MCH Global was named the Events, Experiential and Engagement Agency of the Year at the Campaign Agency of the Year Awards 2025.
Sharing what set MCH Global apart, the jurors said, “The agency’s disciplined strategy, cultural fluency, and people-first ethos set a new benchmark for experiential agencies.”
Uli Stanke, Managing Director, MCH Global shared his reflections on winning the award for the first time at the Agency of the Year Awards 2025.
How does this award reflect the culmination of your efforts in 2025?
This award represents a defining moment for MCH Global and the culmination of an intense and transformative year. In 2025, we achieved significant growth across the business, expanding our team, delivering strong revenue results, and executing some of our most ambitious and impactful brand experience projects to date. Winning Events, Experiential and Engagement Agency of the Year felt like a timely acknowledgement of the breadth, depth and quality of work produced by the entire team. It marked a collective moment of pride and reflection, bringing everyone together to celebrate what has undoubtedly been the strongest year in the agency’s history.
Which industry shift most influenced how you operated in 2025?
The biggest industry shift influencing how we operated in 2025 was the rapid diversification of brands investing in experiential. We saw a clear move away from isolated campaigns toward the creation of long-term brand worlds, with sectors such as real estate, finance and technology joining the more established experiential categories like automotive and luxury. This widening of the playing field accelerated a strategic priority that was already part of our roadmap, pushing us to broaden our sector expertise and thinking. As more players entered the experiential space, diversification became both a competitive necessity and a catalyst for growth.
What will matter most as the industry moves into 2026?
As the industry moves into 2026, cultural relevance and emotional resonance will matter more than ever. Brands will need to look inward, identifying what is truly distinctive within their cultural right-to-play and translating that into experiences that connect more deeply with audiences. There will be greater appetite for bolder, braver ideas that move beyond simply delivering events toward creating meaningful moments. At the same time, the line between online and offline experiences will continue to blur. Technology, particularly data, personalisation and artificial intelligence, will increasingly support experiential by tailoring and optimising experiences at scale.
What do you think the industry needs to change or fix on priority in the months ahead?
One of the most pressing priorities for the industry is a reset around value and self-worth. Increased market saturation has brought many new providers into experiential, which in turn has driven pricing pressure and a race to the bottom. This is ultimately damaging, particularly when experiential should be positioned as a premium, production-focused marketing discipline. Proven agencies need to hold firm on the value they deliver rather than cannibalising the market through short-term thinking. A stronger focus on quality over quantity, alongside greater specialisation across different experiential disciplines, would help reinforce credibility and long-term sustainability across the industry.
How have expectations within events and experiential shifted over the past 12 months?
Over the past year, expectations within events and experiential have risen sharply, particularly around quality and return on investment. Clients are no longer satisfied with experiences that simply drive awareness or generate leads. There is a stronger demand for activations that deliver measurable business outcomes and align closely with specific objectives. Experiential is increasingly viewed as a results-driven marketing discipline. In a crowded digital and ATL landscape, standout brand experiences offer a clearer path to impact, and this has raised expectations around the value exchange brands must deliver when investing in live experiences.
In your opinion, what do consumers really want, and how can agencies help brands meet this need?
Consumers today are far more selective about where they invest their time, and this is where experiential has a clear advantage. Traditional digital and above-the-line content often struggles to earn genuine attention, while live experiences offer a more meaningful value exchange. What consumers increasingly want is a sense of belonging, cultural relevance and a tangible outcome from their engagement with a brand. We refer to this as the experiential paradox. In an always-on world, time given to events and experiences must have perceived value for the consumer. Agencies can help brands meet this requirement by delivering higher-quality experiences that offer genuine participation, emotional resonance and a clear return for the time consumers choose to give.
By Uli Stanke, Managing Director, MCH Global
