Retailwise, a new platform brought to you by leading SaaS specialists Staffwise, comes at a moment when UK marketing budgets are recovering and brands are doubling down on in-store activations. 

According to the IPA Bellwether Q2 2025 Report, a net balance of 5.5% of marketers increased spend, reversing a four-year low in Q1. While growth in experiential marketing eased slightly to 3.9% (down from 5.4%), it remains one of the few areas showing consistent investment, alongside sales promotions and direct marketing. 

This renewed confidence in experiential formats is being felt across retail. Shoppers are returning to physical spaces not just to buy, but to engage. And brands are responding with activations that are more immersive, more interactive, and more strategically designed to drive shopper engagement, influence purchase decisions, and extend reach beyond the store through social sharing and branded content.

Recent UK data highlights the scale of this shift:

• 88% of the population visited a retail destination in late 2024  
• Under-35s averaged 9.5 visits per month, driven by experiential formats 
• 85% of customers are more likely to spend in-store after attending an event 
• 73% say they spend more time and money in stores offering experiences 
• 77% of marketers now integrate experiential into their brand strategy  

With mainstream signals like Netflix formalising “Netflix House,” and the Financial Times putting immersive entertainment near £100bn in 2024 with strong growth expected by 2030. This reflects what many IPM members are seeing on the ground: a rise in in-store activations, sampling campaigns, and immersive merchandising. All of which depend on well-coordinated field teams.  

“We built Retailwise to solve very real industry challenges we saw our clients facing every day,” says Mark Waddington, Founder of Staffwise. “It’s about empowering agencies and brands with the tools to run smarter, faster, and more effective retail execution.”

Connecting Field Teams to Campaign Results 

Retailwise is designed to close the gap between the people delivering in-store campaigns and the systems used to measure their impact. Field teams are often managed separately from reporting tools, leaving brands with fragmented data and limited visibility.  
 
The platform brings together scheduling, onboarding, and real-time reporting into one streamlined system. Whether it’s a nationwide sampling tour or a series of tactical merchandising visits, agencies can now track who was on-site, what was delivered, and how it performed, all in one place. With budgets tight, spending becomes strategic and having access to a wealth of data and analytic helps underpin effective retail spending. 
 
In addition to it’s shelf-scanning tools, Retailwise also focuses on the people behind the campaigns  (brand ambassadors, merchandisers, and promotional teams) giving agencies visibility into attendance, activity, and outcomes. 

Smarter Retail Starts Here 

In a landscape where shopper expectations are rising and brand experiences matter more than ever, platforms like Retailwise are helping agencies and brands lead with confidence, clarity, and impact. Ready to see it in action? Visit retailwise.io or book a demo to explore how smarter retail execution starts here. 

The post Staffwise Launches Retailwise as Experiential Retail Gains Ground appeared first on IPM Bitesize.

Kallø, the ‘naturally different’ food brand from Ecotone UK, is marking its entrance into the breakfast category with an exciting new in-store experience, building on a wider creative and out-of-home (OOH) campaign which launched at the start of the year. From 9th-15th March, Kallø will be bringing its latest product, Organic Granola, to life with a one-of-a-kind activation at the Waitrose flagship store in Canary Wharf, London.  

The granola, which launched late last year, will take centre stage in a large-scale, interactive display featuring 3D-printed granola inside a giant bowl – inspired by the trend of adult ball pools. 

Kallø is encouraging shoppers to ‘ghost their toast’ in favour of granola – the key message featured in the brand’s wider OOH advertising campaign launched this January.

The activation is designed to engage and excite shoppers, bringing Kallø’s fun and joyful brand personality to life.  It also serves as a conversion stunt by incentivising people to buy the granola in store.

Cynthia Allaglo, Kallø Brand Manager, said: “Consumers are lacking creativity when it comes to mealtimes, and this is escalated at breakfast time – where a huge proportion of people habitually eat the same thing every morning. Kallø is pleased to help solve this by offering a naturally different option, helping to spark creativity and joy again. Our organic granola is also the sustainable choice, made with organic ingredients and no hidden nasties.”

“We’re thrilled to bring this interactive experience to Waitrose, to help spread the word of natural breakfasts and grab consumer attention at the point of purchase.”  

Alongside the immersive experience, visitors will have the chance to win prizes, pick up branded tote bags, and grab discount coupons to try Kallø’s range. To help spread the word, Kallø is also teaming up with influencers, creating recipes, and running Waitrose gift card giveaways to encourage more shoppers to visit the store. The brand will also be running giveaway breakfasts to surrounding businesses, to help spread the ‘ghost your toast’ message.

This activation marks an exciting step for Kallø as it continues to grow in the breakfast category, offering a playful, interactive way to connect with customers and showcase its organic range. 

Simon Grater, Mad River Founder and Creative Director, adds: “Our design for Kallo’s ‘Naturally Different’ breakfast activation builds on the rising popularity of playful, immersive experiences. Think adult ball pits, but with a delicious twist. By transforming the in-store space into an oversized cereal bowl, we’ve created a fun, hands-on moment that stops shoppers in their tracks and invites them to engage with the brand in a fresh way. We develop experiential activations like this because they spark curiosity, drive social sharing, and make brand interactions more memorable. We’re proud to support Kallo in reaching younger consumers through creativity that’s as natural and joyful as their products.”

The post Kallø Launches Innovative In-Store Experience at Waitrose to Celebrate Breakfast Range appeared first on IPM Bitesize.

With just over 1 week remaining until the entry deadline for the prestigious IPM Awards 2024, the time to shine is now. This is your opportunity to showcase your outstanding work, celebrate your achievements, and stand a chance to claim one of the highly sought-after IPM trophies.

After the resounding success of last year’s event, which saw a sell-out crowd, it’s evident that the promotional marketing industry is brimming with remarkable campaigns. These campaigns play a pivotal role in driving brand success, fostering customer loyalty and engagement, and, of course, boosting sales.

Whether your expertise lies in promotional incentive campaigns, competitions, immersive experiential initiatives, or collaborative brand partnerships, the IPM Awards categories cater to a diverse range of accomplishments.

Its time to get moving; the deadline is Wednesday, May 8th, at 4:00 PM.

Don’t miss out on the chance to be recognised for your excellence in promotional marketing.

Enter the IPM Awards 2024 today and take your place among industry trailblazers.

For all category information visit https://theipm.org.uk/awards-2024/

The post Act Now: Last week to Enter the IPM Awards 2024 appeared first on IPM Bitesize.

De’Longhi, the leading brand in domestic coffee machines, has once again partnered with experiential experts, TRO, to help launch its new product – Rivelia – into the market.

TRO will help visitors get hands-on with Rivelia through ‘The One Touch Café’, an exciting and fresh activation that provides consumers with café quality coffee at the touch of a button.

In a world where coffee culture is booming but consumers are more time poor than ever before, The One Touch Café aims to support and enhance the busy and on-the-go consumer lifestyle. Visitors to the pop-up will be able to create their own coffee on the go with just one touch, highlighting the brand’s bean-to-cup credentials and the quality and efficiency of the latest addition to its range.

The activity will kick off in Liverpool on 2^nd May and will journey across an additional five UK cities including Newcastle, Nottingham, Oxford, Bristol and London.

Rob Booker, Account Director, TRO, said: “We are delighted to continue our partnership with De’Longhi to bring this concept to new audiences. The experience will truly put consumers at the heart, enabling them to discover the product and array of personalisation opportunities for themselves.”

Nadia Hobbs, Partnerships, Sampling and Events Manager, De’Longhi, added: “It’s great to work with TRO once again. Their audience and channel understanding will undoubtedly enable us to forge strong connections between coffee lovers and Rivelia throughout the country.

“We can’t wait to introduce the luxury and simplicity of making café quality coffee at the touch of a button.”

As chosen experiential partner, TRO will offer a complete end-to-end service – including design, production, logistics and staffing.

Last year, TRO helped showcase Eletta Explore via House of De’Longhi – learn more here.

The One Touch Café 2024 De’Longhi roadshow dates and locations include:

• Liverpool One – 2^nd – 5^th May
• Newcastle Grainger Street – 9^th – 12^th May
• Nottingham Victoria Centre – 16^th – 19^th May
• Oxford Westgate Centre – 23^rd May – 26^th May
• Bristol Cabot Circus – 30^th May – 2^nd June
• Westfields, White City, London – 6^th – 9^th June

The post De’Longhi to take ‘The One Touch Café’ on the road appeared first on IPM Bitesize.

Ambient Media Worldwide worked with Lynx on a global campaign launch with an OOH stunt, featuring a bold statement. The new Lynx Black Vanilla scent has triumphed over Tom Ford Tobacco Vanille, with 74 per cent of men favouring Lynx over the pricey designer fragrance, according to research for the brand.

To reinforce this message Ambient brought a non-branded, scented billboard to London’s Southbank, with a playful message asking passers-by if they thought the billboard smelt better than a £200 fragrance. Lynx Black Vanilla was diffused with fragrance across the 10ft billboard, enticing Londoners to lean in and take a sniff. The billboard displaying the results was unveiled by Love Island star and musician Wes Nelson, with support from 11 additional influencers and the sampling of 500 products.

The post Ambient Launch Lynx scented billboard activation appeared first on IPM Bitesize.

Award-winning creative brand experience agency, N2O, is set to captivate shoppers this Halloween with the Trail to Treats touring roadshow, born from the retailer’s new Halloween toolkit.

This engaging event will reach selected Tesco stores nationwide, designed as a way to bring the toolkit’s spooky characters to life with Tesco shoppers. Kicking off the retail experience, visitors can sample products from an array of specially selected brands, including Mr Kipling, Monster Munch, Jammy Dodgers, Party Rings, Chupa Chups, Maryland Cookies, Accolade Wines and Diablo Wine.

Customers are then be invited to hunt for the characters within the aisles, using clues to find letters that spell out a mystery word. To add to the attraction, a fun photo opportunity will feature in the foyer, where shoppers can capture a memorable moment with one of the spooky characters featured on the trail.

Steve Frith, Art Director at N2O, said: “Halloween is an increasingly popular seasonal moment in consumers’ calendars, so we wanted to encourage customer engagement with a bit of theatre and entertainment, bringing Tesco’s Halloween toolkit to life like never before. With a whole host of spooky new characters to play with, we wanted to introduce them to customers in an interactive and memorable way, weaving them through a retail experience. The activity is set to entertain and inspire; from the sampling of treats and the fun of the trail, to a themed prize and promoted supplier offerings.”

The Trail to Treats is live from 5^th to 31^st October. Locate your nearest activity at: Tesco House of Halloween (tescohalloween.com)

The post N2O Collaborates With Tesco to Deliver Halloween Trail to Treat Multi-Brand Retail Experience Across the UK appeared first on IPM Bitesize.

Multi-award-winning creative brand experience agency, N2O, has designed an immersive brand experience for Fruit-tella to drive awareness of its new product line with an engaging Halloween activity for families.

Executed as part of the brand’s Halloween Hotel creative platform, which includes an Alexa Halloween Countdown Calendar, the Bluewater pop-up will immerse visitors in the World of Curiosities, offering free samples of the new Fruit-tella jelly product (which has 30% reduced sugar) and driving to store. Three creepy doors will each hide a task to receive a key to unlock a prize at the end of the trio of quests. From tangled webs, giant ghouls and creepy cauldrons, the activity is set to excite and delight families with children aged 4 to 12, offering fun for the Half Term holidays.

Lauren Potter, Senior Brand Manager at Perfetti Van Melle, said: “We tasked N2O with finding a way to drive awareness of our new Fruit-tella Curiosities jellies range with a spooky, seasonal experience that would be a memorable Half Term moment with the family. Our brand is all about fun – family-oriented and joyful – and N2O brought that to life perfectly!”

Daljit Babber, Art Director at N2O, said: “It’s hard to cut through the saturated market at this moment in the year, so we had to come up with something that would stop people in their tracks. The result is a really engaging and eye-catching setup that captures families’ attention and was so fun to work on!”

The Fruit-tella Halloween Hotel will be at Bluewater Shopping Centre from 21^st to 29^th October.

The post N2O and Fruit-tella Create Halloween Hotel Brand Experience appeared first on IPM Bitesize.

Award-winning creative brand experience agency, N2O, is activating two campaigns to inform consumers about their particular skincare needs.

The La Roche-Posay Effaclar experience at Westfield White City (7th to 10th September) featured full-range demonstrations targeting those with blemish-prone skin and showcasing their Effaclar Spotscan diagnostic tool, an AI service developed with dermatologists to help customers find their personalised routine for blemish-prone skin.

Live now across seven locations, the La Roche-Posay Anthelios Sun Safety SPF Tour Bus is travelling the UK and Ireland in an Airstream setup, offering free mole check-ups and educating consumers about the importance of sun protection.

Gemma Mablin, Senior Account Director at N2O, said: “Skincare is a really personal thing, and it’s all about being armed with the best information possible so consumers can make an informed choice. That inspired these activations; really bringing to life the benefits of La Roche-Posay’s specialist ranges. People love having those conversations with the experts, and learning more about the brand in this tailored way.”

Stephanie Parrish, Senior Brand Manager for Anthelios at L’Oréal, said: “We have a great working relationship with the N2O team, and they’ve been incredibly responsive; from the initial creative ideas to the execution, we couldn’t be happier!”

La Roche-Posay Anthelios Sun Safety SPF Tour Bus is touring the UK from 12th to 20th September.

*LA ROCHE-POSAY IS THE NO. 1 DERMATOLOGIST RECOMMENDED BRAND IN THE UK: Study of 73 Consultant Dermatologists Jan-April 2023. For more info visit the website

The post N2O Showcases Duo of Educational Experiences for La Roche-Posay appeared first on IPM Bitesize.

Award-winning creative brand experience agency, N2O, is delivering a touring food and drink roadshow for the UK’s largest retailer this summer, with new taste discoveries and delicious demonstrations.

Celebrating a “Summer full of flavour”, the free food tasting and family fun event will invite customers to discover food and drink brands and interactive activities. It will offer affordable, savvy ways to enjoy an outdoor get together with family and friends (come rain or shine!)

Brands – including Tesco own-brand – will be positioned in sunflower-adorned summer houses, set around a garden complete with white picket fences. The elevated experiences set within a garden gathering will include a BBQ area, family space complete with brands including Lego and Nerf, and a live food theatre showcasing recipes and useful hints and tips on how to celebrate at home with friends and family.

Nigel Clifton, Head of Creative at N2O, said: “This really is a coming together of what summer has to offer. Our strategy is driven by our insights – which identified that Tesco shoppers are looking for more affordable options for their summer food and drink, including cooking at home instead of eating out, and they are more likely to be looking for quick and easy food ideas. This all informed the direction we went in, with our brightly-coloured summer setup with recipe inspiration theatre, cost and time saving tips, abundance of free food to try and chances to win a family fun day out.”

The experience will also be extended into selected stores, with summer houses in foyer spaces offering sampling and more information for customers to take home.

The free food tasting and family fun roadshow starts today, travelling to 100 Tesco store car parks. To find your local experience, visit www.tescosummer.com

The post Tesco and N2O Announce Summer Full Of Flavour Roadshow appeared first on IPM Bitesize.

Superdrug has entrusted award-winning creative brand experience agency, N2O, to bring back its ultimate brand experience in February 2023.

The follow-up event to Superdrug’s uber-popular 2019 health and beauty brand showcase will kick off at The Truman Brewery (Brick Lane) from 24^th – 26^th February. The three-day event – the ‘ultimate health and beauty playground’ and the UK’s largest beauty festival – invites attendees to enjoy free treatments, attend exclusive masterclasses with industry experts, meet with big-name beauty influencers, and immerse themselves in all things health and beauty.

Brands include: Bourjois, Marc Jacobs, BedHead, Ariana Grande perfume, NYX Professional Makeup, CeraVe, Glaze, Britney Spears fragrance, Feather & Down, Nivea, Pantene x Moschino and more. Superdrug’s own Superdrug Healthcare and Superdrug Beauty Studio will also feature.

Matt Walburn, Marketing, eCom, Digital, Customer Director at Superdrug, said: “We are excited to see the return of Superdrug Presents. We know the value of experience for our customers and being able to host an event that brings so many fantastic brands together is something we’re confident they will love. N2O share our vision when it comes to experiential and we can’t wait to see it come to life at the end of the month, it’s not to be missed!”

Clare James, Chief Operating Officer at N2O, said: “This massive event was such a big project for us to work on in 2019, and we’re in a great position to bring it back in this post-Pandemic landscape. It was incredibly well-received in 2019, so to be able to deliver it again and build on that excitement from fans is a fantastic thing. Our talented Creative Team have devised over 30 unique health and beauty experiences for customers to immersive themselves in and it’s bigger and better than ever before!”

Tickets and more information can be found at Superdrug Presents | Superdrug

The post N2O Partner With Superdrug For Biggest Ever Event- Superdrug Presents appeared first on IPM Bitesize.