Why First Tennessee is becoming First Horizon
First Tennessee Bank customers should get used to saying First Horizon Bank, if they haven’t already.
The new name and logo will become effective for the largest Tennesseeheadquartered bank at the close of business Oct. 25. First Horizon National Corp., First Tennessee’s holding company, expects all brand signage changes to be complete in early 2020.
First Horizon announced the branding change in June. First Tennessee Bank, Capital Bank, FTB Advisors and FTN Financial will all combine under the common First Horizon brand.
Customers won’t have to change anything on their end, said Bryan Jordan, president and CEO of the Memphisbased company. For Tennessee customers, it will be the same experience they’ve had at First Tennessee.
“It’s a very smooth transition from a customer perspective,” Jordan said. “… You’ll just see new, brighter signs around our financial centers.”
The new branding means new building signage, new website addresses and changes in mobile apps, according to First Horizon. Email communications, payee names and credit bureau reporting names will change, too.
Also part of the rebranding, First Tennessee Park in Nashville will become First Horizon Park.
Name change simplifies experience
After First Horizon’s acquisition of Capital Bank in 2017, the company had found the First Tennessee brand didn’t work as well outside its namesake state, Jordan said. The two different brands created customer confusion.
“An example is a customer in Nashville that goes to Naples (in Florida) for the winter doesn’t know that Capital Bank and First Tennessee are the same, necessarily,” he said.
First Horizon tested roughly 50 potential brand names with the aim of simplifying the customer experience, Jordan said. It landed on First Horizon, the holding company’s brand name.
The First Horizon name is optimistic, as people associate it with looking toward new horizons, Jordan said.
First Horizon runs more than 250 bank locations in the Southeastern United States, and it says its banking subsidiary has the largest deposit market share in Tennessee.
On Monday, First Horizon will host a sneak peek event for customers and community partners to reveal its new logo and signage. The event starts at 5:30 p.m. on The Peabody hotel rooftop.
Max Garland covers Fedex, logistics and health care for The Commercial Appeal. Reach him at max.garland@commercialappeal.com or 901529-2651 and on Twitter @Maxgarlandtypes.