When we win awards for our work, we’re naturally excited and very thankful to our brand partners and vendors as we are part of a collaborative group of wonderful people teaming up well together across companies. Agencies working on creative programs for major brands tend to win the industry awards, and we’re fortunate to be recognized in that subset of agencies year after year.

The surprising thing behind the scenes may be that we are most proud of the depth of pre-work which allows us to deliver programs which are received well by consumers. While the finished products are often beautiful and fun, they are only a “hit” with consumers when we deeply understand their needs. No solution works well if it is designed wonderfully to solve the wrong problem.

We’re thrilled to be recognized as one of the Chief Marketer's Agencies of the Year for 2026. This recognition reflects what it truly takes to create meaningful experiences. By collaborating closely with our partners and vendor community, we build a deep understanding of consumers and transform those insights into solutions that resonate, perform, and create lasting impact.

The programs as they come to market are the shiny objects which we all love to experience. None of them would land if we didn’t first do the necessary work to deeply understand consumers. This usually means going beyond what’s in the brief and asking deeper questions to understand what consumers truly need, value, and how they actually behave.

Experience is a critical ingredient that strengthens consumer analytics and guides effective program design and management. At times, reflecting on a successful project can feel a bit like Ocean’s Eleven as we step back to look at a project’s success. It wouldn’t be possible without the data analytics team, the creative crew, the production experts crafting unique solutions, the routing lead with permit expertise and breadth of event experience, the senior manager who has lived it in the field, the influencer lead, the business development team, the staffing team to represent the brand well on site and get us from point A to point B and the finance person to pull the experience all together.

When working on collegiate programs, we benefit from over 20 years of practical observation of student responses to programs we’ve brought to campus and delivered online to college students. The delivery mechanisms and certain aspects of college life have evolved significantly over the years, though certain core aspects of the important life transition into and through college remain the same. Said another way, how they engage with each other has evolved in some respects, but their core needs for connection, to manage their independence, to grow personally, to learn, to make some extra cash, to prepare for their future careers and find jobs and to have a lot of fun along the way have remained fairly constant over the years.

When working on experiential programs, brands face a variety of challenges while also seeing the immense opportunity which comes when experiences are designed smartly to both address consumer needs and alsogenerate organic amplification well beyond the experience because they are entertaining or pull at the heartstrings. Challenges can range from consumer need identification to practical process understanding to go from concept to design and the physical capability to bring programs to life with the right people on site.

How Each Department Pulled This Together:

Client Service – Katie Brodowski, Senior Director of Client Service

"Our approach to experiential activations is rooted in true partnership — listening deeply, creating with purpose, and delivering with craftsmanship. With a brand like Timberland, we don’t just build moments; we build experiences that honor the brand’s rich heritage, nurture the bond to community, and turn authentic storytelling into lasting impact."

Design – Chantrell Williams, Senior Director of Creative & Marketing

"Our approach to design is about shaping how people experience a brand, not just how it looks. Every decision we make from layout and flow to materials and interaction, is intentional and rooted in brand-first thinking. When the creative strategy is clear, design becomes the connective tissue that turns insight into an experience people can actually feel, remember, and want to engage with.

Timberland is a great example of that. In Atlanta, we used design to translate the brand’s heritage and community values into a space people could step into and explore. The custom gaming element, the way the footprint invited discovery, and how the story unfolded as you moved through it were all designed to spark curiosity and connection. The goal was never to overwhelm; it was to create something authentic that felt true to Timberland and meaningful to its community. When design does its job well, the experience doesn’t feel forced — it feels natural."

Production – Travis Laukhuf, Director of Production

"Production is where strategy meets reality. Our philosophy is to anticipate challenges early and build solutions into the plan, so the experience stays intact no matter the environment. Execution excellence comes from preparation, clear communication, and an uncompromising attention to detail because quality is what allows the creative and brand story to shine.

Jack Link’s Times Square activation is a great example. Producing in one of the world’s busiest environments with a time limited overnight build required precision, adaptability, and real-time decision-making, all working together to allow the brand to show up boldly and without compromise."

To provide additional context for the programs highlighted in our application, we submitted two activation examples — each showcasing our ability to create intentional, high-impact brand moments rooted in storytelling, cultural relevance, and seamless execution.

From activating in one of the world’s most iconic public spaces to crafting a walk-in brand narrative built around community and heritage, these case studies represent the power of our people, our process, and our commitment to delivering meaningful experiential programs.

Jack Link’s — Times Square Pop-Up Activation

On July 5th, 2024, Jack Link’s transformed the center of New York City into a bold, unforgettable expression of its “Feed Your Wild Side” campaign. In partnership with Milestone Agency, Newbridge helped shape an activation that stood out in one of the busiest intersections in the world, Times Square. The experience combined attention-grabbing billboard creative with high-energy street-level engagement including temporary tattoo stations, spontaneous flash mobs, and dance battles.

What made this program stand out was our ability to execute in a high-traffic, high-stakes location where precision and deep logistical expertise are essential. New York City, especially Times Square, had many logistical details that needed to be accomplished to pull off an event like this. This activation reflects one of our core strengths, serving as the trusted partner who can make brand pop-ups possible in iconic, high-demand destinations. From permitting and production to consumer flow and real-time adaptability, the Newbridge team enabled Jack Link’s to show up boldly and authentically in a global landmark, delivering an experience that broke through the noise with energy, creativity, and operational excellence.

Timberland — Fall 2025 Atlanta Pop-Up

To bring Timberland’s heritage and brand story to life, Newbridge produced a two-day immersive pop-up at Atlanta’s Ponce City Market. The activation transformed Timberland’s brand assets into a walk-in experience rooted in community, culture, and brand history. At the heart of the footprint was a custom-designed gaming feature, intentionally created to capture attention, teach brand legacy, and sustain engagement. Surrounding elements invited visitors to explore, learn, and connect more deeply with the brand’s roots and product offerings.

This program uniquely reflects Newbridge’s strength in creating purpose-driven experiential environments built on intentional storytelling. Every decision from the spatial design and creator partnerships to the staffing strategy and social amplification was crafted to align with Timberland’s goals and connect authentically with the Atlanta community. The results speak for themselves: over 1,600 direct consumer engagements, more than 1,500 gaming interactions, and a combined 97,000+ impressions generated through the activation footprint and the larger-than-life “Big Boot.” This activation highlights Newbridge’s ability to listen to our brands’ needs and create activations that feel immersive and meaningful. Successful activations have continued to bring ongoing work with Timberland to bring this pop-up experience to numerous markets to expand reach and impact.

The one constant in life, is change.  For both our brand partners and the consumers we serve, Newbridge will continue to evolve and adapt in our capabilities, services, and our ideas.  We pride ourselves on going beyond expectations for our clients, and that means ourselves as well. Even when a campaign proves successful, we don’t stop there. We use what works as a foundation to evolve, optimize, and push what’s possible next.

In 2026, we’re excited to continue to expand our reach to more campuses, more college audiences, and how we provide those opportunities for brand partners. We’re also exploring platforms that reach high school students and their parents, and avenues in youth and high school sports.

We’ll continue to educate ourselves on the Gen Z and Gen Alpha audiences and share with our partners in an effort to produce authentic and meaningful connections that drive impact for brands and the consumer.

Current research and data indicate that genuine happiness is tied to connection, and experiences create connections.  For Newbridge, 2026 is all about leaning into our mission to “generate joy for everyone through experiences” and contributing to that goal by creating more connections. We can’t help but think about how grateful we are to work in the experiential industry. Where we have the daily opportunity to bring surprise and delight to someone’s day, introduce them to a brand for the first time that turns into a lifetime buyer, where those experiences connect them to others, and where authentic brand experiences are shared withothers through organic social content.