When it comes to doing business better, John Arvanitakis, CEO and founder of Chat’r Xperience, is not taking any shortcuts. Here he shares his vision and values for the company – and therefore his clients and partners.
John Arvanitakis, CEO and founder of Chat’r Xperience
Chat’r (pronounced “chatter”) is a full-service experiential marketing agency named after its core purpose; to generate talkability and therefore connections. “Our aim is for our work to always tell a story and spark conversations. This means we never do anything ordinary; we love to push ourselves to think differently and innovate in a way that will grab attention and get people talking,” explains John Arvanitakis, CEO and founder of Chat’r Xperience.
“Why? Because this means that, through our work, people are engaging with our client’s brand and with each other – which is what the events and marketing industry is all about. Stirring emotions and creating connections.”
He adds that inspiring conversations can generate additional PR for Chat’r clients (such as social media photos and commentary), creating an attractive added-value benefit.
A constant state of evolution
John has been in the industry for close to 30 years, while this year marked the 10th anniversary for Chat’r. He shares that Covid was an incredibly tough period for the company (as it was for the whole events industry), but a positive outcome is that it is now a leaner operation with few overheads. This enables it to be competitively priced, with in-house creative design talent and a vetted network of professional partners to ensure it can execute an extensive range of projects.
Another Covid-induced impact is that Chat’r doesn’t only deliver physical activations such as exquisite exhibition stands, retail displays, product launches, and corporate events, but it also operates in the digital realm of marketing, with Chat’r TV. This all-in-one business event solution is primed for multi-media events, with green screens, live 3D virtual studios, virtual reality venues, exhibition gamification, and more.
“I know I have contributed to the environmental problem we are now dealing with. But now that I know better, I want to do better, and I want to leave the events industry better off than I found it.”
And it doesn’t stop there. The company’s ongoing evolution has most recently included taking strides towards greater sustainability. John says, “Throughout my career in the events industry, I’ve come to recognise how wasteful it tends to be. Because most installations are very temporary, the industry has tended to design for make-and-break. This single-use habit is inflicting havoc on our planet, rapidly depleting finite resources into goods which are soon destined for overflowing landfills. And it’s a big contributor to climate change.
“At the same time, we don’t have to work this way. By rethinking how we operate, we can still create beautiful exhibition stands and showstopping events, but without the negative effects on our environment. It’s a win-win situation.”
As a result, John’s goal for the future is for his work to have a positive impact on the world – not only in terms of exceeding his client’s brief, but in terms of its physical impact on the environment. “I know I have contributed to the environmental problem we are now dealing with. But now that I know better, I want to do better, and I want to leave the events industry better off than I found it,” he adds.
Walking the talk
Not one for half measures, since making this decision John has joined the Event Greening Forum NPO and is the current vice chairperson. He uses the platform to advocate for positive change through key local industry associations which Chat’s is an active member of, such as AAXO (Association of African Exhibition Organisers), EXSA (Exhibition and Events Association of Southern Africa), the PCO Alliance Network, and SAACI (Southern African Association for the Conference Industry).
Chat’r has also signed the global industry-led Net Zero Carbon Events pledge (www.netzerocarbonevents.org) to commit to a goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Working towards this goal, the company has implemented several sustainable practices. These include switching to a cloud-based set-up for all company documents and designs, with the result that the office is now a paperless environment, as well as implementing recycling and driving hybrid vehicles. But perhaps the biggest change is in how the team now thinks about their work.
“We can guarantee that we will always strive to do things as beautifully, effectively, and sustainably as possible.”
Doing business better
“Nowadays, the environment is top of mind in every project we do, right from conception to implementation and break-down,” explains John. This has seen the team devise several innovative solutions, such as:
Adopting eco-friendly materials: The company uses eco-design board for much of its work. The material is largely made from recycled paper waste and is fully recyclable when it is no longer needed. It is lightweight and packs flat (lowering its travel-related carbon footprint) but is strong enough to build exhibition stands from and looks and behaves much like MDF board. Plus, it is free of chemicals and VOCs (volatile organic compounds).
Design for re-use: Chat’r used eco-design board to create a poster display for University of the Western Cape and is now transforming the displays into an alternative for shell scheme booths. Re-usability is a cornerstone of the circular economy, which yields eco-benefits such as using our resources more responsibly and efficiently, while largely circumventing the challenge of landfill waste.
The Exxaro Sustainability Summit 2023 marquee used only 11 fans to keep the tech cool, despite 32-degree temperatures
Design of off-grid events: Chat’r has helped to bring two sustainable Exxaro events to life, which in both cases entailed setting up full scale events in remote locations without any existing infrastructure in place. Through careful planning, the team was able to create fully serviced venues a responsible manner.
For example, the marquee used at the Exxaro Sustainability Summit 2023 was set-up to optimise airflow. As a result, no aircon and only 11 fans powered by generators were needed to keep the space and the AV equipment cool, despite 32-degree temperatures.
At the same event, biodegradable food service items were sourced instead of re-usable crockery – which typically is the most sustainable choice. However, in this instance crockery would have required trucking in water to clean it afterwards, whereas the biodegradable alternatives could be composted with the food waste, post-event.
A few examples of greening at the Exxaro Sustainability Summit 2023
The second Exxaro event was a sod-turning ceremony by Cennergi (a subsidiary of Exxaro) for the Lephalale Solar Project (LSP) at Exxaro Grootegeluk Mine in Limpopo. The ‘venue’ was the site for the LSP on Appelvlakte farm – a space of undeveloped land with wild animals roaming freely – which needed to be cleared, graded, and levelled, while a 3 km road was created for guests to access it.
John says, “We had two weeks to develop a 400 m² event space which was 100% off the grid, as all power, water, ablutions, and infrastructure had to be brought to site. This meant we had to be very strategic to ensure our carbon footprint was kept to a minimum and that no trace of the event was left behind post-event, so that the project of erecting 129 000 solar panels could go ahead seamlessly – all with minimal disturbance to the local wildlife.”
The bushland for Cennergi’s Lephalale Solar Project is entirely off-grid, and required all infrastructure, water, energy, and ablutions to be brought in for the sod turning event
The set-up for the sod-turning ceremony by Cennergi
Design for minimal landfill waste: A shining example of how Chat’r minimises the production of landfill waste is a custom stand it designed and built for Total Energies at the NAMPO Cape Expo in Bredasdorp. Only one plastic bag worth of landfill waste was generated from the build (see the photo), because of shrewd choices made in the design choices and construction of the stand.
Another great waste-minimising example is the Exxaro Sustainability Summit 2023. Due to the event’s remote location and lack of existing infrastructure, it could have easily had a huge waste footprint if not watched carefully. However, by choosing to use hay bales, fresh fruit and vegetables, as well as potted plants for the décor, and setting up a donation pathway for all of these items, hardly any waste was produced – and what was, could be composted and recycled.
All the unrecyclable waste from the Total Energies stand could fit into the pictured plastic bag
Watch this space
And there is more to come; a sustainable surprise from Chat’r is in store for us in 2024, John shares. At this stage he cannot say much, except that a new event will be launching in the new year – so watch this space to find out more.
A sustainable surprise from Chat’r is in store for us in 2024
And no doubt there will be many more sustainable strides taken by the company in the coming years, which is why it is the perfect partner for eco-conscious clients. “If you are interested in ensuring your marketing activations have a positive impact on the environment, while being innovative and sparking talkability, then Chat’r is the partner for you. We can guarantee that we will always strive to do things as beautifully, effectively, and sustainably as possible,” says John.
Are you ready? With all the benefits of a typical agency, Chat’r’s added value at no added cost is a boon.
Contact info
Tel: +27 (0) 83 415 2774
Email: hello@chatr.co.za
Web: chatr.co.za
FB: @ChatrXperience
Insta: @chatrxp
YouTube: @chatrtv2197
Twitter: @chatrxp
LinkedIn: @chatrxperience
