We’re living in VUCA times — volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity. A period of instability and acceleration where change happens at the speed of culture — seven years of transformation in seven weeks. It’s exhilarating and scary because, as a business, you either adapt to what the future holds or you die.
In the last three years, what consumers expect from their brands has evolved, what clients want from their agencies has changed and what our industry needs to do to remain relevant has shifted. All of this was happening before the global pandemic.
Because of Covid-19, our economy has become K-shaped with clear winners and clear losers. It’s a brutal place to be. Like the economy, a brand’s fortunes can also be K-shaped. You’re either on the skyward trajectory speeding towards Amazon, or you’re on the steep slope plummeting towards Debenhams. …
Experience strategist Matt Davis delves into the world of Christmas advertising and how the events of 2020 will change it in the long run
Ah Christmas advertising with your implausibly snowy scenes, huge, unfathomably conflict-free family gatherings and lavish feasts with no undercooked poultry in sight. Strangely comforting and wildly unrealistic at the best of times — but clearly 2020, with all its vicissitudes, calls for a mass rethink of how we portray the festive season. So what can we expect?
The fact is that back in the spring, when any existing Christmas 2020 ideas went in the shredder and…
It’s Diwali this weekend and we want to get everyone in the mood for celebrating.
Diwali, or Deepavali, is celebrated by millions of Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and even some Buddhists across the world. Think of it as the Hindu Christmas and New Year. It’s celebrated over five days and is filled with an abundance of food, family time, colourful decorations and presents.
We are getting ready for the weekend celebrations by sharing stories from our people about how they celebrate Diwali and some of their favourite things about the festival.
“My earliest and fondest memories of Diwali are of bright Rangoli patterns my aunts put together on their doorsteps/porches with diyas, and the delicious Bombay iced halwa, jalebi and penda we would devour. Followed by a very competitive game of Carrom!”
Natalie (Nat) Grainger
“Of course Diwali is one of the biggest festivals after Navratri for us Gujjus and I love everything about it. Although nothing can beat Navratri. It’s different this year though.
Below are a few things we do. I try to keep traditions going here in the UK.
My favourite thing about Diwali is… getting to dress…
Introducing our all-agency collaborative playlist to share music by Black artists that make us dance, sing, celebrate, cry, reflect and more. We will be updating this over the course of October with new additions, but for now, here are the stories behind the music that moves us.
Buffalo Soldier — Bob Marley and the Wailers
Music that makes me reflect. The song describes the fight put up by the members of the 10th Cavalry Regiment of the U.S. Army during the American Indian Wars. The “Buffalo Soldiers” were established by the United States Congress in September 1866 and were the first peacetime regiments made up of only Black men in the U.S. Army. Amongst other tasks, the “Buffalo Soldiers” were tasked during the wars to protect white men, settled on Native American lands, from being attacked by the Native Americans.
A song signifying Black resistance, Marley highlights…
Rapp to replace desks with sofas, armchairs, stools and whiteboard walls in return to office.
I had an epiphany one night recently while walking my one-year-old round the block in my pyjamas at 8pm, desperately trying to get her to sleep. The roads were deserted and calm and my little daughter was singing herself a little lullaby but I felt this pang of panic. I was going to have to go back to the office, and not just go back but lead the way back.
I was going to have to brave public transport, trust in my mask, leave the cocoon of my home. But, most importantly, I was going to have to wrench myself…
According to a new survey, the workplace is still falling short when it comes to gender equality and inclusion.
The recent Black Lives Matter protests against racial injustice and the global pandemic’s exposure of deep-seated inequality in our society should inspire every one of us to make some positive changes in our lives and communities.
As we contemplate a return to the office (in whatever form it may take), this drive for change must also extend to the workplace, which, according to a new survey, is still severely lacking when it comes to equality and inclusion.
In Rapp’s recent study Modern Masculinity in the Workplace: What’s Changed Since #MeToo?, conducted in partnership with YouGov and Campaign, thousands of men…
RAPP hosts ongoing Curiosity Lab sessions where members of the agency present a topic they are passionate about, both work-related and other. This series serves to inform, stimulate and develop greater familiarity and comradery across the business while celebrating the fierce individuals around us. Here is an interview with Nora von Arnim about her inspiring lab about what makes her tick.
What has ‘made’ you?
My upbringing in a loving family that never forced their ideas of success or relationship structures on me but let me explore for myself and find what works for me. I was free to be myself and London played a big part in this as it let me broaden my horizon further and feel like I fit in not despite but because of my extrovertedness, directness and hunger for exploring art, fashion and obviously food on the many street food markets around town.
Who or what inspires you?
Being brought up and influenced by many fearless…
Our CEO Chris Freeland gives his thoughts on the film and what the advertising industry can do to create real transgender visibility.
For Pride 2020 our agency focused on LGBTQ+ People of Colour and the transgender community. We held an agency-wide screening of the Netflix documentary film Disclosure (2020) to help us better understand what we can do as media makers to support the transgender community.
Here is a conversation with our CEO Chris Freeland about his observations and reflections.
What stuck with you the most? Is there anything you can’t stop playing over in your mind?
First, some important…
We live in Strawberry Hill, Twickenham and are in week ten of lockdown. Our household consists of my twin boys Adam and Nathaniel, aged ten, and our 3-year-old Cockapoo Ember. Here’s a little insight into our world…
Monday 1st June:
5am: Up to administer antihistamine to the twins — they had both kept us all awake most of the night with dreadful hay fever.
6am: Walk the dog as its cooler first thing and still with her cone of shame on it protects her dignity. It’s beautiful down by the river with the sunlight sparkling off the water and we…
