The ‘ins and outs’ of branded events with Bilal Kaiser

0:07Bilal Kaiser: Hi, everyone. Thanks for tuning into the Glossy Beauty Podcast, a show about the business of beauty and wellness. I'm your host, Glossy's West Coast correspondent, Lexi Lebsack. Today, we are talking about what's in and what's out for in-person beauty and wellness events. As you probably know, branded events have massively grown in popularity since the global pandemic, especially in beauty and wellness. And that's because experts across the globe agree that consumers are increasingly lonely and craving in-person human connection. Of course, brands are investing more and more now into launch events, pop-ups, multi-city events, brand trips, press and influencer events, and so much more, all to connect with consumers.

0:53Bilal Kaiser: But there is a lot of nuance to creating an impactful event. So I reached out to Bilal Kaiser to come onto the podcast. Bilal is ex-Loreal, a former UCLA marketing instructor and the founder and principal of Agency Guacamole, a firm he launched 10 years ago that currently handles in-person eventing for some of the top beauty brands and retailers like Olive Young, NYX, Therabody, Matrix, Ole Henriksen, and many more. So for today's episode, I challenged Bilal to share his ins and outs of eventing, specifically breaking down eventing trends around different age groups, brand goals and budgets, and more.

1:38Bilal Kaiser: Plus a few hot takes on some big picture strategy dilemmas around events. So let's get into it. Here's my episode with Bilal.

1:51Bilal Kaiser: hi below welcome to the program i'm so happy to have you here hi lexi thank you for having me i'm super excited yay well congratulations on celebrating 10 years of your company agency guacamole you have such a great reputation in beauty and 10 years that's so big oh man i appreciate that it is in some ways it has been 10 very long years in other ways it's been like a blank. Yeah, fair. Well, for those who are unfamiliar, what do you think makes your agency unique? Great question. So to give you a bit of background, Agency Guacamole is a communications agency. We're between LA and New York, as you mentioned, focus exclusively mostly on beauty and lifestyle.

2:30And we do experiential, which I know we'll talk about today, influencer marketing and media relations. I think what makes us unique is A, having a team that understands the very fast-paced nature of our work and how to activate quickly when needed. So that could be on an influencer campaign, that could be an event trend that's suddenly popping that we want to make sure we infuse in, et cetera. I think another one is we're considered a boutique agency. So that allows us to give our clients a really high-level service without some of the intensity that comes to a very larger agency. And the third, I'd say, is really fun.

3:06I mean, even down to our name, right guacamole it's memorable it's brandable we have fun with it we just launched a little platform um internally for supporting programs we call it cilantro so we have fun oh i love that

3:18Bilal Kaiser: well okay if you had to play favorites and i'm teeing you up here to brag but what were some of your sort of noteworthy events that you've done over the last year yeah okay well i never play favorites i love all of our clients 100 equally um but there were a few events uh there are a few events that stand out from this past year. So on the larger event side, we did something with our long-term client Redken, which is a pro hair brand in partnership with the Grammy Awards in LA. And that was the intention there was to announce their first ever global brand ambassador, which is Sabrina Carpenter.

3:50And so we did a multi-day event where we had activations at the Grammy house, which is a panel event space that gets taken over by brands. And then because as Recton's a pro hair brand, we partnered with and leveraged their pro hair stylist to do hair touch-ups, makeups before, during, after, bringing it into Monsters Town, et cetera. Another event that I was so proud of my team's hard work on is for our skincare client, Ula Henriksen. They're launching a peach-themed cleanser, and there's a really cool event space in Adelaide at the Pendry. Actually, it's not called that anymore. It's a different hotel, but it was called the Pendry before, and they have a bowling alley downstairs.

4:28And it was in a peach-toned environment to begin with. So we went in, made it even peachier, if you can imagine, and had a lot of fun bringing those moments to life.

4:36Bilal Kaiser: How fun. Well, you've been in this industry a really long time. How would you say that branded beauty and lifestyle events have sort of evolved? They have evolved significantly. I would say especially coming out of COVID, I've observed the following few things happening. One, timelines are shorter. Budgets are tighter. expectations are higher. So give me more, give me bigger, but you have less to work with. It's so fun. I love it. If any clients are listening to this, we genuinely do love the challenge, but for everyone who's not a client, you know how hard that can be to constantly deal with.

5:12Another evolution we're seeing is a lot more intentionality behind events. And I anticipate that to get even, become even more of a priority going into 2027 and beyond. And the third observation, I would say, is more of a connection to other parts of the marketing and PR funnel. I know we've talked about 360 marketing forever. I know that's a thing. But what I've observed with events specifically is looking at an event or activation, you want to think about the before, the during, and the after. So yes, the production, the visuals have to be amazing, and we can talk more about that. But what happens before as it relates to influencer campaigns through content leading up to the event, what happens after within the content ecosystem and beyond, and really making sure brands think through, especially when you're investing a lot of money into larger scale activations.

5:59Bilal Kaiser: Yeah. It's interesting that you say that timelines have gotten shorter, budgets have gotten smaller, because it feels like we're at this moment right now where eventing feels way more important than it ever has. But I don't know. Do you think that's true? A hundred percent. I think from a macro lens, there is a lot of conversation around people, you know, digital on social media, as amazing as it is, can sometimes make us feel very lonely and very isolated. And I think events in general, community, branded, et cetera, are an opportunity for people to come together. To your point, there are a lot more events that's become a report 100%.

6:31Every launch, when the brand can afford it, needs to have some sort of event that clients are asking for it. I do think that when I go back to my earlier comment about the intentionality of events, I think there are ways to make an event worthwhile, not just from a branding or experiential point of view, but really giving back to the people who are physically at the event to give them that connection they're looking for. You know, especially like there's, I'm sure you've seen on TikTok and whatnot, the loss of third spaces, right? Where people can gather, people can connect with each other. And I think for the right brand, obviously don't do it in like a weird way, but like for the right brand, it could be an opportunity to present itself as a third space for the right community.

7:07Bilal Kaiser: Yeah. Yeah. No, that's so true. I feel like we're all just like so lonely and we're all just like craving this connection that we're just not getting from social. I mean, truly. But okay. So you've done events for the whole gamut of the beauty industry of lifestyle brands. And I want to talk about ins and outs right now. So of course we have to start with Jen's Alpha, Jen Alpha, Jen Z. But yeah, what, what are sort of the, what's in if you want to, if you want to reach Jen's Alpha? Yeah. It's funny you ask that. I just got back from New York where on Saturday we had an event for a Gen Alpha-based skincare brand.

7:43And yeah, it was so fun. And to answer your question, I would say, if you want to work with Gen Alpha, as you called it, you have to think about the intentionality behind it. So what is the purpose of the event? Whereas for adults, you can have a cocktail party as the basis and then build a brand around it. For these younger audiences, you really have to look at the event almost like an upside-down way. and for our client Ever Eden, we created an environment that was essentially under the theme of a slumber party. So we invited these kids, their kiddos to come, change into cute branded PJs, be in an environment where they're actually around their friends because they all know each other.

8:21There's a family component because they're usually with a parent or trusted adult, right? So you have to make sure you look at it from the gen alpha, gen's alpha attendee point of view, but also the adult that's coming with them and then making it super interactive and fun. I mean, do you remember, I don't know if you remember this from your younger days, but like Discovery Zone where you had like all these things like touch and feel. Yeah.

8:42Bilal Kaiser: Oh, my God. I was just talking about Discovery Zone last weekend. Yes. Do you still exist? I used to love going there as a kid. So my girlfriend just had a party for her four-year-old at a Discovery Zone-like place. And I just kept telling everybody, I'm like, do you remember Discovery Zone? I certainly remember it. And I bring that up here to say I think there's a lot of inspiration from a brand event perspective. that you can draw from what was so exciting for us at that age in these environments. You want to touch, you want to feel. So going back to this event on Saturday, we had, they weren't called glam stations or vanities, they were bedazzling stations where you could touch and feel the product.

9:20There was a ring light, there was a gorgeous mirror where you could get ready and photograph yourself or film yourself. And so allowing the content creators to be in their element at the same time, making it what's frankly relevant for someone of that age. And then for Gen Z, if you're a little bit older, I would say the ins would be thinking through each seventh experience and being very real. Gen Z is very quick to, you know, say if something is cringe or something is awkward. And there's no point in like trying to be something you're not. I say lean into your own brand story and DNA, no matter what the audience is.

9:51But if your audience is Gen Z, just lean into that and let them have fun with it. I think Gen Z gets a bad rep because of a lot of things in the press. But from an event perspective, when we've done events for them, I've always found them to be very lovely, very excited to be there and really eager to create content, which they know the brand wants them to do.

10:07Bilal Kaiser: How exciting. And for anyone who doesn't remember Discovery Zone, it was like a McDonald's PlayStation on steroids, like just this monster area that you could go into slides and tunnels. And it was just fun. Yeah. Yeah. What a time. What a time that was. Truly what a time. What a time. Well, I love that. I love this idea of sort of tapping into Gen Alpha with these third spaces, these feelings of connection. And then Gen Z with this sort of like being being more honest about where your brand is. And that's interesting. What would you say are out if you want to try to reach Gen Alpha, Gen Z?

10:46if I had to be super trend focused I feel like one thing that's one thing that's uh probably on the out is you know how there's a lot of like um uh TikTok memes or sounds that make their way into the broader culture so I don't I know there's a few from a few years ago I'll say them or you're going to cringe but you know very demure very mindful like those sorts of things which are so fun and so cool in the moment, but as soon as the expiration date hits, it becomes the opposite. I think out is trying too hard to jump on every single one, even if it's not, or especially if it's not relevant for your brand.

11:20So being mindful that if you are going to tap into a cultural conversation that's taking place online or on TikTok or wherever else, that you're doing it in the right way and not being behind the curve where all of a sudden it puts you in an uncomfortable or weird light. I would also say, I think, if you can help me judge what this means from being an out perspective, but I have found that there is an appetite for brands to connect with the community or connect with the target audience's interests in a more nuanced way. So I guess I'm saying the opposite, not with that, but it's in, but maybe you can help massage it in that.

12:01We understand that from a macro lens, there are communities that might be having financial challenges or Or, you know, especially for young generations, finding a job can be hard, et cetera. And I think being mindful of what your target demographic is going through and tailoring an experience that either understands that or doesn't come across as tone deaf, I think is definitely in. So I guess the out would be being tone deaf to what's happening in the community or in the world and just, you know, thinking the event is all there is.

12:30Bilal Kaiser: Yeah. No, that's such a great call out. And I think about this all the time with events. It's like, it must be so challenging to toe that line because you can't just ignore what's going on in the world. But at the same time, like you still want to like invest. You still need to have an event. You still need to get your product out there. But then the optics of that can be can feel so complicated. A hundred percent. If you were a client asking me for my thoughts on that, I would say the following two things. The first thing I would say is I think that's a totally fair and rational ask, especially because you know that every aspect of the activation is going to be filmed and shared to death.

13:05And you do not want to come across as tone deaf or out of touch with your community. I think with that said, there might be ways to create an experience that understands your target demographic really well and is still mindful of something bigger. I'll give you a couple examples. So one, if you are, let's say, a product sold at a mass retailer, not necessarily a luxury product, maybe the experience doesn't have to be super luxe or come across as super fancy. So that if your target consumer sees it, they say, hey, I can barely, you know, pay X price at CVS for it. But you're giving experience to influencers that's like, I could never afford in my life, right?

13:41Being aware of that sort of juxtaposition. I think another thing I might suggest is tapping into the community in a different way. So, for example, we're talking about this internally. I think in 2027, we're going to see more events that connect with things happening in the areas that we're doing events in a more fun, cool way. So, for example, if it's a smaller to medium pop-up, does the venue we choose happen to be like the coolest independent-owned coffee shop that's been standing in the same place for 50 years? Or a community center that's—a community center is actually very cool and, like, vibey.

14:12Or let's say arts and culture. if there's a, if there's, let's say, your launching a product that has like a sense of movement. Do we hire like ballet dancers from a local ballet company to create an experiential moment that's actually rooted in the community you're activating in? I think there's a lot more of that coming.

14:27Bilal Kaiser: That's so smart to just like, like those little, I guess, signals, would you call them? That you're tapped into what's actually going on. Exactly right. And I think that shows a more authentic connection to the place, the community, the audience, versus we're just going to fly into town, put on this multi-billion dollar event and we don't care how it looks. Yeah. It reminds me of press trips a little bit where I would not want to be a brand doing a press trip right now. It's like, how do you navigate those optics? I mean, who would even begin with that, right? Yeah. Press trips can be, I think, very tricky.

15:00Although these days, like, you know, between press, influencers, consumers, the trips are sort of, they're like an all-encompassing brand trip now.

15:09Bilal Kaiser: Yeah, that's so true. Well, we should talk some insider baseball here. So let's talk about press and influencers and consumers and sort of what's the, I guess, what is the line for you? It's like, do you have press and influencers in the same event nowadays? Can you have consumers in the mix? Like, how do you navigate that as a brand? Yeah, great question. You probably remember the days when editor trips would only be editors. How dare we even mention the word influencer? And then the flip side, influencer would be like, what's press? What's an editor? And I do remember like when we started introducing one or two of each group into the other, there were some ruffled feathers.

15:45I mean, I love my editor friends, but I remember the stuff they would tell me and how upset they were with certain brands when they did that. Cut to now, I will say for a number of reasons, there is a lot more integration between the two groups for sure and some consumer. So with press, you know, their objective is to be able to craft a story, pitch their editor what they want to write about, dive into something deeper, understand really what's happening, maybe connect to something that's bigger in the macro sense. For the influencer, the purpose is to create content, do a lot more controlled brand storytelling if it's a paid partnership, and look their best, show their brand alignment.

16:20So from an eventing perspective, if I was doing a brand trip, I would say, I need to understand each person's unique needs and deliver them that experience. So if you, Lexi, were coming on a brand trip with us, I'd make sure that you have all the product information in a way that's in a format that's easily accessible to you. You have access to the founder for interviews, brand history, innovation. What is happening at the brand that would get you excited to go back to your editor and want to write about us? On the influencer side, I wouldn't give them half of that because it's not really relevant for them, right?

16:47But instead, it gives them an experience that makes them excited to talk about, not just in a paid context, but organic context, help show help them see how they can develop a relationship with the brand so that their followers see it's an organic match, that they're not just doing this purely for a paycheck. The consumer piece, I think, is super interesting. I think there's a lot of, as I'm sure you're aware, beauty pop-ups happening all over the country and the world, right? And consumers will line up. We've known for a while that consumers shop based on their values or the brands they want to be aligned with.

17:17I call that, I was chatting internally with the team and I've been calling it your brand LTR. So like not your situation shift, just your brand LTR is that the brands that you love and want to be a part of the communities you want to be part of, you will wait in line for a pop-up, you'll show up. And so that gives you a reason to have the cloud that's associated with that. Bringing it back to the brand trip, I think consumers can be really cool because it gives them access that's really unparalleled. And knowing that these are the people that are buying our product, recommending our product to their peers and having a lot more value there it can be done smartly.

17:52What I would caution, however, is that editors are pros. Influencers are usually pros. You want to make sure the consumer fits in in a way where they're just not, you know, like a cat running around and trying to herd a cat or multiple cats at the same time.

18:05Bilal Kaiser: Yeah, no, it's so true. Are there events out there? Well, I know there are events with press and influencers. Are there events that are happening in beauty right now with press, influencers, consumer? I think the majority groups are press and influencers. I think Consumers are peppered in, if not within the main group. I am aware of events that are maybe like one day is dedicated to consumers or consumers have a smaller portion of the overall event piece. There is a lot of energy, I think, happening around, energy I'm seeing around rewarding and celebrating consumers, the people that are actually buying our product.

18:37And you see this in the rise in user-generated content, right? These are people that have the look and feel, maybe not the following, or the pop-ups, or people who literally don't want to connect with and give them a chance to have a say in the products we develop. that they're ultimately going to buy.

18:49Bilal Kaiser: Yeah, so true. Okay, so what is in and out now for a press influencer event? Oof. In is going to be...

19:05I really have a purpose and an intention. And I know that's so much easier said than done because if a brand came to me tomorrow and wanted to do an event, we'd do an event because they want to do it. But I think because of the sheer volume of events that people in the press and influencer communities are invited to, even in paid context, that they are having to make decisions on choosing what's worth their time and what they want to move forward with. I mean, especially you in the editorial field, y 'all probably get a bazillion invites a day.

19:32Bilal Kaiser: So many events out there. I always wonder who's going to all of them. Yeah. So is the event really going to give the guest, and not only an experience, of course, that's expected, but is it going to give them the knowledge that they need to grow the relationship with the brand, the knowledge they need to do their job, the alignment with the brand and their peers, frankly, even, to make it worthwhile. So I think that's going to be very in. I think another angle for trips especially is going to be the inclusivity piece. So, you know, we've talked about this for a long time. Agents of Workroom, we actually have our own event called Blend Beauty Labs Center and Diversity, specifically around the topic of D &I and belonging.

20:11And I think for brand trips, several brands in the last couple of years, as I'm sure you're aware, have been called out because the people that actually get to go don't seem to be very, it doesn't seem to be a very inclusive event, excuse me.

20:24Bilal Kaiser: Sure. And I think if your target audience is a diverse audience, I think that needs to be represented in the content that's going up, which the brand trip ultimately, you know, provides. Yeah. And then what would be out for press events? What is so tired? Yeah. What is so tired? I mean, I have a thought on this personally, but I don't want to get called out anywhere. No, please. But I feel like the ultra luxury eventing trips, not eventing, the ultra luxury brand trips, sometimes... Okay, look, if someone wanted to find me on a private jet and host me at the best hotel in whatever city, and, you know, I live like Richie Rich for a weekend, I would absolutely love it.

21:05I would say, yes, call me, please. I'll send you my emails. Sure. However, I think because so many brands have started to do that, the bar just keeps going up and up and up. And I think consumers are seeing that as a bit of a disconnect between the reality that they're living in or the reality that the brand represents. And we're only doing it just for like a show-offy sort of way. So nothing against luxury, especially if you have a luxury brand in the space. But I think there should be ideally a happy medium where you're giving an amazing top-tier experience without completely going overboard.

21:39My two cents, please don't come after me.

21:41Bilal Kaiser: No, no, you know what you're talking about. Oh, please. You're right on the money with that one. It's so true. Okay, let me see here. We have one more. Wait, there was one more little bucket. Oh, oh my gosh. How did I forget? Millennials and Gen X. What's in and out for millennials and Gen X events? I thought you forgot about millennials just like everyone else does. I know. We're over. Okay, so with millennial-focused events, I would say premium experiences are still important. I think there is a heightened appetite for wellness. education, what is my point in coming here? I think from an influencer point of view, look, social media sort of came about as we were finishing up high school or college.

22:25So we've been immersed into it for a long time. We understand how the game works. We know we're there to create content. We know what you're looking for. And I think for millennials, you have to understand that, yes, they know what they're showing up for, but make it more clear, like, I want you to do this. I expect that. And here's an environment to do that. And here's the value you're getting for being part of this. I also think that millennials are very appreciative of like extra special touches or niche touches. Like maybe there's like a sustainability aspect to the event that can be highlighted in the invite or after the event or some sort of community touch point that being at this event helps support our touches.

23:01I think the millennial generation of which I'm part has been burnt in so many ways that we like to feel like we're making a difference in some way to whatever else is around us. And then Gen X, to be honest, this is my favorite generation to do an event for. I think they like save the fluff, keep it real. They want the product credibility. They want the real talk. They also want the food and beverage, emphasis on beverage. We work with a lot of hair pros that straddle the different generations, but there are a lot of really accomplished hair pros who are in the Gen X generation. They are the best people to party with, but they were like, you know, don't BS me.

23:34Just give it to me. Tell me what I need. Okay, I did my job. Now I'm going to go have fun.

23:37Bilal Kaiser: It's like the last cocktail generation, I swear. I think you might be onto something. Yeah, so true. This has been so insightful. Wow. Okay, let's talk a little bit about cost. Has it gotten just so much more expensive? Like, can you give us any like kind of real figures here on like what this jump has looked like? Oh, man. Yeah. Everything has gotten expensive, especially in eventing. So venue costs, fabrication, flowers. Oh, my God. Florals. if I literally have to stop myself from exclaiming in concern and fear when I see certain budgets with floral costs as high as they are. Because I have to ask the team to double check.

24:16Are you sure that's the right amount? They're like, it is. It just costs that much. So if I had to give you all numbers, I'll say, you know, venues for a small to medium-sized event like in LA or New York could be 10, 20, maybe 30K, not inclusive food and beverage. Now it's probably 1.5 to 2X that. Very quickly, very easily. And higher, depending on time of year. If it's like a seasonal, big seasonal moment, et cetera, there's just such an influx of events and interest that they can charge that. And, you know, their costs are probably going up, too.

24:46Fabrications, like the walls that you look at, wall flats, things that we build custom probably doubled in cost over the last few years.

24:53Bilal Kaiser: Okay. Yeah. And then if things are coming from overseas market, while there might be cost efficiency, we found there like for tote bags or special touches, timelines vary. And, you know, if it's not tariffs, it's oil, who knows, those can impact delivery as well. Yeah. I have one more question, but first I want to go back to something you said in the beginning, which is timelines are getting shorter. Why are timelines getting shorter? If I had to guess about timelines getting shorter, I would venture to say the following. I think one, the economic realities of running a business and looking at profitability a lot more tightly.

25:26I think news can come about the previous month very hard and fast, and you have to make your numbers in order to continue doing what you want to do the rest of the year. So it could be that we didn't have an event planned for middle of Q3, but because of some other indicator in the previous quarter or two, now we have to activate quickly to not only course correct, but also maintain what we're planning to do the rest of the year because budgets have been set. Otherwise they get cut. I think another reason might be the space moves very fast, social digital, right? So let's say a product that you launched a while ago suddenly goes viral and everyone's organically talking about it.

26:02And maybe you've sold out and you want to reintroduce it or introducing 2.0. You only have a finite amount of time to do that before you become old news. And I think, I think that's just the reality, right? That you come to us and say, I want to do an event and we have two weeks, a month, real stories and we do the best we can. But I would say those are probably two thoughts.

26:22Bilal Kaiser: Yeah. I mean, everything's just, you're so right. Everything's just moving so much faster. Yeah. Yeah. Bilal, I have one more question for you. Curious, if you look forward to 2027, which I know feels so far off right now, but what will be the biggest event change or evolution or what can you say about 2027?

26:43oof okay i'll do a couple bullet points in my head the first bullet point is i'm going to double down on more intentional experiences no matter the generation no matter the budget really have a clear point of view on why you're doing what you're doing and make sure that point of view is clearly communicated from the invite to the actual event to everything that happens afterwards Bullet point number two, I would say, with a heightened focus on making sure we can measure what's happening at the event and we know that consumers are ultimately buying the products, right? Infusing consumers, the actual people buying your products into events.

27:18So yes, pop-ups, yes, you know, special access to people in the local markets they can tend, but even thinking of new ways to do it. So for example, I mentioned UGC earlier, right? User-generated content. These are consumers that look like you and me and we may look like a product target demographic. Like we may not have the massive followings. How do we engage them besides UGC? Maybe they get to be contracted to create content at the event, before the event, after the event. Maybe they come to our event planning meetings and get to be part of the conversation. Like what is the consumer looking for and get input on maybe a certain piece of the event, right?

27:52That could be fun. Yeah. And the last thing I'd say for 207, I think I'd go back to my earlier point about connecting the event to something larger. whether it's community, whether it's arts and culture, local causes, right? For us, like, personally, I care very much about food insecurity. Is there a way, if that's something important to me and I'm doing an event around my brand, do I make an effort to reduce food waste at said event to connect it back to something we care about? So you have a great experience there, but you also know that after you leave, there was a lot more intentionality and care after that.

28:26Bilal Kaiser: Lal, thank you so much for coming on the podcast. It was so nice to have you. Thank you for having me.

28:36Bilal Kaiser: And thank you for listening to this episode of the Glossy Beauty Podcast. If you enjoyed it, please leave us a rating and a review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you're listening. And for even more coverage on the beauty industry and more, please visit glossy.co slash beauty.

28:59Thank you.