Each summer, The Strata Group brings its people together for a conference that reflects its culture as much as its content. This year, with seven agencies now operating under one group, the event became something more: a live demonstration of what happens when specialist teams collaborate. This is how it came together…
Our internal summer conference isn’t something we’d usually be shouting about. But this year’s event became a blueprint for what The Strata Group really stands for. We built a conference that showcased exactly what we tell clients every day: when specialist expertise comes together, brilliant brand experiences happen.
Simon Hambley, Group CEO explained, “We wanted to do things differently this year and give our emerging talent the opportunity to lead the conversation around the messages that matter most to our people, particularly as we’ve welcomed new colleagues through the acquisition of Wonderland and We Are Collider.
Senior leadership speeches were kept to a minimum, and instead the focus was on involving the wider team.
Watching people from different agencies collaborate, challenge each other and build on each other’s ideas has been one of the most rewarding aspects of the event. While the conference was designed for our people, it also demonstrates the unique shape of our offering and the breadth of expertise that exists across The Strata Group.
Reimagining the Conference Experience
One of the biggest challenges facing the team was creating a conference that felt genuinely different while bringing the Group’s story to life. Rather than relying on traditional presentations and passive audiences, the ambition was to create an experience that encouraged participation, conversation and connection.
Peyton Martin, Senior Producer at Strata, explained that the experience narrative model he follows doesn’t start with questions like ‘what presentations do we need?’ and instead asks ‘how do we want people to participate?’ and ‘how do we want people to feel?’
“Our ambition wasn’t simply to produce another company conference – it was to create a shared experience. We wanted people to leave feeling they had been part of a conversation rather than sitting through a series of presentations.
Every element of the production, from the way the hosts interacted with our speakers to the role of the screen as a visual storyteller, was designed to support the narrative rather than distract from it.”
The approach shifted the conference from a one-way broadcast into a shared experience, helping colleagues engage more deeply with both the content and each other.
Creativity: The Driver of Participation
Bringing the Group story to life required more than strong content. It needed a creative approach that could connect people to the message, while showcasing how different specialisms across the Group can work together to create a more engaging experience.
“At the heart of Wonderland is creativity, so when we started thinking about the conference, we wanted to move away from static presentation slides and instead create an experience driven by storytelling, motion and dynamic content. It was important that every film, graphic and animation had a purpose – not just to look great, but to help tell The Strata Group story in a way that would keep people engaged.
Collaborating with On Event Production Co gave us the opportunity to really push the creative. Their impressive 12m x 2m LED screen allowed us to transform the stage into a dynamic storytelling canvas and bring the new Strata Group identity to life through animated gradients and particle-based graphics, using motion to reflect collaboration, connection and the coming together of different businesses as one group.
For us, it wasn’t just about creating a visually impressive conference – it was about creating an experience that reflected who The Strata Group is and where it is heading. Our hope was that people didn’t just hear the story of The Strata Group – they experienced it.” – Nuala Farrelly, Marketing Manager at Wonderland.
The partnership between Wonderland and On enabled the transformation of the stage into a dynamic storytelling environment that brought the Group’s evolution and future ambitions to life.
Creating Space for Connection
Selecting the right venue was also critical. The space needed to encourage interaction, conversation and connection.
Tracy Winsworth, Managing Director at Trinity Event Solutions, explained “We chose De Vere Beaumont Estate because it perfectly supported what the group wanted to achieve with the summer conference. As the first event designed to bring together colleagues from all seven companies within the group, it was important to find a venue that could unite people in one environment and support a blend of business content, team building and celebration.
The expansive outdoor space was a key factor in our decision, giving us the opportunity to bring our ‘Field of Play’ concept to life through a series of collaborative challenges and activities that encouraged people to mix, connect and work together.
We also wanted the event to have a relaxed festival feel, and the outdoor setting allowed us to incorporate food trucks and informal social spaces that helped create a more inclusive and engaging experience.
The right venue doesn’t just host an event; it helps shape the experience, and De Vere Beaumont Estate provided the perfect backdrop for strengthening relationships, building culture and helping everyone feel part of one Strata Group.”
Collaboration in Action
What made the conference particularly special wasn’t any single creative element, venue decision or production choice. It was the way each agency’s expertise complemented the others.
Trinity sourced a venue that supported connection and participation. Wonderland developed a creative approach that brought the Group story to life. On Productions turned those ideas into an immersive visual experience, while Strata shaped the overall narrative and event journey. Element enhanced the attendee experience with prizes and giveaways, helping to create moments of excitement, recognition and engagement that reinforced the event’s interactive spirit.
Individually, each contribution added value. Together, they demonstrated the strength of a fully integrated approach, showing how connected specialist teams can deliver richer, more meaningful experiences.