Global creative experiences group Because has announced the appointment of Natasha Blevins, formerly Creative Director at FCB Inferno, to the same role at Because, as the agency continues to grow its service offering.

Blevins brings two decades of creative experience to Because, having worked at some of the UK’s biggest integrated agencies. At FCB Inferno, she creatively led the NIVEA portfolio for Beiersdorf and worked across Sky and Microsoft.

Natasha Blevins, Creative Director at Because, says: “With more brands moving away from traditional marketing in the pursuit of more agile, creative campaigns, the spotlight is on experiential like never before and it feels this sector’s time is finally here, demonstrated by festivals like The Cannes Lions launching a dedicated award. I’m excited at the prospect of delivering immersive, meaningful and valuable brand experiences for our clients.”

Her appointment follows quickly after the appointment of Graham Wall as Because’s new UK CEO in January. Wall says: “Clients demand stand-out creative that delivers results. Natasha has an outstanding reputation for creating class-leading campaigns, across all media, that do just this. Her appointment comes at an important time for the business as we continue to invest in giving our clients the very best insight, ideas and service.”

Because helps brands by delivering meaningful, memorable and magical live, digital and virtual experiences. It works cross-channel with creative studios around the world including in the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Dubai. The agency’s client list includes British Gas, Emaar, Renault, Nivea, Dropbox and Gillette.

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Global creative experiences group Because has announced three key senior appointments, as the agency continues its global expansion.

Graham Wall (pictured) has been named as the new UK CEO of Because, bringing with him almost 20 years of creative and strategic expertise.

Wall’s previous tenures include serving as Executive Creative Director at some of London’s top integrated agencies including Table19 and The Marketing Store. His creative campaign experience spans leading brands such as Unilever, Sky, Mars and Lloyds Bank.

His appointment allows Sharon Richey, Founder and global CEO of Because, to concentrate on spearheading further international expansion, especially in Southeast Asia, following a strong 18 months that has seen 20% growth across the group and new studios opened in Dublin and Dubai.

“Because has built a strong reputation for delivering memorable brand experiences across live, digital and virtual environments. My number one goal is to build on this heritage and ensure that we inject game-changing creative thinking into our clients’ campaigns – ideas that give the businesses we work with a distinct competitive advantage” says Graham Wall, UK CEO at Because.

Gavin Coffey has also been hired as the new Global Digital Director at Because, working from its Dublin studio. He joins Because to enhance the group’s digital offering and amplification capabilities for new and existing clients alike. With a strong digital background amassed at agencies including Drury | Porter Novelli and Teneo PSG, Gavin has created digital, social media and PR strategies for the likes of Vodafone Ireland, Heineken and Audi.

Rounding off the new appointments, Liz Elliott joins Because as Global Business Director in Sydney, Australia, to grow the group’s client base, build relationships with inspiring and ambitious brands, and provide support to the group’s global partners.

Sharon Richey, founder of Because, comments: “We are driven to deliver the very best creative campaigns for the brands that we work with. Graham, Gavin and Liz bring with them a wealth of creative and commercial insights which will really strengthen the Because offering in the UK and around the world. I’m pleased to welcome them to the team as we continue our growth while remaining committed to imaginative, immersive and emotive brand storytelling.”

Because works cross-channel with creative studios around the world including the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Canada.

The agency’s client list includes British Gas, Emaar, Renault, Nivea, Dropbox and Gillette.

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The heart of Dublin city centre has been transformed into a festive wonderland with the official launch of Après Dublin, Ireland’s first-of-its-kind Christmas party venue, which officially opened its doors to the public with a big launch night on Thursday 30th November.

Après Dublin is a new experiential initiative which is being supported by brand partner Coors Light, Dublin City Council and The CHQ Building and which was created by experiential agency Because.

The ambitious activation has seen the 1,000sqm George’s Dock venue, CHQ, turned into a giant custom-built ski lodge and festive village, with Après social activities and entertainment right at its heart.

The launch night featured with two of the stars of the Disney film Cool Runnings. Doug E. Doug and Rawle D. Lewis – who played Sanka Coffie and Junior Bevil in the classic winter film, which celebrates its 25th anniversary next year – invited fans to join them in an empty bathtub to recreate one of the most iconic scenes from the movie, which tells the tale of the Jamaican bobsled’s team’s journey to Winter Olympics glory.

The festive activation runs every night in Dublin until Saturday 23rd December, and is expecting a turn-out of over 50,000 people.

The seasonal delights on offer include an interactive Virtual Reality ski experience, a snow globe photo opportunity, a ski-lift photo booth, a Santa’s Grotto, carousel rides, and more. Mulled wine, handmade gifts and a range of foods are all for sale within the free-to-attend village, while a full Après band and in-house DJ provide a soundtrack each evening within the ticketed Après LODGE.

Special musical guests are set to include Spring Break, Cosmic Funk and Attention Bebe.

Après Dublin is also partnering with Irish charity Inner City Helping Homeless which provides resources and provisions to Dublin’s homeless. Organisers are providing a Christmas present wrapping service in return for donations to the charity.

Because is a creative experiences agency with studios around the world. Amongst current and past clients are Renault, Lego, Glenfiddich, BP, Reebok, Evian, Carlsberg and Dulux,

The picture shows Cool Runnings actors Doug E. Doug and Rawle D. Lewis with one of the guests at the launch of Après Dublin.

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Procter & Gamble has launched its latest Gillette razor in Australia with an in-store virtual reality (VR) experiential activation at supermarkets and pharmacies across the country.

Designed by international brand experience agency BEcause, the Gillette ProShield VR Experience aims to give Australian men an entertaining and immersive insight into the new razor, which features dual lubricating strips before and after the blades.

It is one of the first times Procter & Gamble has used VR to promote the Gillette brand globally.

Participants in the VR experience find themselves on a virtual roller-coaster ride along a yellow lubrication strip, flying around a man shaving in his bathroom, before diving into his bristles in the path of a smooth close-up shave.

The campaign launched mid-February, and is touring hundreds of Coles stores nationwide over the coming months, before being rolled out to pharmacies across the country. Up to 40 Gillette ProShield VR experiences will be live in store at any one time.

Ryan Edwards, Assistant Brand Manager for Gillette at P&G, comments: “A lot of Australian men still don’t give much thought to their choice of razor or quality of shave, often just opting for lower priced disposable razors. We wanted to find an original way to really stand out and disrupt their shopping auto-pilot. Virtual reality delivers that in abundance. It’s a brilliant way to entertain and educate our target audience with something totally different in the market.”

Meredith Cranmer, Founder and Managing Director of BEcause Australia, adds: “Research shows 55% of men and 40% of women express a strong interest in experiencing VR. People are always curious about what they’re going to discover, and intensely focused on the brand experience whilst taking part. It’s a fun, unexpected and contemporary way of engaging consumers – and ideal for the kind of modern cutting-edge male audience Gillette is trying to reach with this campaign.”

Because is an international brand experience agency with offices in the UK, Ireland and Australia. Clients include Procter & Gamble, British Gas, Groupe Bel and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).

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Woolworths, the Australian retailer, is taking tennis fans at this year’s Australian Open Tennis Championships on a unique food journey through a multi-sensory brand experience.

The Woolworths Summer Sensorium  takes place at the world-renowned tennis tournament in Melbourne from Monday January 16^th to Sunday January 29^th. In conjunction with the Woolworths marketing team, BEcause Experiential Marketing, devised the exclusive free visitor experience on Grand Slam Oval at Melbourne Park.

The activation is designed to appeal to all five senses with ‘A Taste of Australian Summer’. It offers fans the opportunity to see, touch, hear, smell and taste Woolworths’ fresh seasonal produce and immerse themselves in an environment which also showcased the local farmers that partner with Woolworths.

Housed within a giant geodesic dome, the immersive multi-sensory food experience provides a rounded paddock-to-plate journey for participants. Consumers can enjoy three summer-inspired dishes taken directly from the pages of Woolworths’ FRESH magazine, each expertly paired with fresh juices to enhance tasting pleasure.

The one-of-a-kind journey takes full advantage of the distinctive dome with highly visual and immersive 360˚ projections produced by Visual Playground, with full narration to take those inside on a full journey from field to plate.

The integrated campaign is being amplified by PR via a media launch involving top Australian tennis player Daria Gavrilova and the Woolies Ballkids, all of which is amplified across the Australian Open social channels. The Sensorium is also attracting a great deal of attention from the visitors attending the popular event from both Melbourne and across the country.

Andrew Hicks, Director of Marketing, Woolworths, comments: “The Australian Open is an iconic Aussie event and we wanted to use our partnership this year to bring to life the great quality food our farmers produce for our customers through a unique and memorable experience. As well as our sponsorship of the Woolworths Ball Kids at the Australian Open, the Summer Sensorium also supports our aim to inspire a healthy Australia and feed fresh talent by showcasing the amazing recipes within our FRESH Magazine, all inspired to create quick, healthy and affordable meals for all the family, ensuring our customers can make the most of their summer.”

This year’s Australian Open tournament is expected to attract more than 700,000 visitors from around the globe across 14 days. Visitors to the Grand Slam Oval at the Open can reserve a ticket onsite at the experience daily.

BEcause XM is an international brand experience agency with offices in Ascot, London, Dublin and Australia as well as a global network of experiential partners.

Woolworths Ltd is an Australian retail group and the second largest company in Australian by turnover. Despite its name, it was never connected with the F W Woolworth retail group which was a fixture on American and UK High Streets.

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Experiential marketing group BEcause has expanded its reach into Ireland by joining with Dublin-based agency Imagine. The new partnership will see Imagine rebranded as BEcause Ireland from October 17th 2016.

BEcause has been established for more than 20 years in the UK and currently works with 15 of the world’s top 100 global brands to deliver award-winning work spanning all areas of brand experience. Major clients include the likes of Heineken, General Mills, British Gas and the UK Government.

Founded in 2005, Imagine is run by brothers Jonny and Paddy Davis. The agency currently works with a wide range of technology, automotive and FMCG clients on a mix of consumer and corporate events, and employee brand experiences. The agency has worked for clients including Renault, Dropbox, Deliveroo, Glanbia and NIVEA.

The new partnership will see the two agencies combine their strengths under the new BEcause Ireland brand, bringing together Imagine’s experienced local team and skillset with BEcause’s established practices and global network.

The move into Ireland strengthens BEcause’s position as a global brand experience specialist. It also gives the Dublin agency expertise in new Virtual Reality (VR) technology, based on BEcause’s success using VR to deliver high-profile campaigns for brands including Continental Tyres, Boursin and WWF-UK.

Sharon Richey, CEO at Because says: “We’ve been looking for like-minded partners to join the BEcause group since the start of 2016, and Imagine is everything we set out to find. There is a hugely tangible value exchange to be found in global independent agencies working together, making the most of each other’s strengths and different attributes. Working with like-minded founders is inspiring, and this partnership will be hugely beneficial to both parties and, most importantly, to our respective clients.”

Jonny Davis observes: “A partnership with BEcause is a perfect fit for us; we are culturally compatible, with shared passions and the same belief systems and values. We’re already working closely with the UK team on several live pitch opportunities, and we’re proud to be joining this growing global experiential network. We believe this move will allow us to deliver even bigger and better brand experiences for our clients.”

BEcause is looking for other partners across the globe to join its group, Richey says. “We are happy to share our creative assets, tools and working ways with the right agencies; those with similar values and DNA, and who want to leverage off the benefits of a networked group and fast track their growth,” adds Sharon Richey. “We are seeing a lot of real interest in our offering, and are currently in close talks with a host of potential international partners.”

To mark the new partnership, BEcause Ireland will be hosting its first experiential marketing masterclass for Irish-based brand marketers at The Marker Hotel in Dublin next month. More information and registration details can be found at www.becausexm.com/ire-masterclass-nov-2016

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Clipper Teas, the Fairtrade tea brand from Wessanen UK, is launching a three-tiered summer sampling campaign for its green tea range, designed to position the brand as the “Queen of Greens.”

The Fairtrade brand, which currently produces more than 15 green tea variants, will distribute over 250,000 samples of its flagship Pure Green Tea throughout July. The campaign will feature a mixture of face-to-face hit squads, office-based sampling and free samples in ASOS mail deliveries.

BEcause Experiential Marketing has been hired to mastermind the live hit squad aspect of the campaign. An all-female ‘Clipper Crew’ of green tea ‘queens’ in flower-chain crowns, will tour high-footfall outdoor areas within the M25 over nine days of live activity, distributing samples from bicycles and trailers with simple, rustic charm. Public spaces around Wimbledon Park showing the tennis championships on giant screens will be amongst the areas targeted.

To support the hit squad activity, Clipper has engaged GemsAtWork to manage an office-based sampling campaign, whilst Response One has been tasked with coordinating free samples in all mail order deliveries from online fashion retailer ASOS throughout July.

The new campaign aims to champion the delicious, natural taste of Clipper’s Green Tea range as well the health benefits of green tea, and the company’s ethical heritage. It builds on the brand’s quirky Truthful Green Tea Shop pop-up activation earlier this year, which took a humorous hidden camera approach to highlight the difference between Clipper’s green teas and those produced by many other manufacturers.

Gill Green, Marketing Director at Wessanen UK, comments: “Demand for green tea continues to boom, yet within this highly-competitive marketplace we believe our green tea reigns supreme. This concerted sampling drive will allow us to directly reach potential customers that may not have experienced our great-tasting tea before, and to introduce them to our range of delicious, all natural flavours. It is also an opportunity to chat with consumers about the difference they can make to the lives of tea workers and their families, just by drinking a cup of Fairtrade tea from Clipper.”

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