ATCON25

Client: Autotrader

Manchester

It all started with one question: “How would you bring magic to life?”

We’d just won a small creative project for Autotrader and were invited to a chemistry workshop with senior leadership off the back of it. By the end of that meeting, equal parts pitch and performance, we’d landed the full-scale delivery of ATCON 2025.

What followed was a complete reimagining of their annual conference.

By day: a 1,000+ person, multi-track experience packed with bold keynotes, 20 breakouts, interactive moments and purpose-led activations.

By night: a full venue transformation at Manchester Central. Immersive entrance, electric atmosphere, and unforgettable entertainment.

The brief:

“Our goal is to boost Sales colleagues' confidence by focusing on our excellent current products and data stories, rather than future products still in development. We will emphasise what we have today and how it benefits our retailers.” 

We co-created an experience with Autotrader that did exactly that. 

Recognition. Real connection. And one jaw-dropping day-to-night transformation pulled off in just two hours. (It nearly killed us!)

91% of attendees agreed with the statement: “I believe our products provide great opportunities for both our company and our retailers/customers.”

Internal teams walked away proud and energised.

A two-year strategy was subsequently signed off.

“We have never experienced this level of attention to detail previously, you’ve really elevated. Well done.” - C-suite 

“You exceeded all of our expectations, and they were already very high.” - C-suite

This was the biggest project we’ve ever undertaken as Planit and we nailed it. We transformed a legacy event into something fresh, connected and memorable. We didn’t have endless budget or a 20-person team. We had belief, talent and sheer grit. Constantly asking ourselves “Is there a better way?”

We’d like to call out our amazing co-creators across both our clients and suppliers. From AV to strategy, catering to creative, every single partner played a part in pulling this off.