When it came time to rebrand his practice, Chicago-area endodontist Dr. Patrick Fitzgerald’s vision was crystal clear—and the result, impeccable.

BUYING TWO legacy practices and transforming them into something uniquely yours would be a challenge under any circumstances. Dr. Patrick Fitzgerald had already accomplished that with two locations in the northwest Chicago suburbs when the opportunity arose for a more dramatic image overhaul. After considering building from scratch to replace his Mt. Prospect, Illinois, office—a daunting task in a major metro where lot inventory is virtually nonexistent—he finally found the ideal existing structure with a perfect amount of square footage to support his vision.

“My two locations were started by separate doctors dec­ades ago. In fact, they’re two of the oldest practices in the Midwest. But they needed to be unified, branded together,” Dr. Fitzgerald explains. “The logo and brand identity had to be reflective of both what we do as a specialist and who
I am as an individual. It needed to be clean, precise and have symmetry.”

Overseeing the design of a new location from a clean sheet of paper can be overwhelming, but even more so when combined with the simultaneous challenge of imposing brand symmetry across multiple offices. However, Dr. Fitzgerald is the first to admit that this is an area in which he thrives. “My mind does not rest unless there is order. My wife will laugh when she reads this. That’s how I’m wired. It drives my daughters crazy.”

He brought to the table a distinct vision for how his brand would integrate with the practice’s design and interior. In short, it had to “resonate cleanliness, with an aesthetic that looks modern,” he says. Because clinical innovation is one of his practice’s key drivers, Dr. Fitzgerald insisted that all elements coalesce into a smart, cohesive whole that would help inform the total treatment experience without being stiff or unfriendly. If that sounds uncompromising, it is, on purpose. It’s at the heart of how the doctor delivers care: “A seamless treatment experience,” he calls it. “One my patients tend to value.”

We started out with a sleek and sophisticated black, white and gray palette, but then added in the touches of blue from his logo throughout his space to really
tie in his brand.”

—Emily Pieshefski, Interior Designer

Helping execute that vision fell to Emily Pieshefski and Sharon Fiorini of Benco Dental, along with Dr. Fitzgerald’s contractor, Andrews Construction. Pieshefski, an interior designer, recalls that the doctor made the process simple because “he had a really good sense of what he did and didn’t like, which made homing in on his style and then pulling together finishes an easy process. We started out with a sleek and sophisticated black, white and gray palette, but then added in the touches of blue from his logo throughout his space to really tie in his brand.”

Meanwhile, Fiorini, a branding and graphic design expert with more than 30 years of experience (she also contributes to Incisal Edge), worked directly with the doctor through several rounds of logo development. “I started with some ideas based on his mood boards,” she says. “Once we met, he conveyed that he wanted a design that is super-clean, modern, upscale and minimal.”

It helps that Dr. Fitzgerald has a keen sense of what his patients expect—and he’s candid about where he misjudged those expectations earlier in his career. Back then, he says, he didn’t want patients to get the impression that his care might be out of their financial reach. “I was wrong. Thousands of patients were ecstatic with their treatment. It made me so happy to hear. My hindsight wishes I would have approached the concept differently when the Park Ridge location was created.”

If this is a do-over of sorts, Dr. Fitzgerald has done it with precision, clarity and deftness that succeeds in mirroring his clinical philosophy. “I feel patients deserve the setting we created in Mt. Prospect, not just amid treatment. It truly provides the impression that we are going to convey something superior.”