Connecticut Restaurant & Hospitality Association Unveils New Brand Identity
New look and tenor reflect community voices, collective strength, and pride in a fast-growing Connecticut industry
WETHERSFIELD, Conn. – The Connecticut Restaurant & Hospitality Association (CRHA) today unveiled its new brand identity, which was shaped directly by the members CRHA represents. This follows their recent evolution to represent lodging properties in addition to restaurants, marking the next chapter for an association that has advocated for Connecticut's hospitality industry since 1961.
The rebrand was led by Box Eight, a New Haven-based boutique branding agency specializing in hospitality brand identity. The work was built on months of input from current and potential members, elected officials, and allies, including surveys and interviews conducted to ensure the industry's voice shaped how CRHA looks, sounds, and shows up across the state. The result is a brand built around three commitments – amplifying the industry's voice, celebrating the people and places behind it, and supporting the work of operators across the state. The new identity extends across CRHA's website, social channels, member communications, and event presence starting today.
The CRHA publicly announced the association’s expansion to include hospitality in its portfolio in February 2026 at the Goodwin Hotel in Hartford. The addition was approved by the Board of Directors with the goal of strengthening representation across the broader tourism & hospitality industry through a single voice, as this association now represents nearly 10,000 businesses, 170,000 jobs and more than $21 billion in economic impact.
“This brand was built by the people who live and breathe this industry every day,” said Scott Dolch, President & CEO of CRHA. “What you’re seeing today is a reflection of Connecticut’s hospitality industry — community over competition, members who are active with their voice, and pride in every corner of our state. We’re growing, and with every new member, we strengthen our collective voice and bring the industry together from every corner of the state.”
For the broader restaurant and hospitality businesses this brand represents, the new look is a recognition of an industry that has powered Connecticut's economy and communities for generations. This evolution signals where it's headed next.
“Connecticut's restaurants and hotels are an economic engine -- they are the first impression this state makes on everyone who visits, the people who show that Connecticut is welcoming and that there's something worth coming back for,” said Governor Ned Lamont. “I congratulate CRHA on this new chapter and look forward to continuing to work with them as they represent an even broader share of the businesses that give our state its indelible character.”
Connecticut is already home to the highest percentage of independently owned full-service restaurants in the country at 97%, a reflection of a state built on operators who bet on themselves and show up every day without looking back. To learn more about how we got here, watch the launch video here.
“I've spent my career on the operator side of this business, so I know what it means to have someone in your corner who actually understands the work,” said Scott Miller, Chief Operating Officer and Partner of DORO Restaurant Group, and CRHA Board Chair. “My job is to make sure that's still true for every member, whether you're running a forty-seat restaurant, a 200-room hotel, or an active catering operation. This organization and our updated branding says out loud what we’ve always believed: we're stronger representing this industry as one voice than as separate pieces.”
“Hotels and restaurants have always faced the same issues — labor, licensing, taxes, the cost of staying open,” said Amanda Arling-Carlson, President of Heidenreich Hospitality Group and CRHA Board of Directors Member. “What drew me here is an organization willing to grow to meet that. Being part of an association that advocates for the entire industry, means the people making decisions at the Capitol are hearing a complete picture of what hospitality actually looks like.”
Over the coming months, the association will continue to engage members statewide as it rolls out new resources, expanded advocacy efforts, and programming under the new identity.
ABOUT THE CONNECTICUT RESTAURANT & HOSPITALITY ASSOCIATION
The Connecticut Restaurant & Hospitality Association is a full service, not-for-profit trade association dedicated to supporting every type and size of hospitality business (restaurant, hotel, caterer, inn and more). We are advocates for the Connecticut hospitality industry, a hub for information and a platform for networking. We commit ourselves to offering cost effective benefits and resources you need to run a profitable business. The industry plays an integral role in Connecticut’s economy employing more than 170,000 hospitality workers and generating more than $21 billion in annual sales. Along with the Connecticut Hospitality Educational Foundation (CHEF), the Association protects, advances, and educates the growing industry. Learn more at www.hospitalityct.org.