From I to US.

Overview
TRIBUS is Ricoh’s accelerator program. It brings together intrapreneurs inside the company, entrepreneurs outside it and mentors who open the doors to Ricoh’s resources. It started life as the Ricoh Accelerator. We gave it a new name and identity.

Question
What do you call a program that only works when people work together?

Challenge
Innovation stories love a lone genius. This program is the opposite, and the name had to say so.

Approach
We explored more than 5,000 names, with an international trademark search running alongside, before landing on TRIBUS. It packs a lot into six letters:

TRI, Latin for three.
TRY, for taking a chance.
TRIBES, for belonging.
BUS, for the vehicle that gets an idea moving.

In the logotype, only the I and the US are set in italics. Look again and the idea is right there: from one person to all of us. The color is blue, opposite red on the color wheel, a nod to the Sanai, or “three loves,” philosophy of Ricoh’s founder.

Outcome
One italic detail tells the whole story. Ideas start with I. They take off with US.