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We'll help you find inspiration
in unexpected places
What insights can an airline like Virgin Atlantic gather about better sleep from
the mattress experts
at Casper?
How can an excursion
to a bouldering gym help
a pet food company like Purina experience how to bring the outdoors inside?
What inspiration can
a beverage brand like
Coca-Cola gather about trust and safety from
a cryotherapy center?
How can a micro-housing startup help a home improvement brand like Lowe's envision the future of eco-friendly homes?
Check out some of our past
EXPERIENTIAL TEAM OFF-SITES
NESTLÉ
We developed a two-day Insight Immersion in New York for Nestlé's New Business Ventures group to explore the current food and beverage space. From the inner-workings of 15-minute delivery services, to the evolution of ghost kitchens, to the countless stories of entrepreneurial pivots, the team got to experience first-hand the drastic shifts in consumer behavior, in light of COVID.
"Now Plus One led our team on an eye-opening Insight Immersion that delivered above and beyond expectations. Not only did the experience open our eyes to new opportunities for growth, it brought a deeper connection to our team that we've all been yearning for. It's too easy for the day-to-day stuff to get in the way and this was a great reminder on how important these experiences are to keep consumers front and center."
Doug Munk / Senior Director, New Business Ventures / Nestlé
COCA-COLA
We spent three days in Los Angeles with the Scientific & Regulatory Affairs team from Coca-Cola exploring the concepts of trust and safety. Our many experiences ranged from a Nigerian pop-up dinner to an artistic cannabis dispensary, and from an electric vehicle innovation lab to a YA themed bookstore owned by a 16-year-old.
"An instant classic! A very big thank you for the thoughtful choice of locations and experiences, considerate introductions to our multiple hosts and overall attentive organization, plus a lot of fun.
What a treat!"
Eva Hurt / VP, Scientific & Regulatory Affairs / The Coca-Cola Company
HERSHEY
For our three-day Insight Immersion in Austin for the Design team from Hershey, we explored the concepts of surprise and delight, while also focusing on unique team-building sessions like The Neuroscience
of Trust, Improv Storytelling Through Movement, and Team Songwriting.
"The concept of the Insight Immersion sold me immediately, and getting Stephan to help plan it was the brightest idea I ever had! He developed such a deep and rich program that inspired us, helped everyone get out of their comfort zone, and helped us built the rapport that we needed."
Tracy Malkowski / Senior Director, Design / The Hershey Company
NEWELL BRANDS
We focused on the themes of "Play" and "Escapism" to design a three-day Insight Immersion in New York for the Sharpie team from Newell Brands. The team was game to try out everything from parkour and virtual world games to improv comedy and a session of "sip n' sculpt", all of which provided ample inspiration for our energy-filled Idea Lab.
Randee Keating / Director, Consumer Marketing Insights / Newell Brands
“Now Plus One guided me along the way and organized every detail of our Insight Immersion. Everything we did was not only relevant to our theme, but also pushed us to grow as a team,
and have purposeful fun. Overall this was a fantastic experience!”
PURINA
We spent three days in San Francisco with a cross-functional team from Purina for an Insight Immersion exploring the concept of “Real” and how it manifests in culture. Among dozens of experiences, we climbed up the walls at a bouldering facility, harvested honey from an urban apiary, participated in an immersive dance performance, and enjoyed a bonfire storytelling session.
“Now Plus One's thoughtful planning and insight definitely shows. Our Insight Immersion was a great experience and the possibilities of where the output can take us are many."
Katy Laciny / Brand Director / Nestlé Purina Petcare
INTERBRAND
As part of a day-long Insight Immersion
in New York, we immersed a 50-person global team from Interbrand's C Space agency in experiences that showcased
the concept of "High-Performance Teams". Visits to Grand Central's control room,
the army, a middle-school debate team and an acrobatic school among others,
led to spirited conversations and insights.
“Now Plus One’s work exceeded our expectations! The day after our Insight Immersion, our team of fifty Global Officers was buzzing with energy and insight. Now Plus One did a great job of making this a memorable and unique part of our annual planning meeting.”
Charles Trevail / Global CEO / Interbrand
INTUIT
Our three-day Insight Immersion in Chicago for a team from Intuit focused on "Disruptive Innovation", with visits including 1871, a non-profit tech startup incubator; Semicolon, a thriving Black-owned bookstore; Market 96, a premium cannabis dispensary; mHUB, a product-driven innovation incubator; and the University of Illinois Chicago, a leading research university.
"Now Plus One carefully curated an offsite that blended authentic team building activities and thought provoking sessions with local companies and subject matter experts to help us think about our business problems and potential solutions in new ways completely outside of our industry. It was such an incredible experience and I couldn't be happier with what the team was able to take away so we can work even better together as we solve the biggest problems our customers face."
Kelly Elmore / Director, Business Model & Monetization / Intuit
FAIRLIFE
Our Insight Immersion in Chicago for two teams from Fairlife focused on "Sustainability", as we explored cutting-edge initiatives at Loyola U's School of Environmental Sustainability; waste management innovation at Green Era; and sustainable design at Humanscale, among many others. A highlight was the LEGO Serious Play workshop, where creativity and collaboration sparked to life.
"I would definitely recommend to all teams to work with Now Plus One. You will be surprised; you will do things that you've never done before; you will be pushed on some of the limits of your comfort zone in a good way; and you're going to come back with new way that you are seeing the world than before."
Autumne Stuart / Senior Engineer, Team Leader / Fairlife
PUBLIC LIBRARY
ASSOCIATION
Our two-day Insight Immersion in Nashville for the PLA board team brought to life issues central to our theme of "Diversity, Equity and Inclusion". Our packed itinerary included visits to the Martin Luther King Library, a Latino cultural center, a center for homeless GLBT youth and a social enterprise set up to help women survivors.
LOWE'S
One of multiple programs for Lowe's invited the executive team to Austin for
a two-day Insight Immersion to explore
the concept of "Environmental and Social Sustainability". We visited an aquaponics startup, learned from a middle school green academy, toured a planned community for formerly homeless people, and marveled at a design-forward micro home, among other experiences.
"Our yearly executive Insight Immersion exposes us to the multiple ways culture is evolving. We try to go into our immersions with an incredibly open mind so that we can uncover unexpected business opportunities and lead the company forward."
Jennifer Weber / Chief Human Resources Officer / Lowe’s
PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE
We crafted four half-day Insight Immersions in New York for the editorial teams at Penguin Random House to explore "The Future of Wellness". From holistic wellness centers, CBD boutiques and ASMR experiences, to female-centric sex toy makers, breakup bootcamps and digital detox experts, we took it all in!
“Now Plus One delivered an impactful day filled with experiences that defied expectations and challenged our thinking while growing stronger as a company. Our team of marketers and publishers left the day feeling inspired, driven, and refreshed.”
Sanyu Dillon / Chief Marketing Officer / Penguin Random House
PEPSICO
One of the most memorable programs
we designed for Pepsico was a two-day Insight Immersion in New York for the global leadership team to gather insights around "Modern Masculinity". We visited minimalist Japanese butcher shops, luxury lifestyle boutiques, hipster barbershops, and many more unique spaces that led
to a successful Idea Lab.
"Our Insight Immersion with Now Plus One was inspirational and mind-opening. Their team is dynamic, insightful, and equipped with tons of great ideas. As a result, creating unexpected consumer experiences has become one of my main criteria in terms of my daily work in product innovation and brand campaign development!"
Jacky Wang / Marketing Director / PepsiCo
GREYSTAR
For Greystar's Marketing Masters conference in Nashville, we designed nine half-day Insight Immersions to accommodate 180 participants. As part of our "Community" theme, we visited a pair of skateboard makers with a social mission, a songwriter's performance space, an ethically-minded shoe brand, and a creative makers' space among others.
Greg Benson / Director, US Strategic Property Marketing / Greystar
"This was a really great opportunity to learn about some very unique and different businesses and step outside of our normal world to understand how to interact with customers on very different levels. We brought back inspiration, energy and enthusiasm into wanting to create experiences as part of the living environments that we nurture for our customers.”
KELLOGG'S
One of our Insight Immersions for the Kellogg's brand innovation team had us spending two days in New York exploring the concept of "Energy". Our itinerary led us to nap pod salons, energy food cafes, mood-enhancing perfumers and energy healers, before letting loose during
an immersive theater experience!
"Our Insight Immersion delivered huge benefits to our project and the team. We unlocked some bold new territories that mainstream consumers would never have volunteered using traditional methods. The effects on the team have been refreshing as well. Two days with Now Plus One has made a few more leading-edge thinkers at Kellogg's. I would recommend this retreat to any company except our competitors!"
Andy Scheurer / Director, Pipeline Innovation / The Kellogg Company
SONOCO
Our three-day Insight Immersion in New York for the Sonoco team focused on the concept of "Luxury of Less" from a variety
of brand, consumer and cultural angles.
We roamed the streets of New York to learn from an affordable luxury eye-ware brand,
a premium yogurt purveyor, a mindfulness studio and VR creators, before taking in
an experiential theater immersion.
“Thought provoking, inspiring, emotional experiences that shook us to our core. The experiences Now Plus One curated were worth every minute. From our R&D team to our executive team everyone left our Insight Immersion with the tank full. We really appreciate you!”
Becky Skipper / Manager, Global Marketing / Sonoco
VIRGIN ATLANTIC
We focused on "The Future of Travel" for our day-long Insight Immersion in New York for the Virgin Atlantic customer experience team. Our packed itinerary introduced us to experiences and experts in categories such as sleep, mindfulness, constructed environments, indoor wellness and storytelling, to translate inspiration into actionable solutions.
BEAM SUNTORY
Our day-long Insight Immersion in Chicago for the Beam Suntory team focused on
the concept of "Premium". We visited
a third-wave coffee roaster and a cold-pressed organic juicery to learn about elevating everyday products through strategic positioning, and participated
in an interactive Expert Session with
some of the city's top mixologists.
"I was blown away by the insight that can be gleaned from getting an inside look at some visionary companies. Now Plus One did a great job scouting and organizing the sessions, and made sure that we got the most benefit out of each visit, leading the team with insightful questions and observations. I would highly recommend them!"
Belinda Reiser / Director, Insights / Beam Suntory
MARS WRIGLEY
We crafted a virtual Team Energizer that served as an exciting kick-off for a week long program intended to bring together the joined global packaging team at Mars Wrigley. Our program combined creative exercises to inspire new ways of thinking with empathy-centered activities focusing on the sense of belonging.
"Stephan has an exceptional ability to create environments that empower people to come out of their shell and have meaningful interactions. Now Plus One produced a remote Team Energizer full of meaningful engagements that helped our team better understand our strengths."
Autumne Stuart / Senior Engineer, Packaging / Mars Wrigley
DSM
Our two-day Insight Immersion for DSM
in New York centered around the concept of "Natural". Our packed itinerary included visits to a curated herb shop, a healing arts center, a natural wine store, a natural beauty emporium, an eco-friendly cleaning brand, and a farm-to-people subscription service to collect valuable insights.
“Our Insight Immersion with Now Plus One got the executive committee to think about how our products and services can better fit with what’s going on in the world, and how we can best accelerate innovation.”
Tobe Cohen / President / DSM Nutrition
FRITO-LAY
Frito-Lay asked us to curate a day-long Insight Immersion in New York for a team of health influencers to observe "Snacks" trends up close and get inspired by relevant insights. We visited homespun eateries, ethnic food trucks, comfort food joints, eco-friendly bakeshops and artisanal candy makers to help us connect the (tasty) dots.
"Now Plus One mapped out a perfect Insight Immersion agenda that was a balance of stretch within our own category and beyond. We gained a sense of innovative spirit from looking at the world through a different lens.”
Alison Payne / VP, Snacks Innovation / PepsiCo
YOUTUBE
Our day-long Insight Immersion in New York for the YouTube team focused on the concept of "Storytelling" and we explored meaningful manifestations across categories. We learned from the master storytellers at The Moth, visited a gender-fluid concept store, played around at
an experiential toy store and acted out
at an actors' school.
"Thank you so much for the inspiring day! This was a successful day, especially around the team bonding aspect. The participatory experiences were the overall standout for the team. Thank you for pushing for more of those!"
Cheryl Corbin / Global Insights & Measurement Leader / YouTube
PACIFIC RETAIL CAPITAL PARTNERS
For Pacific Retail's regional conferences, we designed two day-long Insight Immersions in Tampa and Los Angeles to explore alternative uses for the shopping mall of the future. From immersive art experiences to a posh motorcycle club, and from a techie college of medicine to an esports academy, we collected valuable inspiration for the Idea Lab.
"Inspiration happens in the most unexpected places! My team and I visited a variety of unique places, met many knowledgeable experts in different industries and looked at destination place making—and the use of space—from a different point of view. Thank you Now Plus One for the thoughtfully curated insight immersions!"
Najla Kayyem / Executive VP, Marketing / Pacific Retail Capital Partners
SIEMENS ENERGY
As part of Siemens Energy's annual meeting, we designed an Insight Immersion centered around the theme of "Ignition" in Orlando. We considered concepts like fear, at an alligator farm; courage, with a SWAT team; mindfulness, at an axe throwing facility, and exploration, at a space institute.
MAESTRO HEALTH
We designed a two-week virtual Team Energizer program for the Maestro Health finance team that centered around the concept of "Belonging." Our expert-led sessions included topics like storytelling, self- awareness, personal narratives, human potential, values visualization, empathy and rituals.
"Now Plus showed awesome organization skills in putting together our first remote Team Energizer. We learned a lot about each other, our expectations, and our emotions. It was a very satisfactory experience, and I would really recommend this to bring remote teams together."
Florian Bezault / Chief Financial Officer / Maestro Health
KETCHUM
Our day-long "Masculinity"-themed Insight Immersion for the Ketchum brand team had us hit the streets of Brooklyn to visit artisan barbershops, bootcamp gyms,
surf shops, art collectives, curated fashion boutiques and ping pong parlors among other intriguing spaces, to collect insights about today's man.
"What a fantastic day! I learned so much and felt more inspired with ideas than I have in a long time. Getting out into the field is key and your team really created a thoughtful and provoking day for us. Thank you!"
Alisa Feinstein / SVP, Head of West Coast Brand Marketing Practice / Ketchum
BODEN
Our day-long Insight Immersion in New York for the Boden team explored "Moments of Retail Delight". We visited an interactive digital display agency, a high-tech show room, an experiential sneaker brand concept store, a secret parfumerie and a concept store that aims to bridge the gap between online and offline retail.
SIMON
PROPERTY GROUP
We spent two days in Chicago exploring the "Future of Shopping Destinations" with Simon's marketing team. We explored novel retail concepts, interactive technologies, experiential art installations, social sustainability, and local enterprises focusing on their community, before sparking new ideas during our Idea Lab.
"Thank you for this amazing and highly curated experience. The entire team left inspired, energized and eager to implement what we saw and learned. I highly recommend Stephan and his team to build custom programs for any organization!"
Enna Allen / VP, Marketing / Simon Property Group
PET VALU
Our four-day off-site program in Nashville for the Pet Valu executive team included an Insight Immersion centered around the theme of "Emotional Connections". We visited a variety of organizations to learn about innovative and empathetic solutions to issues like food scarcity, sustainability and social injustice, and to marvel at the human potential for transformation and growth.
"Hats off to Stephan for organizing an insightful, fun, and immersive experience across many aspects of commercial and social entrepreneurship. The team has already adopted new language and thought patterns that emerged from the exploration as well as incorporated insights into our work and certain experiences brought us closer together as a high-performing team."
Richard Maltsbarger / President & CEO / Pet Valu
CLOROX
We spent two days in San Francisco with the Clorox brand team getting inspired around the concept of "Food Safety". Visits to an infectious disease clinic, a sexuality boutique and a doggie day care provided valuable parallel category inspiration, while experts like a chef, a butcher and
a food truck owner helped us uncover
on-point insights to take into our Idea Lab.
"Our Insight Immersion experience was pivotal in expanding our perspectives by illuminating the bigger picture. Stephan and his team are creative guides with great connections. Corporate leaders were impressed with the experience and are now staunch supporters of this experiential retreat for innovation projects."
Ann-Marie Allison / Associate Director, Global Insights / Clorox