When Jennifer Storms started her career at the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee in Colorado Springs, Colo., she quickly noticed that visitors to the company’s headquarters often beelined to a particular landmark. “The most-visited place on campus is the oversized Olympic rings, and everyone was there taking photos,” recalled Storms, now the chief marketing…
On June 17 Elevate: Experiential and Creativity rounded out the second annual Adweek at Home summit. Attendees heard marketing experts share the secrets of successful engagement, measurable results, flexible production and creating unforgettable experiences. Featured speakers included Leo Burnett’s Chaka Sobhani, one of this year’s Creative 100 honorees, Adobe’s John Travis and Best-selling author Jonny…
It’s an alarming fact that most of the world’s children-93%-are breathing in harmful levels of air pollution, according to the World Health Organization. But a new project combines architecture, biotechnology and science to bring clean air to what should be a carefree childhood space: the playground. Meet the Otrivin AirBubble, which claims to be the…
After a year of record store closures, companies large and small are looking to add physical locations with the emphasis shifting from ecommerce to omnichannel retail as the economy reopens. Among them is Psycho Bunny, which began in 2005 as a wholesale menswear line selling in department store chains such as Nordstrom. The retail brand,…
The first round of Wimbledon tennis matches got underway on Monday against a backdrop of grey, rainy skies in London. Despite the grim weather forecast, The Championships provide a creative playground for brands eager to engage fans after the most famous summer tennis tournament was cancelled last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This year’s…
Venues, restaurants and event centers around Austin, Texas, endured an unheard of and eerily silent Spring Break in 2020. Then, when South by Southwest (SXSW) announced on October 6, 2020 that it would be all virtual in 2021, hopes of a reprieve from Covid-19’s devastating effects on the hospitality industry were soundly dashed–and some of…
Oreo is increasingly prepared for existential threats from space. In 2020, the brand–with agencies The Community and 360i–created an underground Arctic vault to protect a cache of Oreos from an apocalyptic meteor strike. Luckily, asteroid 2018 VP1 soared harmlessly past Earth, and Oreo’s doomsday vault was named by Adweek readers as their favorite marketing stunt…
Comcast wants visitors to view its Xfinity retail stores as “digital playgrounds” where the cable operator can be regarded as a source of entertainment and advanced technology for subscribers even when they’re off the couch. The experiential campaign, created by IPG’s Elephant, is currently running at 472 of the company’s 540 retail outlets through July…
Two brand campaigns–one about empowering customers in the real world and the other a clever marketing workaround in the virtual gaming world–today won top honors in Cannes’ 2021 Brand Experience and Activation Lions. Mastercard’s “True Name,” developed by agency McCann, and Burger King’s “Stevenage Challenge” from agency David shared top honors in the category, continuing…
U.K. telecom provider O2 is the latest brand to break into Fortnite by creating an interactive music experience within the video game. Created by VCCP, the campaign marks the first time that The O2-an entertainment venue in London-will appear in a video game. It is also the first time that a U.K. music act, the…
After the CDC’s recent announcement that vaccinated people don’t need to wear masks indoors anymore, the live events space is having its reckoning as it determines how to safely open again. According to data from experiential agency Momentum Worldwide, which polled more than 1,700 people in early April, music fans in particular cannot wait to…
The invite came over text a couple weeks ago–“I’ll be in NYC for a few days. Happy hour?” It was the first time a marketer reached out to meet in person in 15 months, and I hardly knew how to respond. There was a lot to consider. Where would we go? How would we get…
Was there ever any thought about chucking our third annual Experiential Awards, since the pandemic that hit last spring effectively made hallmarks of the industry like “high touch” and “IRL” nearly impossible? We’re happy to report that we’re soldiering on with this special section that honors innovative and breakthrough campaigns, finding that 2020’s lockdown did…
The idea of any travel brand counting 2020 as a “winning” year would strike even the most wildly confident marketing executive as absurd. And yet, for Airbnb, 2020 was successful. Proof of that can be found in the company’s December IPO, which opened at $146, more than double the price it set the day before…
To satisfy pandemic-induced cravings for Butterbeer or to replace the broken wand that has left your life devoid of magic, Warner Bros. opened the doors to its first and only flagship Harry Potter store in New York City. To accommodate fans of the book series, theatrical play and movies, the location boasts three stories and…
After more than a year of social distancing and with summer on the way, many consumers are more than ready to enjoy some quality time outside. For performance and lifestyle brand Merrell, that means challenging the line between “indoor” and “outdoor” activities. Created in partnership with the brand’s agency of record Words From The Woods,…
This summer, as tourism is set to slowly return to Scotland, whisky brand Johnnie Walker will invite consumers to come walk with it in the heart of the country’s capital when it opens the doors of its long-awaited $210 million (150 million pounds) visitor’s center brand experience. While the finishing touches are still being added…
The cautious return of larger gatherings to everything from sports stadiums to restaurants has experiential marketers thinking about what the reset of in-person programming will mean in 2021. Despite signs of digital fatigue among most consumers, the expectation that the pandemic only accelerated the move toward hybrid digital and virtual experiences has taken hold among…
For years, Frieze New York hosted as many as 200 art galleries under a giant, billowing white tent on Randall’s Island in the East River. In early May, the art fair returned–the first major in-person art exhibition in 14 months. Of course, the comeback of live sponsored events isn’t back to “normal” just yet. This…
On March 11, 2020, the NBA indefinitely suspended the season after a player tested positive for Covid-19. It was a frightening moment that sent shock waves across the nation. Other leagues quickly followed the NBA, leading to a standstill across professional sports. Countries around the world were imposing strict and immediate lockdowns on all facets…
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