Chas Clarkson (Chas) is nationally renowned for delivering world-class Christmas activations. The Chas team has designed and produced magical and memorable experiences for many of Australia’s most iconic retail spaces. Now, in their 130th year of operation, Chas is applying its expertise to creating engaging experiences all year round. Group Account Director Jason Sole and Creative Director Andreas Zehntner explain.

“It’s a pity Santa only comes once a year,” said Jason Sole. “The joy that our Christmas creations bring is focused on such a short period of time that come 25th December, it often feels like we’re only just getting started.

“At Chas, we understand the importance of complementing a shopping centre’s Christmas marketing campaign with narrative-rich experiences that engage customers, promote longer dwell time and drive retail spend. We collaborate with and guide our clients through a design-led process that meets their brief and achieves their KPIs.

“Shopping centres need customer experiences that create engagement and drive foot traffic not just at Christmas time but all year round. From our experience, we also know that centres crave turnkey solutions that are carefully managed and safely executed – on time and on budget. It’s what we do at Chas Clarkson, with an approach to year-round activations using the same successful formula as the one for delivering Christmas experiences,” said Sole.

Andreas Zehntner said: “At Chas, we thrive on innovation. We call it ‘Thinking Outside the Tree’. We apply imaginative thinking to everything we do, from design and concept development to the sourcing, use and reuse of materials.”

Some of Chas Clarkson’s innovative thinking includes:

• Collaboration with local artists and artisans to help theme a concept and enrich a narrative. Chas engages and manages the artist, adding a layer to the activation with a tie back to the community that can be plugged into your marketing comms
• Integration of technology to amplify customer engagement and improve measurability. Chas embraces and implements world-first technology, including AR and VR, large-scale projection, interactive dance floors and exclusive ‘Twinkly Pro’ programmable lighting
• Sustainability of activations through the reuse of modular structures. Chas has developed a range of versatile products that can be easily disassembled, stored and reused for multiple campaigns throughout the year by re-designing, re-skinning and re-decorating
• Creation of brand activation launch pads, unlocking opportunities for co-funding through sponsorships. Chas helps you navigate the balance between brand exposure and customer experience by providing seamless opportunities for the monetisation of activations.

“The driving force behind our award-winning designs is our integrated design studio and production facilities”, said Zehntner.

“Our team consists of cross-discipline designers, experiential producers, creative thinkers, engineers, builders and makers. We’re problem solvers who come from diverse backgrounds, industry sectors and professions, all with one thing in common – the passion to deliver experiences that drive community engagement.”

Chas Clarkson invites clients to engage with its all-year-round activation services via three main pathways:

1. SHARE your campaign brief with one of our dedicated Account Managers. Whether it’s a seasonal campaign or occasion-based activation, our design thinking is focused on maximising your community engagement.

2. HIRE a designed and developed ‘ready-to-activate’ Chas Clarkson experience as a one-off activation or as a touring experience across multiple centres.

3. ENGAGE Chas Clarkson to help solve your retail or customer experience challenges through a series of collaborative workshops. Think of us as an extension of your Marketing Team to help empower and drive you to achieve your business goals.

“Chas Clarkson is resourced-up and ready to deliver your next year-round experience. Whether it’s an internal school holiday activation with a retail driver, or an external precinct that needs a transformation to help drive the night-time economy, let the Chas Team flex its strategic and creative muscle for you.”

“Oh, and don’t forget Santa on the 25th.”

For more inspiration on how you can create memorable experiences for every visitor to your centre all year round, go to Chas Clarkson.