By Jim Hunt for the Harrison County News & Journal
High Point, North Carolina, understands something that many communities only talk about, branding is not a slogan on a brochure, it’s a feeling you carry home with you.
On a recent episode of my podcast, I asked a nationally recognized city branding expert to name one community that has really “gotten it right.” He didn’t hesitate: “High Point, North Carolina.”
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That answer was still on my mind when I had the opportunity to visit High Point for a youth basketball tournament where my granddaughter, Emery was playing. We rented an Airbnb, spent two days in the city, and in between games I did what I always do in a new place. I walked around and tried to understand the story the city was telling.
Most people know High Point as the “Home Furnishings Capital of the World,” thanks to its giant furniture market that draws visitors from around the globe. But High Point has added another layer to that identity. Community leaders have spent the last several years asking important questions: Who are we now? Who are we becoming? What story do we want people to take home?
The answer shows up not just in taglines, but in what you see on the streets.
One visible example is the minor league baseball stadium, Truist Point. Instead of being tucked away on the edge of town, it is right in the heart of downtown, designed to bring people, restaurants, housing and energy back to the city center. It’s more than a ballpark; it’s a front porch for the community.
Then there are the murals. Driving and walking around High Point, you can’t miss the artwork on buildings and walls, furniture themes, local history, music, culture and splashes of color that turn blank brick into public art. It doesn’t feel random. It feels like part of a plan to present High Point as creative, welcoming and proud of its story.
That, to me, is branding done well. Not a logo on a letterhead, but a consistent personality that shows up in lots of small ways.
After just a weekend there, I came away with a clear sense of that personality. High Point embraces its furniture heritage, but it isn’t stuck in the past. It has taken that foundation and built a broader story around design, creativity and opportunity. The ballpark, the murals, the furniture market and the downtown improvements are all working together to say the same thing: “This is who we are.”
Many communities never quite get to that point. They hold a slogan contest, put up a new highway sign and call it a brand. High Point reminds us that real branding is harder – and more rewarding.
Here are a few questions my visit made me think about:
If a family like mine spent a weekend in your town, what story would they take home? Would they know what you are proud of without being handed a brochure? Do your downtown, parks, public art and events all reinforce the same story, or are they telling different ones? Have you invited residents, businesses and young people into the conversation about who you are and who you want to be?
High Point didn’t become a branding success story by accident. People there listened, chose a direction and aligned their investments and public spaces with that vision.
From my perspective, it made for a wonderful weekend. I watched my granddaughter play basketball, enjoyed time with family and had a chance to see a living, breathing city brand in action.
And I came home agreeing with my podcast guest: High Point, North Carolina, really does understand branding.
