DOVER — The Kent County Tourism Corp. has rebranded its image to better reflect its place in Delaware’s $4.5 billion tourism economy while bringing it in line with other major organizations in the county.
Now branded “Visit Central Delaware – Explore the Unexpected,” the Kent County Tourism Corp. has rolled out a new logo, website and marketing materials. A redesigned tourism guide will be printed at the end of August and a rebranded Mobile Visitor Center van will hit the streets again in a few weeks.
Kent County Tourism Corp. President Pete Bradley said the goal of the rebrand was to more accurately describe the county’s location and to better represent the vibrancy of Kent County. The tourism organization introduced its “Delaware’s Quaint Villages” image in 2016 and Bradley said that it was confusing for potential visitors because it “lacked geographic reference.”
“The timing was good as we needed to complete a major upgrade to our website,” Bradley added. “If we were going to make a change to our brand, it made sense to coordinate the change with the website upgrade.”
It also mirrors two other major organizations in the area: Kent Economic Partnership, which is branded Choose Central Delaware, and the Central Delaware Chamber of Commerce.
“We believe visit, work and life are all interconnected,” Bradley said.” It made sense to have the Visit Central Delaware brand aligned well [with those organizations].”
Kent County Tourism Corp. contracted with Aloysius Butler & Clark on the rebrand for an undisclosed contracted amount. The project started in 2023 after full support of the organization’s board.
Unlike New Castle County, which includes the Christiana Mall, plenty of fine dining opportunities and a close proximity to the Brandywine Valley, or Sussex County, which heavily relies on the Delaware beaches, Kent County features hidden gems like Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge in Smyrna, smaller bay beaches and historic downtown Dover.
It all builds into a bigger picture for Delaware’s tourism economy. Last year, the Delaware Tourism Office revealed a study completed by Rockport Analytics that showed tourism generated $4.5 billion to the state’s gross domestic product and created 47,760 full- and part-time jobs in 2021. Visitors also spent a collective $5.9 billion while in the state.
Right now, Bradley said the response from its partners has been very positive, especially with a more user-friendly website designed by WebFex.
“It’s much easier to use and vibrant,” he added. “Our Marketing Manager Catherine Jenkins and Visitors Services Manager Rachel Rohm did a great job in navigating this project.”
