgency to decarbonize residential heating.
Aira aims to change this by making heat pumps more affordable and accessible, and is set to become Europe’s number one direct-to-consumer brand within clean energy-tech. Aira is currently piloting in Italy and will launch in Germany and the United Kingdom later this year with the ambition to be present in over 20 markets by 2030.
Starting from the inception of the company, Kurppa Hosk, along with its sister company Cupole, engaged in a comprehensive co-creation project with Aira to define its value proposition and develop a compelling brand to embody its challenger mindset.
By leveraging shared insights and research, Kurppa Hosk and Cupole built a robust strategic framework with Aira’s mission to drive the clean energy revolution and its value proposition at its core, securing the long-term relevance and success of the Aira brand and business. The partnership also included Kurppa Hosk assisting Aira in developing a brand architecture strategy and co-branding guidelines to ensure Aira could successfully integrate new companies into its portfolio, in line with its accelerated M&A agenda.
Kurppa Hosk’s involvement then extended beyond strategy to the creation of a bold visual identity anchored in the concept “Scandinavian Visionary”. The design was carefully crafted to resonate with Aira’s target audiences across every touchpoint, from digital platforms and van liveries to environments and uniforms, creating a cohesive brand experience. By seamlessly integrating elements and paying meticulous attention to detail, the visual identity conveys a sense of quality that is fundamental to establishing a trusted relationship between Aira and its customers, while carving out a distinctive visual presence for the brand.
As we stand on the brink of a clean energy revolution, the collective efforts of Vargas Holding and the two ARC companies — Kurppa Hosk and Cupole — demonstrate a strong commitment to sustainable growth and innovation. Together, we strive to reshape the way Europe perceives and utilizes energy solutions.
Jonas Heller – Strategy Director at Kurppa Hosk
About Kurppa Hosk
Kurppa Hosk is a brand agency with 75+ employees and offices in Stockholm and New York. We solve complex business problems by combining the sharpest strategic minds with the best designers in the industry. We work with brave organizations – from early-stage startups, to some of the world’s most admired companies and brands. Among our clients are Scania, Sandvik, H&M, Esteé Lauder, Securitas, Pinterest, Dustin and Intrum. Kurppa Hosk is part-owned by Altor and belongs to the same business group as Above, Animal, Ariel, BLCK Communication, Conversionista, Cupole, Curamando, Curious Mind, Fabrique, Goods, Heydays, Mission Anew, Nameless.today, Q42 and Umain with whom we partner closely.
About Cupole
Cupole provides strategy and management consulting services for the market leaders of tomorrow. With facts of today, Cupole has faith on tomorrow. Cupole help clients, colleagues and partners turn their ambitions into achievements, with great minds and big hearts. The company was founded in 2010 and has around sixty employees. Cupole is part of the group ARC Arise Consulting, which operates at the intersection between strategy, branding, sustainability, marketing, innovation and digital growth.
About ARC Arise Consulting
ARC is a carefully selected group of specialist companies. Different in craft but united in the ambition to solve our clients’ problems and create lasting value. We are 1200 people across different markets. All are passionate about change.
By bringing together companies with contrasting perspectives and experiences, we built a new kind of advisory firm. ARC operates at the intersection of strategy & change, brand & communication, innovation & experience, sales & performance, and data & technology. We want to make a difference for the planet, and the biggest positive impact we can have is to help transform our clients to become more sustainable. This transformation is driven by digitalization, innovation, and a commitment to change how business is done and brands are built.
Altor Equity Partners is the leading external investor supporting the group’s growth journey. Altor is a minority owner and ARC is run in majority by the active founders and shareholders in the company.
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