Dubai: Hawass Middle East, a multinational and PR agency, scored a big win for the region at the 2022 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.
The agency won seven titles at last month’s event, all for its work with client Adidas. Its Liquid Billboard campaign won a Grand Prix, a gold trophy, two silvers, a bronze in the outdoor campaign category, and a silver medal in the media category. The agency also won the Silver Cup in the Entertainment Lion Sports category for its I’m Possible campaign.
Danny Naman, CEO of Hawass Middle East, told Arab News that he is committed to improving the agency’s creative reputation and highlighting it globally, “so to win seven Cannes Lions Awards” is “a great feeling.”
Liquid Billboard campaign Adidas launched a comprehensive swimwear collection. Studies show that 32 percent of women worldwide feel uncomfortable swimming in public, with the figure rising to 88 percent in the Middle East.
So adidas created the world’s first “swimable billboard” in Dubai, to encourage women to dive regardless of body shape, race or ability.
“Adidas is committed to making the future of sport more inclusive,” said Noaman. “The campaign sparked a discussion about body positivity that spanned the region and the world across six continents and more than 60 countries.”
He added that the campaign’s global impact was “a testament to the reach of Dubai World”. He explained that the UAE was the ideal place for Adidas to launch its new collection and campaign due to its diverse population and the inclusive nature of the country.
“They openly promote tolerance across all layers of an incredibly diverse and multicultural society, leaving an imprint on the culture,” Numan said.
The UAE is not the only developing country in the region. The development and diversification agenda in Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and the consequent national transformation are transforming the Kingdom into a business hub.
“We already have a great team, but we are constantly launching new initiatives in line with the Kingdom’s vision,” Noman said.
This year, the group will launch Hawass events in response to Saudi Arabia’s growing investments in the local entertainment and events sector. It will also support the Noor Al Riyadh Festival in Riyadh in October.
From the incredible success of the Cannes Lions event to the expansion in Saudi Arabia, the past two years have been a time of growth and change for Hawass Middle East. While the pandemic has hit his media business hard, Noaman said the creative and PR departments were largely unaffected. Indeed, the health crisis has been an accelerator for growth, particularly in the areas of e-commerce and digital transformation, as the group has attracted many new clients, including Adidas, L’Oréal, Dubai’s Museum of the Future and telecommunications. du company. .
“However, when you are faced with challenges — of this magnitude — you have to review your business model and look at your structure,” Numan said.
“Restructuring is always painful, (but) you have to make sure you have the right people in the right place for the next stage of growth.”
Even during the restructuring phase, the company opened up “lines of communication” and introduced several new initiatives, some related to mental health, to help employees stay connected and in good health. Indeed, employee satisfaction levels have actually improved during the pandemic compared to the previous year, he said.
“In our work, change is constant,” he said. “So you’re assessing who fits in, and you’re reorganizing yourself to make sure you’re ready for the next wave of changes.”
Now, it looks like the next wave includes exciting technologies like NFTs, Blockchain, Metaverse, and Web3. Naman believes that the Metaverse, a proposed high-speed version of the Internet accessed using virtual reality technology, is the “next revolution in computing”.
“It is believed to be the successor to the mobile internet, so all indications are of huge potential and potential, including new opportunities to redefine consumer interactions,” he said.
Havas, which refers to its commercial offices as “villages,” introduced its own virtual village in the sandbox video game this year, providing customers with an enhanced experience. Last year, it launched Metaverse by Havas, a new advisory, creative, and media offering to help brands embrace the potential of Metaverse.
However, while the metaverse is still effectively a buzzword for now, Nauman said that “it’s not a perfect universe, there are silos.” In other words, there are currently several different platforms in the Metaverse, each requiring the user to create a separate avatar, resulting in a fragmented experience.
“It’s about how quickly things hold together in the metaverse, but it’s definitely an area we’ll be watching closely,” he added.
Ultimately, Noman said, Havas aims to “leave a mark on culture and create meaningful connections that impact the world,” whether it takes place in the metaverse or on a billboard.