It was an exciting blend of glitz, glam and euphoria as the Experiential Marketers Association of Nigeria (EXMAN) hosted bigwigs in the Nigerian Experiential Marketing eco-system and guests at the Balmoral Convention Center, Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria Island Lagos.
In attendance at the glamorous dinner and award party with the theme: “Night of Accolades” were Dr. Lekan Fadolapo, DG, Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON), Femi Adelusi, Presidents of Media Independent Association of Nigeria (MIPAN), Steve Babaeko, President, Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria (AAAN), Tade Adekunle, Ex President EXMAN, industry stakeholders, diverse marketing professionals, the pressmen and friends of EXMAN.
The two in one event availed the association the opportunity to recognize and appreciate immense contribution of its members towards the growth of the industry for over 10 years by showering them with accolades and Awards in different categories.
Speaking during the occasion, Tunji Adeyinka, the out- going President of EXMAN, while giving the open remarks said the event was organized to appreciate and celebrate the contributions of the professionals in the association for the past 10years of its existence.
His words: “I want to thank lots of people who have made this occasion happen and worked in the last two years, I think one of the beautiful things about this night is that I will be leaving this place and my title will be changed to ex-president. I welcome that with comfort and I really embrace that.
He informed the audience that, “voted this afternoon at our last AGM, is our first female president and I am happy not because she is our first female president but because I know that she will do better than what we did. We didn’t vote her in because she is a woman, we voted her because she is competent, I appreciate Mrs. Tolulope Medebem who is taking over from me.”
Stating that the evening is not for speeches he said rather,” it is the evening where we are going to be looking at the 10years of EXMAN but more importantly we are going to be celebrating good works that have been done by all in the last 10 years.”
Commending members of the association for their achievements, Mrs. Nnenna Onyewuchi, Executive Director, Strategy & Innovation Yellow Bricks Road, who was the chairman of the award jury said she thanked EXMAN for its commitments.
Her words: “I want to thank everybody that entered for the awards, especially the people that put the case study together because having to do that and do your work is not easy. We saw so much work and I was very impressed by the depth and breath of the work that we saw. Clearly you all have the dynamic industry and it’s growing.
“We saw work between the legacy agencies and the new ones on the board. We saw really innovative work, we saw work that really brought brand to light, we saw work that made a difference at the tail, which is what really matters and I was really impressed not just about the ideas but the quality of execution.”
I think we all spend a lot of time doing good work, telling our clients stories but we don’t always do that for ourselves. There were some campaigns that we saw that I knew were amazing but we couldn’t award them based on the strength of the case study. I urge you all to put more effort in the case study for next year.” she added.
Other members of the jury committee are Abiodun Ajiborode, Founder/CEO Brand Management Academy, Akinyemi Lofindipe, Deputy Managing Director/Creative Lead Brand Believers Limited and Maureen Ngwu, Managing Director Media Seal.<span;>Some of the winners of the awards in various categories include: Best activation of sporting property, won by Connect Marketing, Best activation (Customer experience) won by Maxx Connection, Best activation for entertainment property won by Maxx Connection, Best ever B2B was won by Ideas House, Best Merchandising (Open market) won by Link Point, Best Merchandising (Modern market) won by Lilvera, just to mention a few.
Tade Adekunle, CEO, Keskese, while appreciating the award and the effort of the association said: “We are experiential people, who help other people in their events, so we have no choice than to come out with the best in our own event.
“I will say this year’s event, both the Summit and the awards were well organised. Two years ago, it was a hybrid due to Covid, so people could not attend, but this year, students from different tertiary institutions attended and listened to these outstanding line up speakers. You can see the award yourself, you will know that yes, this is organised by the professionals themselves.
“I am happy to be recognized with these awards today. It shows that we are being appreciated in the industry and this will spur the Keskese team for more excellent works.”
On his part Kunle Onime, CEO Marketing & Promotion Concepts Limited, who received lifetime awards said: “This is a very encouraging platform and I thank God for everything. I also appreciate EXMAN for the recognition of the award of lifetime achievement. It is a good one. The EXMAN have tried so much in putting up this fantastic outing for all of us in the industry. The Summit was very insightful and I know the younger ones took a lot home.”
In the same vein, Aizehi Itua, Head of Brand Marketing Communication, Connect Marketing Service, appreciating EXMAN said: “I’m excited, sincerely! We put in a whole lot of work and it goes beyond justice recognition. It’s a lot of sleepless nights, a lot of hard work, a lot of thinking from the team and a lot of trust from our partners that are our clients. I feel very proud of the team. Currently we won the gold category for best activation of a sport property. And then we won best event B to C.”
“Personally I think the quality of the jury was one thing that actually stood out for me. Having that level of integrity and reputation to serve as a jury is very wonderful. And seeing that we have new cats also competing for this category shows that the space is becoming more competitive. And it’s good”, he noted.
