‘757’ CHOSEN AS NEW NAME FOR HAMPTON ROADS

In-depth rebranding project sees title chosen as inclusive representation of region’s 1.7 million residents.

It turns out the best new name for Hampton Roads is one some people are already using.

“757” is the regional moniker to be recommended in a new rebranding effort. The Hampton Roads Chamber and the Virginia Peninsula Chamber of Commerce presented the Envision 2020 branding study recommendations as part of their Dec. 10 annual meetings, held concurrently.

“When people use 757, it represents the region overall, not just parts of the region,” said Bryan Stephens, Hampton Roads Chamber president and CEO. “It beautifully connects all 1.7 million people.”

It’s also the way residents, especially young people, connect emotionally to the region, Stephens said. Additionally, he said it’s one of the few names that doesn’t exclude a location or create some kind of division.

The name recommendation is one of several findings released after a nine-month-long process begun last December.

The Hampton Roads Chamber and Reinvent Hampton Roads convened the Envision 2020 Regional Branding Initiative, raised money for the project and hired Richmond consulting group SIR (formerly the Southeastern Institute of Research) to lead the study.

To complete the work, project leaders attempted to engage as many regional stakeholders as possible, Stephens said. A main task force of 30 regional representatives, another stakeholder group of 100 organizations, several young professional groups and the general public all contributed to the effort.

757 has a personal meaning for Alisa Crider, chair of the chamber’s young professional organization tHRive, who was involved in the rebranding project.

“We used it in high school,” said Crider, a Virginia Beach native. “We had it in our (AOL Instant Messenger) screen names; we had the hand signals.”

A celebration of the reasons young people choose to live in Hampton Roads will further attract and keep them here, Crider added.

After the meeting announcement, VisitNorfolk President and CEO Kurt Krause said he was pleased with the name and thought it had the potential to connect the region. He said leaders could study whether to make a well-funded marketing push behind the name.

“I am thrilled,” he said.

The crowd at the Peninsula announcement during the Virginia Peninsula Chamber of Commerce’s annual meeting at the Holiday Inn Newport News at City Center was initially quiet when the name was revealed but clapped and cheered when chamber President and CEO Bob McKenna asked for a response with a thumbs-up.

Hampton Mayor Donnie Tuck said 757 is more of an urban expression for the area with national recognition. He understands how it could appeal to younger generations.

“I think it makes sense,” Tuck said. “We recognize that we are losing young talent, in particular.”

He personally hasn’t used the 757 terminology but hears it on the radio and from famous visitors like Peninsula native Mike Tomlin, coach for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Old Point National Bank Chairman, President and CEO Rob Shuford Jr. added that 757 is known outside the region and is used often to show pride for sports teams, athletics and local culture.

Mike Kuhns, retired Peninsula chamber CEO and board chairman of Thomas Nelson Community College, said the name is a great start, although it may not be the end, either.

“I like it because it demonstrates a connection that’s common and has no territory — there’s no silos,” Kuhns said.

The project acknowledged that 757 will not be the region’s only area code in the future. Another three-digit code could be added and co-exist with 757 as early as 2022. But because study participants identified 757 as a geographic place rather than part of a phone number, the findings explained that an additional area code was not a concern.

The push to call the region Hampton Roads began in the 1980s when business leaders and government officials convinced the U.S. Postal Service to change the region’s postmark from Tidewater to Hampton Roads. The name refers to the centuries-old name of the body of water linking the James and Elizabeth rivers with the Chesapeake Bay.

Hampton Roads has struggled with recognition outside the area, and so tourism leaders have been pushing to market the region as Coastal Virginia over the past several years.

Hampton Roads Chamber spokeswoman Priscilla Monti declined to reveal the cost of the rebranding project. It was funded partly through sponsors, and SIR also completed some of the work for free, she said.

Beyond the name, the findings recommend promoting connectivity, emphasizing regional messaging, engaging national figures like Virginia Beach music star Pharrell Williams, and mounting an extensive regional marketing and branding campaign.