Will Cole, Head of Sales & Marketing at WAA Chosen, is a born and bred Brummie; proud to be sharing a selection of the fantastic things that Birmingham and the wider region have to offer.
Birmingham has long been known as the city at the centre of British industry and manufacturing. Today though, after decades of development, Birmingham has flowered into a truly beautiful city. A place of creativity and culture, where the concrete jungle has been replaced with a welcoming new aspect.
The city’s skyline is now one of Britain’s best known. The iconic Selfridges building, the impressive New Street station and the bold statement made by the Library of Birmingham being just a few of its gems.
Everyone seems to know that Birmingham has more canals than Venice. But it’s less well known that the city is home to the famous Balti Triangle, the birthplace of Britain’s favourite dish. Or that there are more Michelin Stars in Birmingham than in any other UK city outside of London.
Then there’s the art and entertainment at The Custard Factory and Digbeth, destinations that set the pace in urban-cool. Decorated with imaginative street art and populated with agencies and design companies, this vibrant area is home to the city’s creative minds.
And the announcement that Birmingham will host the 2022 Commonwealth Games will only increase the city’s international reputation.
Outside of the city centre is Royal Sutton Coldfield, where the full-service integrated marketing agency WAA Chosen is located. We have Sutton Park, the second largest urban park in Europe, where you’ll find wild ponies and deer grazing across over 2,000 acres of heathlands, woodlands and wetlands, and all kinds of leisure activities.
WAA Chosen was appointed by Birmingham Children’s Hospital to create and manage their charity campaign, The Big Sleuth. This event was to become the region’s largest and most successful free public art activity ever. The Big Sleuth featured 237 fabulously decorated bear sculptures being displayed all around the city.
A number of celebrities took part in styling the bears. These included notable artists such as Temper and Reuben Colley, Citizen Khan actor Adil Ray, England cricketer Chris Woakes and TV star and adventurer Bear Grylls. There was even a Peaky Blinders bear endorsed by the show’s writer Steven Knight.
The campaign inspired a wave of civic pride and gave thousands of people the opportunity to spend time together, getting active by walking, running or cycling along the activity’s many different ‘sleuth’ trails. And when it was all over, many of the bears were auctioned off to raise additional funds for Birmingham Children's Hospital.
Held at the LAB11 warehouse in Digbeth, the city centre’s creative heart, Magic Door is one of Birmingham’s more distinctive venues. Here flamboyant self-expression, hedonistic fun and magical enchantment are the order of the day. Magic Door is, quite simply, like no other club you’ll find. From the moment you enter you find yourself surrounded by fabulous examples of expressive dress and outlandish make-up and hair creations, outrageous displays of creativity and ‘full-on, good time’ attitudes. At Magic Door, the mundane and the ‘9 to 5’ are left outside. As you cross the threshold you feel the real world melt away as you’re drawn into an exuberant blend of beats, disco, house music and fun!
Between 2013 and 2018, the number of international visitors to Birmingham rose to 1.1 million, a massive increase of 19%. Within these figures, the numbers coming from the USA, where Peaky Blinders has been hugely successful, saw a 50% increase!
Birmingham and the wider region are becoming increasingly significant beneficiaries of the growing phenomenon of ‘screen tourism’. According to the West Midlands Growth Company (WMGC), overseas visitors spent an estimated £17m in the region last year on screen tourism-related trips.
So, with record numbers of tourists now making their way to Birmingham every year, the city is taking full advantage of it growing international destination status, happy to make the most of its position as the home of the Peaky Blinders. Who would have ever thought that the activities of a criminal gang that operated within the city a hundred or so years ago would become an award-winning TV entertainment phenomenon!
The UK's second city has a diverse food culture that can be enjoyed on any budget. From Michelin-starred restaurants to fabulous street-food venues, there are all kinds of fabulous places to eat in Birmingham. Launched in 2012, in an ex-industrial but now totally trendy part of the city, Digbeth Dining Club’s continues to go from strength to strength. This award-winning Friday evening venture’s line-up of street-food artisans changes weekly and includes, Indian bites and spicy delights from Goody Gujarati; Canoodle's Vietnamese and Cambodian dishes; Low ‘N’ Slow’s American-inspired barbecues and much more. Sitting alongside the new New Street station, Bonehead is a convincing homage to the kind of boozy, late-night bars you’ll find in Berlin or Amsterdam. Fans flock here for Bonehead’s famous fried chicken: juicy, high-quality poultry in an light and moreish savoury coating that, as you get stuck in, reveals its seasoning complexities and deliciously lingering heat.
WAA Chosen was commissioned by West Midlands Police to help them promote the issue of home security and the protection of property. To do so, the agency team produced the award-winning campaign, 27 STATION ROAD, the first ever 360-degree, interactive crime scene.
27 STATION ROAD vividly captured the sense of violation caused by a house-breaking incident. Working with police advisors, we dressed a genuine family home, or should that be undressed? in the devastating condition that opportunist thieves will often leave a property. Upturned furniture, broken possessions, ransacked rooms, every detail of the crime scene was captured using 360-degree imaging technology. Then, using cutting-edge programming techniques, the scene was transformed into an interactive experience.
The final online platform allowed viewers to explore the crime scene, understand the thought processes of opportunist thieves and, thankfully, discover an array of simple steps and protective measures that can be taken to minimise the risk of becoming a victim of such a crime.
Header banner photography © Verity E. Milligan
CIM and IPA qualified Marketing and Communications specialist, with over 15 years’ experience of the industry and client landscape ranging across all of the key categories, Will's approach is based in always having open and honest conversations with clients and prospects, working to ensure that WAA Chosen is in the best possible position to partner with them and grow their business, for the benefit of everyone.
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