Arup at 80: Turning an Anniversary Reception into an Immersive Brand Experience

Client: Arup

Lightroom, Coal Drops Yard, King's Cross, London

Most companies celebrate milestone anniversaries by looking back. Arup chose to look forward.

To mark its 80th anniversary, the world-renowned engineering consultancy wanted more than a celebration. It wanted to reinforce its position as a modern, forward-thinking partner and trusted convener of influential voices. The challenge was to create an evening reception for CEOs, policymakers and designers that would strengthen relationships, inspire discussion and deepen emotional connections with the Arup brand – without feeling like a sales pitch.

We developed a strategic creative platform built around one question: How can we design better futures for our cities?

Hosted at Lightroom in King's Cross, the experience combined world-leading expertise with the lived experiences of people navigating everyday urban life. The event took place within a four-storey immersive environment where 28 projectors transformed 1,500m² of space into a storytelling canvas. Guests journeyed through bespoke content, urban soundscapes, installations, a spectacular 360° film experience and keynote discussions from globally recognised leaders. Throughout the evening, the venue transformed to immerse guests in the challenges and opportunities that will define the next 80 years.

The activation successfully transformed a corporate milestone into a platform for engagement, thought leadership and brand positioning. Arup exceeded its target for VIP invitation acceptances and received overwhelmingly positive feedback from attendees, who described the event as “spectacular”, “inspiring” and “a great way to celebrate the milestone”.

Importantly, the conversation extended beyond the event itself. Attendees shared their experiences across LinkedIn, generating more than 1,258 reactions and reaching a combined audience of 47,000+ professional followers.

Arup's anniversary was successfully repositioned as a powerful expression of the brand's future purpose. It strengthened relationships, inspired influential stakeholders and reinforced Arup as a trusted convener of ideas, expertise and action.

Not a celebration of the last 80 years.

A conversation about the next 80.