Experiential marketing is about shifting people’s perceptions, exceeding their expectations and providing memorable, enjoyable and tangible connections between brand and consumer. When confronted with all the noise and clutter prevalent in our 21st century world, what makes me, in my role as consumer, pause and take notice? I must admit my expectations might be higher than those of someone who doesn’t live and breath experiential marketing and brand advocacy, but the basic components are the same. I want to be surprised and delighted. I want a unique experience. I want to feel that the brand speaks directly to me, reflects out-of-the-box thinking and respects my time, values and intelligence. I know how we achieve that at A Squared Group, and I love seeing it done well elsewhere too.
Recently, I was introduced to Bompas & Parr via KCRW’s Good Food program, and once again reminded of how limitless the possibilities are for creating a memorable experience – whether in service to a brand or not. Bompas & Parr up-ended the idea of what it means to have a drink. They vaporized Hendrick’s Gin and Fever Tree tonic in a building. Guests walked through a cloud of mist, “drinking” their gin and tonic with each inhalation of air.
Anyone who imbibed from this Alcoholic Architecture will never think of gin and tonic the same way again, and will associate this amazing experience with the brands involved.
All of which just goes to show that nurturing the relationship between brand and consumer has never been more fun.
As autumn took hold of New York these past few weeks, a concept within a Concept brought the spirit of Paris to the streets of Manhattan. The Gap White Space Concept Store underwent a transformation once again. This time, the A Squared Group team was charged with recreating the magic of Merci – a Parisian concept shop – in Gap’s White Space, for consumers on this side of the Atlantic.
As always, the White Space provided us a perfect blank canvas with which to play.
The Merci boutique may be unfamiliar to those who haven’t ventured to France within the past six months and au courante on all international fashion and design trends. That makes it even more exciting for us to be able to help introduce Merci in the United States. It is an eclectic mix of haute discoveries, vintage pieces and a melange of items in between. It is a vibrant, unpretentious shop with an artistic vibe – a great match with Gap’s aesthetic.
We captured that spirit, with all its whimsy and great attention to detail, to produce a memorable experience for visitors to the Gap Concept Store.
Consumers who enter the Merci Gap shop would never guess that only days before Anna Wintour and the denizens of New York’s Fashion Week celebrated its opening, a denim-themed story highlighting Gap’s Born to Fit campaign lived in the space. Or that, just weeks earlier, we had built a yoga studio environment and brought in yoga gurus to teach classes. As with those that came before, the Merci experience was fleeting. We are already at work to transform the Gap Concept Store into a new incarnation. Stop by 54th and 5th when next you’re in the city, to see the latest developments.