To explore this, Brand Innovators teamed up with award-winning, experiential marketing expert Michelle M. Collins, President and CXO of A Non-Agency, who has a distinct vision of how brands can push the limits of culture-driven experiences and actively engage the communities of ‘culture vanguards.’ Rather than offering a standard gallery tour, this year’s VIP experience immersed guests directly into the world of the artist, emphasizing personal connections and cultural storytelling. Collins’ philosophy pushes brands to think beyond surface-level engagement.

Brand Innovators brought VIPs on a unique Art Week Wynwood, Miami journey, guided by Federico Hausammann, art dealer for the Goldman family-owned Wynwood Walls and Wynwood Gallery, whose deep history and family reputation as vanguards of contemporary street art offered an intimate, insider’s perspective on the art world.

“He’s not just a collector, but a cultural connector,” says Collins. “Federico is a third generation art collector, dealer and vanguard of street artistry.”

The experience also featured a powerful AIDS Healthcare Foundation collaboration with five notable local and global artists. One such artist, Sam Kirk, is an award-winning LGBTQ+ artist whose work tells the stories of marginalized communities. Collins, who has managed Sam Kirk for seven years, compares Kirk’s artist narrative to that of the spirit of Diego Rivera, noting, “If Diego Rivera were alive today, Sam Kirk would be his modern counterpart—using art to weave together culture, community, social identity, and history.”

This year’s Art Basel experience also included a partnership with R House Wynwood, a staple of Wynwood Miami’s vibrant LGBTQ+ scene.  At R House, guests were taken on a six-room immersive installation that chronicled the journey of individuals living with HIV/AIDS—capturing everything from the initial diagnosis to community support, treatment, and advocacy.

“The installation was a visceral journey,” Collins explains. “It’s about more than just an art show—it’s about using art to raise awareness, challenge stigmas, and push important messages into the cultural consciousness.”

For Collins, this type of immersive, culture-driven experience is at the core of her vision for experiential marketing. “I want brands to stop thinking of marketing as surface-level pop-up installations,” she says. “I want them to go deeper and ask: How can we truly contribute to culture? How do we ensure that the experiences we create reflect a genuine, meaningful connection to the community?”

Art Week, for Collins, is the ultimate platform for showcasing these types of forward-thinking experiences. “It’s a stage where you can push culture forward, tell stories that matter, and create real connections with audiences. The essence of experiential marketing is understanding the people and culture you’re trying to reach and telling that story authentically. It has to be more than a DJ party and pop-up activities.”

Collins sees this as an opportunity to engage the next generation, who are increasingly focused on culture and experiences. “This generation is looking for authenticity and a sense of community loyalty” she says. “They want to connect with what heritage and legacy feel like, but they’re also hungry for what’s coming next in an elevated, curated and transformative way. Art Week offers a unique opportunity to bridge that gap, but many Brands are missing the mark.”

In her role on the Board of the Wynwood Chamber of Commerce, Collins also works to bring non-traditional organizations like Brand Innovators into the fold. “It’s not common for a Chamber of Commerce to collaborate with outside organizations like Brand Innovators, especially when their headquarters aren’t based here,” Collins notes. “But that’s part of the philosophy I bring: understanding cultural experiences from the inside out, from your background to your values to the way you curate and deliver an experience.”

For Collins, the future of experiential marketing isn’t just about creating moments—it’s about creating cultural movements that resonate on a deeper level and leave a lasting impact.

About Michelle Collins: Michelle Collins is President and CXO of A\N/A A Non-Agency, an award-winning consumer experience creative consultancy based in New York. The firm was ranked #413 on the Inc. 5000 for 2020, and in 2022, among Inc. magazine’s Regionals List for the Northeast. A\N/A owns and operates the award-winning hospitality retail community for culture tastemakers, Brand Closet Showroom Social. 

Founded in 2016 under the premise of bringing together the best-of-the-best creative, technical and experiential marketing talent to fashion, retail, hospitality and other brands,  A\N/A maintains a small, highly-specialized, inclusive and diverse team of Directors of Creative, Strategy, Experience Design, Fabrication and Technology, to ideate and produce the next evolution of meticulously-curated experiences that are changing the way communities and consumers learn, explore, and buy brands. The firm’s three service and product offerings include consumer experiences, a creative marketplace/NFT+ AI, and a hospitality retail platform.

Luxury and other global brands, including Richemont N. America, Van Cleef & Arpels, Lalique, Kate Spade (Shoppable Barricades), Phillips, Lancome and Delta Airlines (CES 2020), have tapped A Non-Agency to develop and deploy their first experiential marketing strategies and installations.

The post How Miami Art Week is redefining experiential marketing, according to Michelle M. Collins appeared first on Brand Innovators.

Last week, thousands of people converged on the shores of Miami Beach for the Miami International Art Show, a.k.a Art Basel Miami to view works from modern and contemporary artists from five continents, conversations and panels with cultural figures and leaders (including Brand Innovators’ Leadership Roundtable) and innovative brand activations and partnerships. 

Among the official sponsors of Art Basel Miami, Lufthansa offered attendees tips about the host city through a Spotify podcast, “Lufthansa Insights,” an audio travel guide offering tips and information about Miami for sports fans, foodies, history buffs, and, of course, art lovers. 

Longtime global lead partner UBS staged an impressive presentation titled “Threads,” which included works from the company’s extensive art collection, along with a newly commissioned work from Sagarika Sundaram. All of the pieces highlighted artists who take an innovative approach to textile and craft-based art. Sundaram’s piece, “Released Form,” was the artist’s largest to date and was made from hand-dyed wool and silk. 

Sotheby’s International continued its sponsorship of the event for the second year by celebrating the convergence of art and architecture as a reflection of the spirit of the brand’s “1 of 1” brand advertising campaign. During the show, Sotheby’s exhibited a curated selection of unique homes around the world through an exclusive VIP area for the event’s “high-net-worth VIP guests.”

“Sotheby’s International Realty is honored to support Art Basel Miami Beach for a second year,” said Brad Nelson, CMO of Sotheby’s International Realty, in a release. “Our commitment to fostering relationships with collectors of both art and trophy properties remains at the forefront.”

Also in its second year of activating at the Miami event, the Hong Kong Tourism Board set up a “Cha Chaan Teng” pop-up cafe to show off the city’s status as a premier art and cultural destination. Through the cafe, attendees got a taste of Hong Kong’s traditional cafe culture and cuisine, with pineapple buns, egg tarts and milk tea. The space also included a new art installation from multimedia artist Mak2 that integrated physical and digital elements to reflect Hong Kong’s captivating spirit. The activation was designed to pique interest in the upcoming Art Basel Hong Kong event scheduled for March 28-30, 2025. 

It wasn’t just sponsoring companies that made appearances at the event, however. Gaming brand Sega partnered with international artist Romero Britto to introduce artwork inspired by the company’s popular Sonic the Hedgehog gaming character (and in conjunction with the third Sonic the Hedgehog movie coming out later this year). The art was featured in a pop-up shop near the Miami Convention Center, and the artwork was also depicted on consumer goods, including figurines, t-shirts, hats, keychains, pins and more. The fine art, collectibles, accessories and apparel will be available for purchase in 2025. 

E.l.f. Beauty took the opportunity to debut the latest episode of its Show Your(s)e.l.f. Film series at the Tribeca Festival at Art Basel Miami  Beach. The episode featured bionic pop artist Viktoria Modesta and told the story of the journey of her choice to have her leg amputated due to a congenital leg condition. The choice led her to an artist’s perspective through which she challenges societal norms and uses a prosthetic leg as a symbol of self-expression and limitless potential. 

Chase Sapphire Reserve also got into the show, giving cardholders exclusive access to some events and experiences, including the SCOPE Art Show and Chase Sapphire Reserve Lounge and Faena Opening Night Party with Fatboy Slim, through its Ultimate Rewards platform. 

Ikea brought back its “Sleepeasy” pop-up that showcased six so-called sleep essentials – comfort, light, temperature, sound, air quality and decluttering – through hands-on installations. The activation also included the launch of the brand’s second “IKEA Style Guide”for 2025, highlighting two distinct styles “Moody Modernism” and “Sunny Scandinavian.”

Owing to the holiday-adjacent timing, Gucci used the event to unveil a massive snow-globe installation that will remain up through January 7. The piece includes a tribute to the brand’s founder Guccio Gucci, who attributed his time as a porter at London’s Savoy Hotel as the spark for his passion for high-quality luggage, as well as nods to other parts of the brand’s storied history. 

Lexus, meanwhile, collaborated with design and research studio Crafting Plastics to develop an interactive, multi-sensory  installation in the sculpture  garden of the Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami. The installation, titled Liminal Cycles, was inspired by Lexus’s LF-ZC Battery Electric Vehicle concept car and is made from environmentally responsive bioplastic materials. To accompany the installation, Lexus also debuted a product extension in partnership with clean fragrance brand dilo.

The post Brands show their stuff for Art Basel Miami appeared first on Brand Innovators.