OCTOBER 16, 2019
Alexandria, VA – National Industries for the Blind (NIB), the nation’s largest employment resource for people who are blind, debuted a refreshed SKILCRAFT® brand this week at its 2019 Training Conference and Expo. SKILCRAFT, a trademark owned and licensed by NIB, is widely recognized among federal government employees and other customers as a symbol of quality, reliability, and value.
The refreshed SKILCRAFT brand now encompasses knowledge-based professional services along with the high-quality products SKILCRAFT is known for. Unifying products and services under a single brand provides a stronger, more cohesive foundation for NIB to fulfill its mission and meet the needs of customers.
“The refreshed SKILCRAFT brand gives us an opportunity to generate greater customer awareness about NIB’s mission of creating jobs for people who are blind,” said NIB President and CEO Kevin Lynch. “While the look is different, the SKILCRAFT brand promise hasn’t changed. SKILCRAFT continues to provide exceptional quality while having an extraordinary impact on the lives of people who are blind.”
The new SKILCRAFT brand features a modernized logo and design elements reflecting an ongoing commitment to innovation and quality. An updated brand architecture aims to help customers better understand the breadth and depth of SKILCRAFT offerings, and the impact their purchases can have on empowering people who are blind to live the American Dream.
NIB registered the SKILCRAFT trademark in 1952 and began using it on a variety of household goods sold in military commissaries. Today, the SKILCRAFT brand includes thousands of products from the iconic SKILCRAFT U.S. Government pen to military equipment, and professional services including call center services and contract management support.
NIB and its nationwide network of associated nonprofit agencies employ more than 6,000 Americans who are blind across the country, including many veterans, through the provision of SKILCRAFT products and services. SKILCRAFT products and services are available to federal government employees through the AbilityOne® Program, a federal program that employs more than 45,000 people who are blind or have significant disabilities. Customers can purchase SKILCRAFT products online at AbilityOne.com, GSA Advantage, GSA Global Supply, and FedMall; in-store at AbilityOne Base Supply Centers® and military commissaries and exchanges; and through hundreds of AbilityOne authorized distributors.
Learn more about how NIB is reimagining SKILCRAFT at https://nib.org/SKILCRAFT.
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About National Industries for the Blind
Since 1938, National Industries for the Blind (NIB) has focused on enhancing the opportunities for economic and personal independence of people who are blind, primarily through creating, sustaining, and improving employment. NIB and its network of associated nonprofit agencies are the nation’s largest employer of people who are blind through the manufacture and provision of SKILCRAFT and other products and services of the AbilityOne Program. For more information about NIB, visit NIB.org.
