Amazon Business is pleased to announce the return of Amazon Business Exchange (ABX), its annual event for the procurement sector, to London on 20 April 2023. Taking place at Tobacco Dock, the event brings together industry experts and Amazon leaders to explore how to shape procurement to be an efficient value driver for organisations. Throughout a series of talks, roundtables and breakout sessions, attendees will be able to hear insights from Meta, BP, and YPO, as well as an array of experts from different sectors across the UK including retail, information technology, and the public sector on how to develop winning strategies for their businesses, forge connections across the procurement industry and discuss topics around compliance, cost saving and simplifying the buying process. Martin Schüler, General Manager for Europe, Amazon Business, will deliver a keynote speech on how attendees can shape procurement into an efficient value driver for their organisations, followed by a roundtable discussion including Fabricio Pedroza, Director of Amazon Business UK&I and procurement leaders across different sectors on how they are working to drive value. Attendees will then be able to attend a variety of breakout sessions throughout the day to discuss and learn from experts and their peers.
Storyblok, the content management system (CMS) company, that empowers both developers and marketing teams to create better content experiences across all digital channels, has announced the launch of its Creator Fund. Storyblok’s Creator Fund enables creators to submit an idea for content related to CMS topics for a chance to get $5K to work on the project. Working with the creator community to raise awareness of the benefits of headless content management has always been a priority for Storyblok. In 2022 alone, Storyblok sponsored 231 projects from creators. Storyblok is open to any creator-driven media and has previously collaborated with a diverse community of creators: bloggers, podcasters, live streamers, social media influencers, etc.
Immediate Media Co has announced its first partnership with a beauty brand – Liz Earle Beauty. The beauty brand is utilising the knowledge and expertise of IM brands to position Liz Earle Beauty as ‘credible skincare that aims to be kind to the environment’ – as well as being driven by 25 years of scientific know-how. The partnership is being launched across Immediate’s market-leading portfolio, including BBC Gardeners’ World magazine, BBC Good Food, olive, and Radio Times. It will run across digital, print and events and feature content that aligns with the passions of Immediate’s audiences – with Liz Earle Beauty products at its heart. The campaign will have an estimated reach of 21 million. The hub and all digital activity will run until 31st October 2023. Liz Earle Beauty’s ethnobotanist, James Wong and lifestyle ambassador for Liz Earle Beauty, Sarah Carr, feature in a series of videos sharing their expertise. The videos are hosted on a hub along with a wealth of content articles covering topics ranging from the botanical ingredients in the brand’s products, recipe inspiration for nourishment from the inside out, skincare and more. The campaign assets were created by Immediate’s Imagine Studio. Along with this extensive digital content, amplified by traffic drivers across the Immediate websites and social, the campaign will also involve numerous print and event activations – with The Liz Earle Beauty Botanical Garden being created for the BBC Gardeners’ World Live Show in June.
Precisely has announced details for Trust ‘23** taking place May 16 – 17 in the US and EMEA, and May 17 – 18 in APAC. The virtual event is expected to bring together thousands of data professionals worldwide to learn about the biggest data integrity drivers and strategies to help companies achieve better business outcomes fuelled by trusted data. The event will kick off with a keynote from Precisely CEO, Josh Rogers, exploring the role of data in solving today’s most challenging business problems. The session will examine the industry megatrends driving demand for accurate, consistent, and contextual data in 2023 and beyond. This will be followed by a lively discussion with Drexel University’s LeBow College of Business, hosted by Precisely CMO, Kevin Ruane. Together they will provide an exclusive first look at the latest research on data integrity trends and drivers – based on insights gathered from over 400 data leaders worldwide.
Rimmel London celebrated the announcement of their new Global Brand Ambassador, Maya Jama, with a large-scale activation which created a visualisation of the celebrity on London’s iconic Tower Bridge, at sunset on Thursday, 30th of March. The partnership cements Rimmel as the ultimate go-to brand for bold style setters with Maya following in the footsteps of Rimmel icons Kate Moss and Adwoa Aboah. Maya, most in-demand broadcaster, will now become the face of Rimmel London across the world. Maya has lived in London for over a decade and embodies the ’London look’ with her playful and authentic personality. As a successful entrepreneur, TV and radio broadcaster, Maya’s many roles call for a variety of looks but ultimately, she sees makeup as an outlet for self-expression which aligns perfectly with Rimmel’s emphasis on inner beauty and individualism. The Tower Bridge landmark is the perfect setting to create an iconic London moment in celebration of the partnership. Using the technology of Hologauze, a highly reflective canvas, the large-scale 3D hologram effect gives the appearance of a full Tower Bridge takeover. Rimmel, owned by Coty, is a client of media agency Zenith who oversaw media planning and buying of the project, working alongside Energy, an award-winning brand experience agency. The activation was live for one night only to create impact in Central London with the aim to generate virality through earned media strategies including social shares and word of mouth.
Cognizant has announced it has been chosen by the UK’s Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) to support the delivery of business change and provide improved services to the government organisation. Cognizant will implement, under the Application Development and Maintenance Support (ADMS) services program, a new online services and digital platform capability, which can be reused across the core Defra group, including its partner organisations such as the Environment Agency, the Animal Plant Health Agency, and the Rural Payments Agency. This aims to help provide consistency and a streamlined journey for Defra’s clients by improving processes and the quality of Defra’s digital services.
E2open Parent Holdings, Inc., the connected supply chain SaaS platform with the largest multi-enterprise network, has commenced its client conference, e2open Connect European Summit 2023, in Barcelona, Spain. The exclusive event provides logistics, global trade, and commerce professionals from the world’s premier companies an opportunity to glean insights from peers and across the supply chain space and to learn in-depth about e2open’s applications. The conference features keynote speakers Knut Alicke and Radu Palamariu, authors of From Source to Sold, and Maria Villablanca, co-founder and CEO of The Future Insights Network. Participants can also attend expert panel discussions and breakout sessions on supply chain topics including global trade, logistics, planning, and supply, all of which take a deep dive into industry trends and offer insights into how organizations such as Renault, ABInBev, Rangel, Infineon, and The Landmark Group are addressing major opportunities and challenges impacting their businesses. E2open partners, NMB Solutions, Shippeo, and Surge are among the sponsors of e2open Connect Europe. Attendees can visit the e2open Experience Zone to speak with solution experts and demo innovative applications across the connected supply chain software platform, designed to help clients continue their digital supply chain transformation journeys.
Fujitsu has announced a five-year partnership deal worth £57.9 million with Whitbread, one of the UK’s favourite hospitality companies. The contract, which builds on an existing 35-year relationship between the two companies, will see Fujitsu delivering modernised and proactive Outlet focused IT services which support the 35,000 employees across Premier Inn, Beefeater, Bar+Block and other brands – giving the Whitbread teams greater freedom to focus on providing excellent customer service. Germany is an important growth market for Whitbread, with significant expansion underway and this contract will support this by providing outlet and corporate on-site support across the region, boosting region-specific technical knowledge for help desks, and adapting support to align with Central European Time and local holidays. In addition to the services which upgrade Whitbread’s offering, the contract cements a long-standing and shared sustainability commitment between the two organisations to achieve net zero.
Jugo, a specialist in immersive virtual experiences, has announced a new global partnership with Arsenal Football Club creating new and exciting ways for supporters to engage with the club in a virtual setting. While Emirates Stadium continues to attract a vociferous crowd on matchdays, many supporters worldwide can’t attend matches and instead interact with club digitally. The partnership between Arsenal and Jugo will offer brand-new virtual experiences that will boost engagement for global supporters. Jugo’s platform will give supporters the chance to enjoy a variety of events including, memorabilia auctions, Q&A sessions, interactive screenings, and opportunities to meet players virtually. Jugo will bring the power of human interaction into each of these events, creating realistic virtual connections between supporters and the club.
Mobile marketing analytics suite Adjust has released its annual Mobile App Trends report, detailing upward momentum for e-commerce, fintech and gaming apps thus far in 2023, despite economic headwinds. While 2022 marked the industry’s first-ever slowdown, 2023 early indicators show a turnaround is already well underway — with mobile app installs trending upward in e-commerce (+4%), fintech (+13%), and gaming (+10%) against their 2022 averages. The report, based on datasets totalling more than 100,000 apps tracked by Adjust, analyzes long-term trends in installs, sessions, time spent in-app, retention, re-attribution rates, and more, across the globe. These insights enable developers and marketers to better understand their audience and the state of the app economy.
Open-source content management system (CMS) provider, Umbraco, has announced that it has acquired UK software company, Outfield Digital, developer of the Vendr ecommerce platform and Konstrukt back-office user interface software. The acquisition supports Umbraco’s mission to make it easier for companies to combine the most appropriate technologies to create digital experiences tailored to business and customer requirements. The Umbraco CMS underpins thousands of retail, government, and professional services websites around the world. Umbraco CEO, Kim Sneum-Madsen explains that the acquisition facilitates easy integration of ecommerce and subscription management features offered within the Vendr platform, saying, “Vendr is a powerful commerce offering that is well-integrated and can be added to Umbraco projects where needed.”
Avery Dennison a specialist in materials science and digital identifications solutions, has published its latest “Digital Consumer Behavior” report produced in partnership with audience insights company GWI. The study examined the attitudes and behaviors of more than 6,300 clothing shoppers across seven countries (U.K., U.S., France, Germany, China, Mexico and Japan). It reveals how shoppers remain highly receptive to frictionless touchpoints that will enhance their in-store experience, such as mobile checkouts and digital receipts. Scanning digital labels on garments, making use of QR codes, RFID, and NFC (Near Field Communication) technology, for product insight and interaction both pre and post-purchase remains popular with consumers globally.
Apogee Corporation Ltd has agreed to acquire Argon Business Systems Ltd. Originally formed in 1983, Argon is a well-established services provider in the Isle of Man, predominantly providing IT-based services, whilst also having MPS (Managed Print Services) and other PS (Professional Services) capabilities. Argon is a customer-focused multi-discipline technology services provider, supporting the needs of organisations operating in both the Private and Public sectors. The business has been delivering comprehensive technology solutions to its customers for almost 40 years. Combined with its Microsoft-certified staff and its experience delivering services within both the print and IT environment, this further supports Apogee’s venture into Managed IT Services.
