Helping a global innovation hub connect with industry and community

The California Mobility Center (CMC) came to 3fold with a bold challenge: establish a powerful brand and messaging strategy that would reflect their role as a global launchpad for clean transportation innovation—while staying grounded in California’s values and community.

As a business acceleration hub helping advanced mobility start-ups move from prototype to commercialization, CMC needed more than a polished logo or catchy tagline. They needed a brand that could unite funders, founders, policymakers, and community partners around a shared vision—and earn trust in a highly competitive, emerging industry.

Our approach

At 3fold, we knew this required more than industry speak. We took the time to understand the people and partnerships powering the CMC—from global investors and academic leaders to Sacramento’s local workforce training providers. Through strategic interviews and insight mapping, we surfaced three essential ideas:

• The CMC gives start-ups something rare: a faster path to global commercialization

• California’s identity—as a place of innovation, inclusion, and environmental leadership—had to be central

• Relationships and structured offerings were just as important as technical capability

We built the brand and messaging strategy around these truths. From naming and visual identity to website, social media, and digital campaigns, every piece reinforced CMC’s role as a catalyst—helping clients get to market, and helping California lead the way.

The impact

The brand successfully positioned the CMC as a leader in the clean mobility space, resulting in:

• 2.5 million media impressions

• 230 qualified leads in the first wave of outreach

• Website visited from over 150 countries in the first year

• Recognition across industry events and publications

• A compelling narrative that helped secure ongoing funding and partnerships