Blending Inspiration with Intention

I’ve had this music video bookmarked ever since it came out. I also knew I wanted to bring the video to life in some way, and my first time pitching this concept was back when I was at Beautycon (2013), wanting to bring influencers together to feel immersed in an experiential activation before one of our conferences. While it didn’t get picked up, I knew this idea would come back around, with the right brand + the right setting.

My First Go

This activation was my first being at the brand, so of course I needed it to be THEEEE MOMENT — and thankfully, my role came with full autonomy to explore how I would execute the task.

The task? Create an experience highlighting lululemon’s latest collaboration with Roksanda. The product was all about movement, highlighting dance as a form of inspiration. THIS WAS IT. This was going to be my fluttering-ballerinas-to-a-piano-moment.

I had jotted down all the things I wanted to bring to life for this.

Dancers in every single item from the collab line
Aerialists coming from the ceiling for that ‘wow’ moment
A raw extra-large venue space so the dinner felt exactly like the video — thousands of square feet of raw material, unfinished, cold even
A mega long table with chairs on either side, going straight down the center of the venue
A fine-dining experience you wouldn’t have otherwise gotten in a space like this
Make the guests a part of the experience; inviting some of Los Angeles’ most influential female leaders in community, impact, fashion + culture
Someone to greet them on their arrival outside the venue, bringing champagne before they enter, to give ease and anticipation
A theatric entrance where guests would have no clue what they were walking into… until they did

Question was… how?

A Little BTS

All Hands On Deck

lululemon team structures were scrappy as all hell but it honestly is what created the agility and autonomy I experienced during my first years there. So, it was me and my store community lead and vendors, vendors, vendors.

I brought on Word Agency to execute my vision. And damn, did she nail it. She took every single thing I wanted and brought it to life. As you’ll see in the photos, she made so much of the vision possible. She had scissor lifts and safety equipment, and worked with lighting and truly made this moment come to life.

Setting The Scene

The sun’s setting, so it’s getting dark and moody.

You’re holding a glass of champagne given to you outstide the venue by one of the performers wearing the collab.

The doors of a roll-top garage open up to reveal a raw warehouse space, with painted wooden beams on the ceiling, and cement-textured walls. It’s truly a moment. Down the center of the room, is a very long table setting for 50, with lights navigating you into the space. The table is decorated with the prettiest place settings and bright floral arrangements.

Then, the moment.

Two aerialists come down from the ceiling, fluttering in their Roksanda wear, creating moment the product intended.

You’re guided to your seat and the experience continues.

Each course, brought together by Chef Becky Reams, brought more conversation and connection than a majority of the guests knew would come. By the second course, the room started to shift. Music dimmed, lights shifted, and there was a pause in the room.

From the west wing of the warehouse, came 10 dancers. They marched to their places and broke out into a huge performance… encapsulating ALL of the vision from ‘Runaway’.

The best part? The guests’ faces. They had no idea what was coming and seeing the movement and flow from the dancers in the product perfectly encapsulated the impact of the experience; let the product speak with intention. And it did just that.

Guest POVS

Roksanda’s launch event was more than a product reveal; it was an experiential journey that celebrated the strength and elegance of womxn leaders. Inspired by Kanye West’s ‘Runaway,’ the event not only highlighted the collection but also created a unique narrative that will resonate with our guests long after the night has ended.

Here’s how you can apply using art as inspiration in your marketing:

Be Immersive
Art can transform a standard marketing event into an experience your audience wasn’t expecting. Just like this launch, incorporating opportunities that inspire the share; live performances, interactive installations, or visual storytelling, etc. can create the continued storytelling we all crave as idea people.
Be A Storyteller
When we are inspired by something, it’s likely because it connected to something we can relate to, like within our experiences, our stories. Use that to your advantage by connecting what you’re creating to something your audience feels. Take your product/offer/service / YOU out of it and think about how your community will understand, interpret and engage. This goes back to building relationship with your community. Connect your why to theirs.
Their Senses Are What Resonates
Art isn’t just this visual experience; it can be multi-sensory. Even when your business is 99% online, there is a way to inject all the senses even when your audience can’t experience it. Describe the sensation of smelling, the connection of feel, the energy of tasting. Think about how conferences get you sucked into their marketing; you can feel the energy of attending. You can describe your offers that create a sensory experience. Even better if you can actually give it to them.
Be In Their Seat
What do you want them to know, to feel, to see? What do you want their outcome to be? That’s your North Star. For me, I knew I wanted to surprise + delight my guests, I knew I wanted to immerse them into an experience and I also knew I wanted them to view the product without it being product on mannequins like a typical ‘show and tell’. This navigated the entire production. The same goes for what you offer. Don’t build for the typical, build for your client. Craft something exactly for them that they’ll know, right from jump, this is where they belong.