Brand Experience at Scale
- ClientAirbus
- Services
- IndustryAerospace, Aviation, Defence
- ProjectParis Air Show 2023
- LocationParis–Le Bourget Airport, France
Creating at scale, 2Heads delivered their largest singular event when they brought Airbus home to the Paris Air Show after four years.
The Business of Aerospace
As a world-leader, Airbus are keenly aware of the pressure on aviation to demonstrate their commitment to a cleaner future for aerospace. Airbus’s purpose – to pioneer sustainable aerospace for a safe and united world – matters now more than ever and the lynchpin behind Airbus’s future experiences, events & environments is ensuring those values are reflected in every public appearance. For Airbus, no public event is greater than the Paris Air Show.
01
The Brief
Deliver at Scale
The brief was simple but significant. Design, create and deliver a multi-building experience around their premier position at Paris Air show. This included the design and creation of a fully integrated Airbus Pavilion that would host international dignitaries in subtle luxury, and an immersive Experience Tent that promoted Airbus’s understanding of changing market needs, customer focus and technological innovation.
The brief was simple but significant. Design, create and deliver a multi-building experience around their premier position at Paris Air show. This included the design and creation of a fully integrated Airbus Pavilion that would host international dignitaries in subtle luxury, and an immersive Experience Tent that promoted Airbus’s understanding of changing market needs, customer focus and technological innovation.
Airbus is a global pioneer in the aerospace industry, operating in the commercial aircraft, helicopters, defence and space sectors. With over 130,000 employees and as the largest aeronautics and space company in Europe, Airbus is at the forefront of the aviation industry, and publicly showcasing this fact is paramount to success at Paris.
Airbus required a multi-layered, consistent and branded concept that would display Airbus products in a modern and innovative way using the latest technologies and reflecting Airbus leadership in the aerospace industry. Each environment had to have a cohesive flow that created an experience journey for important delegates that focused minds on Airbus’s core values of integrity, creativity and reliability.
02
The Challenge
Showcasing a Superbrand
Airbus is an international reference in the aerospace sector, known for the design and manufacture of industry-leading commercial aircraft, helicopters, satellites and launch vehicles, as well as providing data services, navigation other solutions on a global scale. But how to create one experience that sufficiently showcases the extent of Airbus’s world?
Airbus is an international reference in the aerospace sector, known for the design and manufacture of industry-leading commercial aircraft, helicopters, satellites and launch vehicles, as well as providing data services, navigation other solutions on a global scale. But how to create one experience that sufficiently showcases the extent of Airbus’s world?
2Heads knew their creative solution had to reflect the scale of Airbus’s offering and use the very latest technologies to illustrate the benefits of Airbus products and services, while minimizing the environmental impact of the operation at FIA.
Airbus challenged 2Heads to develop all moving parts from raw surface whilst complying with Airbus image and quality standards. They expected a cost and time efficient solution for the assembly and dismantling the experiences, with sustainable constructions and concepts required and choice of materials linked to the aerospace industry if possible.
03The Process
Design
2Heads designed the Pavilion to be the hub of the Airbus experience; a place where visitors were greeted to comfort and hospitality, a professional space where meetings and conversations could be held overlooking the static display of Airbus’s finest aircraft. The space had to be large enough to host a large number of visitors but designed in an intelligent way so to separate experiences for different press, civil and military delegations.
Delegate Journey
The Pavilion was a place for business; for serious conversations focused on the future of Airbus sales and technology. Delegate journeys were planned for the two floors to move guests from lounges to the correct meeting rooms, C-suite visitors to the right lounges and to provide a suite of facilities for the press based at the Pavilion. Constructed in 9 weeks, the Pavilion included multiple meeting/dining rooms, lounge & bar areas, the Le Club Lounge, 6 VIP lounges, 7 VIP Suites and CEO Lounge, a Press Suite including interview rooms and auditorium, and an air display terrace.
Innovation
Where the Pavilion focused on hospitality, interviews, announcements and networking, 2Heads designed the Airbus Experience Tent to bring Airbus innovations to life. The resulting ‘A’ immersive experience proved very popular, a walkway tunnel packed with LED interior projections advertising imagery around Airbus’s ‘the world is a beautiful place’ campaign. Painting a hopeful future for sustainability on our ever-evolving planet and to the great beyond in aerospace, the campaign celebrated Airbus’s new vision and direction, and used emotion to engage audiences beyond product features to human experiences and outcomes.
Technology
2Heads created a lenticular screen of a floating Earth, hovering at the centre of the tent and drawing attention to the Airbus vignettes that surrounded its glowing globe. The idea behind the Earth was to create a platform that captured Airbus’s purpose of ‘pioneering sustainable aerospace for a safe and united world,’ and communicate that theme with gathering stakeholders in a way that resonated.
In line with Airbus’s brief, the Earth and ‘A’ campaign acted as an invite to guests to join a shared belief and movement in looking after the world, and expressed the belief that Airbus has a leading role in helping defend the future of a beautiful planet.
04
Solution
The Evolved Experience
The evolved experience at Paris Air Show Airbus hosted many important dignitaries from the world over; most prominently the French President Emmanual Macron and other international government ministers. Airbus impressed crowds with their scale and prominence, ensuring that the eyes of leaders, executives, press and aviation fans alike were drawn to their aircraft.
The evolved experience at Paris Air Show Airbus hosted many important dignitaries from the world over; most prominently the French President Emmanual Macron and other international government ministers. Airbus impressed crowds with their scale and prominence, ensuring that the eyes of leaders, executives, press and aviation fans alike were drawn to their aircraft.
The data says:
- Over a thousand VVIP guests hosted in the Pavilion’s Le Club salon and Leadership Area
- Over two hundred key aviation press hosted in the press suite and Auditorium
- Five thousand plus invited visitors to the Experience Tent and Static
- Flynas, the Saudi air carrier, ordered 30 new A320neo Family aircraft, Air Mauritius ordered three new A350 and Air India firm up order for a further 250 aircraft amongst many other deals publicised during the event
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