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BrookGlobal has evolved from an independent venture, to a father-son partnership, to a multi-generational family run organization. Guided by the Plater family’s core values, the legacy of innovation and dedication has shaped the organization today. From humble beginnings, to becoming a leader in donor recognition and engagement, BrookGlobal creates innovative donor engagement centers that inspire and enhance fundraising efforts for organizations across the globe.
The original company, Abar Agencies, was started by Bruce Plater. In 1986 he purchased Arrowgraph Industries, changing the name to Abar-Arrowgraph Industries, transforming the company into an architectural signage company. In 1989, he was joined by his father, Norm, and they began the journey of developing innovative donor recognition systems. Their first installation was in a hospital later that year under a new name, Insign Architectural Signage.
As the company continued to evolve from signage to recognition, Brook Recognition was created in 2000, creating changeable recognition systems. The name Brook came to life as the original office was located on Brooklyn Street, and the relation to the peaceful tranquil setting of a brook. They also created the tagline “experience the flow” referring to the flow of donations from donors to foundations.
This period saw immense change, growth, and challenge for the Plater’s. During this time, they hired several staff, expanded across Canada, launched the Brook Easy Ehange system and developed their commitment to the five core values that still guide the work being done today.
During this time, the company pushed for growth, tackled challenges and expanded into the U.S. market. This began the paradigm shift in their strategy, approach and dedication to philanthropy. Brook Recognition transformed the industry beyond just donor recognition, creating immersive and engaging centers. The centers supported philanthropy and began to impact fundraising and marketing, making it a bigger part of the clients’ overall strategy.
A time of true evolution and change, moving toward integrating communications and donor engagement, finding opportunities to create impact and building a comprehensive approach to supporting clients and their missions and goals.
The company refined their purpose and began focusing on the healthcare industry, solidifying the reputation as a leader in donor engagement across North America. Not only was the impact expanding across Canada and the United States, but they also moved into a larger facility to support the rapid growth, create opportunities and new product offerings, while adding staff from across North America to better support clients and partners.
Refining the donor engagement process, Brook dedicated to building out and perfecting the donor engagement methodology.
The most recent rebrand occurred in 2018, creating BrookGlobal, a brand to reflect the impact made in donor engagement across the world. The first contract outside of North America was signed, working with a team in Australia. #TeamBrook has staff across Canada and the United States. BrookGlobal supports donor engagement across the globe and are here to build experiential donor centers with creativity, innovation and excellence.
The team continues to build on the Plater family vision of creating donor centers that not only honor donors, but can also be utilized as fundraising tools, to share donor impact now and in the future. The centers inspire and motivate people to give, while highlighting the importance and life-changing impact of the organization
BrookGlobal has been and always will be passionate about philanthropy and the impact it has on so many lives. We are grateful for our clients and the continued opportunity to support missions, increase donations, improve donor retention, and enhance the culture of philanthropy.