Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1547347
20 Worcester Business Journal | November 2, 2026 | wbjournal.com continued from page 19 F O C U S BANKING & FINANCE mained separate banks, retaining their brands, headquarters and boards. "We're the only ones who didn't change our signs," Jokela said of merg- ers happening locally this year. Behind those unchanged signs, however, the business is adapting. River Run's shared-services model pools costs for technology, market- ing, compliance and other functions, giving the individual banks access to resources they could not afford inde- pendently, Jokela said. at includes a nine-person mar- keting team, compared with Roll- stone's previous marketing staff of one or two people, said Vickie Routhier, River Run's chief marketing officer. e team is planning a modest brand refresh involving language, accent colors and design elements, without replacing Rollstone's name or logo. Jokela wanted improvements to the customers' banking experience to precede cosmetic changes. "I wanted to make sure our custom- ers were taken care of, and I believe we accomplished that," she said. Rollstone is not alone. Leomin- ster-based Fidelity Bank and Cape Cod 5 retained their respective brands aer their holding companies com- bined under Mutual Bancorp in 2024, while Athol Savings Bank has contin- ued operating under its own name as a division of Cornerstone Bank follow- ing its merger into the Spencer-based bank at the end of 2025. Moving toward one brand Hometown Financial's experience shows how the calculation can change over time. e Easthampton-based company spent years operating multiple bank brands, a structure CEO Matt Sosik said helped it attract partners and expand. Global art. Worcester roots. Join us in bringing art to all. Learn about Business Partnerships at worcesterart.org/business. Contact AshleyGarland@worcesterart.org | 508-793-4342 GIVING LEVEL $2,500+ Arthur Cole Painting Corporation The BHR Life Companies Fletcher Tilton PC Attorneys at Law Green Leaf Construction RE/MAX Partners Spectrum Health Systems, Inc. GIVING LEVEL UP TO $2,500 Acrisure/ SG&D Insurance Agency Angiulo Law, PLLC Bartholomew & Company, Inc. The Berry Machnowski Team, Moneta Group Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts The Briarwood Community Café Neelu Callahan Fay Caswell Funeral Home Central One Federal Credit Union Coghlin Companies Coghlin Electrical Contractors, Inc. ConForm Lab Cutler Capital Management, LLC Data Source Inc. Davis Publications, Inc. Deland, Gibson Insurance Associates, Inc. Edward Jones – Tim Howard EmpHowered PR, LLC Erskine & Erskine, LLC Fidelity Bank Fisher Contracting F.W. Madigan Company, Inc. Gaudette Insurance Agency George's Coney Island Greenberg, Rosenblatt, Kull and Bitsoli, P.C. Greenwood Industries, Inc. Grimes & Company The Guru Tax & Financial Services, Inc. J.J. Bafaro Inc. J. S. Mortimer, Inc. Jody Fierz Interior Design, Inc. Joffrey Smith Financial Group Kelleher & Sadowsky Associates, Inc. Lamoureux Pagano Associates | Architects The Li Group at Wells Fargo Advisors Machado Consulting, Inc. MathAltitude School of Mathematics McCarty Companies Mercier Electric Co., Inc. Northwood Insurance Agency, Inc. PNC Bank Rollstone Bank & Trust Seven Hills Foundation SideChannel Sullivan Insurance Group As of September 30, 2026 Woman's Jacket, Qing Dynasty, late 19th century, detail, embroidered silk, Gift of Mrs. Marie Lepore, 1998.81 Thank you to the Business Partners who help bring art to all: GIVING LEVEL $10,000+ The Arbella at Bramble Hill Cornerstone Bank Worcester Business Journal GIVING LEVEL $5,000+ Bowditch & Dewey, LLP Interstate Specialty Products, Inc. Kaplan Construction Middlesex Savings Bank Employees stand outside the TruNorthBank office in Oxford. PHOTO | COURTESY TRUNORTH