New brand

  New brand
A fresh look for a fresh start
Central State Rural Electric Cooperative was founded in 1938. A lot has changed in the past 78 years. The company of 141 original meters has grown to more than 24,000 meters. The original $85,000 borrowed from the Rural Electrification Administration to build the first distribution system has expanded to a system with more than $133 million in utility plant assets. The cooperative service area has grown to serve 2,000 square miles over seven counties. However, not everything has grown and expanded, the original name, for instance, was shortened when “state” was dropped from the name. Nearly eighty years later, more changes are coming to the company that was once Central State Rural Electric
Cooperative.

A Greek philosopher, Heraclitus, said “The only thing that is constant is change.” Over the past several years, we have been communicating about the changes facing the utility industry. From increased regulation and cyber security to renewable energy and industry insurgents, this change is definitely in our midst. The cooperative has been proactive by making investments and continuing to raise the bar when it comes to new technologies.


One investment that has came to fruition is the new headquarters building that is now open. CREC is using this opportunity to start fresh. A new building, new address, new more-efficient ways of doing business and a new brand and logo. Just as our forefathers decided to remove “state” from the name years ago, we believe Central Electric Cooperative, or Central for short, is more representative of the organization moving forward.

What was wrong with our old name and old logo? Nothing. It was a good representation of our past, but the new brand, new logo and new building provides a fresh start for an organization that has a renewed dedication to become The Next Generation Utility. We’re proud of our past, but more importantly we are engaged in activities today that will provide a prosperous future for Central members.

We are excited about the future of Central and hope you will be excited, too.


Historically a triangle has represented the past, present and future which is depicted by the three angular lines, blue the past, orange the present and green Central’s future. On a second look, the green angular line appears to be an arrow representing the forward progress being made to become The Next Generation Utility and toward better serving the membership.