Arena Tei – how to launch an events brand during the pandemic

One of the most impacted fields of activity by the COVID-19 pandemic was the entertainment, the organizing of medium and big events, a situation that continues in 2021 as well and that will show its effects long term as well. Still, in any crisis there will be companies and leaders that will have the courage and the power of taking a risk and launching new products.

Arena Tei is a project thought, created and implemented from the square one by Publicis Events – from finding and arranging the location, to the artistic program, communication, selling tickets, etc. Therefore, Publicis Events became the only BTL agency in Romania that had in 2020 this type of entrepreneurial initiative and that showed the perfect adaptation to the new context. Therefore, when most of the clients preferred to freeze their budgets and to remain in expectative, Publicis Events proved that the vision and the courage are the two ingredients that can transform the crisis into an opportunity.

Arena Tei is a space with closed circuit, in the Romsilva base –9A Petricani Street, in a green, airy area, with a capacity of over 500 people that can stay on chairs, at table or individually. The audience has at its disposal also a food & drinks area, with gourmet menues. The space is adapted to all the safety and social distancing rules and targets both the public, through the Summer In The City platform, as well as the companies looking for solutions in implementing the corporate events, being equipped with everything that means logistics and technical equipment. All summer long Arena Tei offered a large range of events from stand-up comedy, open air cinema, concerts and up to theater shows.

Răzvan Chirilov, Senior Producer la Publicis Events, said:

The lockdown wasn’t easy for us the ones that are used to an intense activity and to be always on the move. The Arena Tei initiative was born during this difficult period of time in which we were trying to find solutions adapted to the moment. There was already a trend among the Drive In events in Europe, but we put our stakes on a chic space, easy accessible, in a greener as possible and chill area, in which one could spend safely some hours with the family, the friends, or, why not, with oneself. The initiative came in the relaxation period, after the Spring lockdown, and was our natural necessity as a group/company of trying to do something for the events’ industry.

Miruna Săndulescu, Account Director, added:

The project was born from the desire of staying relevant, of opening a new business road, of testing on our own the new context and, not least, of going out.

The Publicis Events team is very proud of having succeeded in this year of unprecedented sanitary crisis to develop its competences and expertise and to start in 2021 with a new vision over the manner in which the events’ industry in Romania will change. Moreover, the team thanks all its partners for supporting it in this adventure and without the help of whose it wouldn’t have succeeded in starting on this path.

The whole corporate and private events’ industry being froze, the only aria in which we could retreat ourselves was the one in which we created an entertainment hub in the nature in which we tried to show that can be done safe events, following all the regulations, and the people that went to our events so far. It was a challenging and a differentiation on the market that helped us prove one more time our capabilities in this very competitive industry,” added Razvan Chirilov.

And, about adaptability can be talked in present and in the future, as we clearly know that the events will never be the same. The Publicis Events team has been thinking even starting 2020 at a different approach in the events area and takes fast steps towards the hybrid events that will have both an offline component that we all know, as well as an online integrated component that will therefore generate a bigger reach.  

For us it wasn’t that hard to adapt and to react fast. We are in an industry in which the ideas’ reservoir needs to be always accessed and kept fresh. What is important is to have the initiative of generating ideas and a valuable content to put in practice, either in the classic event formula, as well as online. And not to be afraid of testing, trying, make mistakes,” explained Miruna Săndulescu.

For this year the Arena Tei team works to offer the public an as welcoming and relaxing space as possible. And, as in the case of the TV series, there will be no spoilers, but you can follow the latest activities and news on the dedicated Facebook page.