McLaren Racing and Landor unveil new F1 trackside experience
McLaren Racing has unveiled two new trackside environments featuring interior and experience design by global brand consultancy Landor, part of WPP.
Based on Landor’s insight that while Formula 1 is defined by extraordinary engineering and technical innovation, it is ultimately human performance that determines success, the experiences are designed to amplify the collective energy, shared ambition, and emotional gravity that bind the team, its partners, and its fans together.
The new Team Hub and Garage experiences aim to transform trackside facilities into immersive environments that strengthen team performance and bring guests closer to the human effort and emotional drama behind McLaren’s success. A new Race Watch area, at the heart of the experience, will provide track guests with a prime view of both the race and the operational activity surrounding them, ensuring they feel the changing conditions, strategic challenges, and race-time action in real time.
Playmobil launches ‘Art of Storytelling’ campaign with Boldspace
Toy brand Playmobil has launched ‘Art of Storytelling’, an integrated summer campaign delivered by branding, creative and PR agency Boldspace. The initiative responds to brand-commissioned research indicating that while children enjoy creative play, families often struggle to initiate imaginative activities when boredom strikes.
The campaign spans earned media, social content, retail activation and a dedicated Art of Storytelling hub. At its heart, the campaign features a free collection of prompt cards developed in collaboration with children’s author and presenter Maddie Moate and child psychologist Dr. Amanda Gummer. The resource provides story starters designed to encourage screen-free play using the toys children already love. The prompt cards are free to download from Playmobil’s Art of Storytelling website.
Ascend Studio appointed to define brand and identity of landmark Barts Life Sciences Cluster
Strategic branding agency Ascend Studio has been selected to define the brand strategy, positioning, and visual identity for the planned Barts Life Sciences Cluster in Whitechapel, London. Centred around The Royal London Hospital and Barts Health NHS Trust, the planned £800 million health innovation district will support organisations working across AI, robotics, medtech, and data-enabled care.
Ascend Studio will deliver a comprehensive brand programme from strategic platform and positioning to visual identity and creative direction, to be deployed across investor, occupier, public and political audiences.
The brand promise will anchor the cluster’s identity in its institutional heritage and its forward-facing ambition, telling the story of institutions with nearly a millennium of medical history and progress dating back to when St Bartholomew’s was founded in 1123. The cluster’s brand will position this corner of East London as critical infrastructure with the goal of amplifying political momentum and building public support for health innovation.
Nuii ice cream partners with ZEAL to create immersive treehouse
Ice cream brand Nuii has unveiled a new experiential destination at Wingham Wildlife Park, developed by brand activation agency ZEAL: an immersive branded treehouse designed to bring Nuii’s spirit of adventure to life. The activation aims to strengthen Nuii’s association with adventure, wildlife and premium indulgence while creating a memorable destination experience for visitors.
Rather than relying solely on visibility within the frozen aisle, the brand has focused on creating distinctive, high-impact experiences that build demand beyond traditional retail environments. Natural materials, adventure-inspired styling and immersive storytelling set out create an environment that feels closer to an expedition outpost than a traditional food and beverage outlet. Meanwhile, branded seating areas, conservation content and exploration-inspired signage encourage visitors to dwell within the space and create memorable moments to share with friends and family.
The treehouse, which includes a retail and sampling space on the ground floor, incorporates displays detailing Nuii’s conservation projects, including elephant conservation, koala rewilding initiatives, and Indigenous Ranger programs in partnership with organisations such as WildArk and Elephant Human Relations Aid (EHRA).
The HALO trust completes digital redesign with Nexer Digital
Macclesfield-based human-centred design agency Nexer Digital has completed a major digital transformation project for The HALO Trust, creating a new online platform designed to help the humanitarian mine clearance charity increase donations, improve supporter engagement and strengthen its global digital presence.
The redesigned website places greater emphasis on donation journeys, campaign content and programme pages, helping visitors better understand the impact of their support.
Built on the Umbraco 17 CMS and adhering to WCAG 2.2 AA accessibility standards, the platform provides a consistent experience for supporters while enabling tailored content for audiences in the UK, US, and Ukraine. Brand consultancy Dragon Rouge also updated the charity’s visual identity during the project, while Nexer Digital has been retained for ongoing optimisation.
Center Parcs selects Pink Neon as retained PR and creator agency
Short-break holiday provider Center Parcs has appointed creative communications firm Pink Neon as its PR and creator agency on a retained basis. The agency, which is part of Neverland, Center Parcs’ lead creative agency, will work alongside the latter to deliver integrated PR, earned media campaigns, and influencer strategies across the brand’s UK and Irish destinations.
Pink Neon will collaborate directly with Center Parcs’ in-house communications team, led by Center Parcs Head of Corporate Communications & PR Simon Kay, to deliver fully integrated marketing services to the business. The brief covers Center Parcs’ six holiday villages as well as a seventh site currently under development in the Scottish Borders.
Co-op teams up with Carat UK and Platform Media for ‘Pop to Co-op’ microdrama series
Grocery retailer Co-op has launched ‘Pop to Co-op’, a four-part ‘microdrama’ series created in partnership with media agency Carat UK and Platform Media. The short-form video series uses entertainment-led narrative comedy designed to earn attention and spark conversation.
Distributed across Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts, the series stars comedian Jake Bhardwaj navigating everyday retail errands that prompt a quick ‘Pop to Co-op’. The microdrama series forms a key pillar of Co-op’s new platform this summer, which spans AV, social, influencer, OOH, radio, display, and digital activity. Rather than treating earned media as a supporting tactic, the microdrama sets out to make it a strategic objective, complemented by paid media to generate audience participation at scale.
British Red Cross Partners with Impression for digital transformation
The British Red Cross has partnered with digital agency Impression to transform and simplify the internal digital user experience for its 14,000 employees and volunteers. Drawing on feedback from Red Cross’ employees and volunteers, Impression’s work will focus on streamlining essential administrative functions, including rota scheduling, annual leave requests, and payroll management.
Through Impression’s transformation of its internal functions, the British Red Cross aims to boost efficiency, free up time for its people to deliver vital services, and divert more donations directly to the front line. The partnership also aims to increase the rate that staff and volunteers use the Red Cross’ platform, and to improve connectivity between the organisation’s central team and its retail division.
SOLUM appoints Fox Agency to lead European PR Expansion
Retail technology solutions provider SOLUM has appointed Fox Agency as its lead European PR agency following a multi-step pitch process. Spun off from Samsung Electro-Mechanics in 2015, SOLUM specializes in electronic shelf labels, digital signage, software platforms, and sensing solutions.
Fox Agency will deliver targeted PR campaigns aimed at engaging key retail and technology decision-makers across Europe and strengthening SOLUM’s brand profile as a retail technology solutions leader while supporting its continued growth. The agency will combine its internal B2B sector specialists with local market expertise provided through the Worldwide Partners network to deliver both strategically aligned and locally relevant campaigns.
AG Barr appoints VCCP Media as media agency of record
Beverage manufacturer AG Barr has named VCCP Media as its media agency of record. The agency will take responsibility for all UK media planning and buying across the company’s drinks portfolio, which includes brands such as Irn Bru, Rubicon, Fentimans and BOOST.
The appointment follows a competitive pitch process that saw VCCP Media go up against incumbent agency the7stars, MG OMD, and Goodstuff.
The agency set out to demonstrate how integrated media planning can spark disruptive growth for brands looking to challenge their respective categories, with the winning strategy focused on “big flavour behaviour”, rigorous modelling, a suite of advanced tools and a shared mindset of finding a partner not afraid to challenge conventions. Work will begin immediately with the first campaign due to go live next year.
