Event: Was the main driver for opening the Miami office to secure new business opportunities in Brazil, for the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympic Games?
Ignite: The reasons were two fold. The first was that we had a presence in the US when we were known as Ignition, and we wanted to get back to our roots and expand in North America as it’s a crucial market for us. A number of the brands we work with are based in the US, including the NBA and NFL.
The second is that Brazil is a huge emerging market and Miami is a hub for marketing into South America, so we felt it was the best place to launch effectively.
Event: What opportunities have you got lined up for the Miami team?
Ignite: We have opportunities with F1 in North America and the 2014 World Cup Brazil, and another project with America’s Major League Baseball. One is with an existing client and the other is a new one for Ignite. We’ll also be working much more closely with our partner office Control Room in Los Angeles.
Event: How big will the office be when you open next month?
Ignite: We’re starting off with a small team and plan to grow and expand, like we did in London. We saw that the potential for growth in the UK market was limited, mainly due to its size, so we wanted to explore other avenues of expansion.
Event: Is this the start of more global expansion?
Ignite: We want to expand the brand internationally, but right now our focus is North and South America. We are exploring opportunities in the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) market, and they remain heavily on our radar.
Event: What projects are on the horizon for the London office?
We want to start expanding our project offering much more into social media and digital integration, taking experience online as well as live. The light project we did for the EDF London Eye was a catalyst and a great showcase for this.
We’re going to be working on a CSR initiative that will be based on the Live Aid model, but this one will have a social media focus and be the first truly global CSR broadcast that has social media at it’s heart.
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