STURDY.’s Kyle Nolan on the power of ‘moment-centric’ brand experiences

Kyle, it’s great to chat. For anyone new to STURDY., how would you describe the studio?
We’re an evolving company, but essentially STURDY. is a design studio and creative agency. Our business model has been in creating live shows experiences for audiences through music… But I say we’re evolving because we’re moving into working in the brand space, where we can connect brands with audiences through innovative experiences – and that includes collaborations with our own IP, Oasis.

How did you find your way into the experiential space?
Me and the other partners at STURDY. all come from entrepreneurial backgrounds. We all have that freelance past of working hard, finding and retaining your own clients, and letting your work speak for itself.

I started in the video production space with my own company that was focused on music videos and rollout assets for artists. It was that video campaign space where there’s a number of assets created to get an artist from point A to point B. One of my best friends is STURDY. co-founder Kevin Henry, and back then, their business model was in doing the visuals for live shows and concerts.

The beauty of this merge in relationship and business was that during Covid, live shows went away therefor people were absorbing more and more video content. You started seeing more pre-recorded videos of live music. The Jimmy Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel shows would introduce a band and instead of the camera panning to them live in the studio, it would cut to the band performing in the desert or an airplane hangar.

Long story short, there was an appetite to combine live show experiences with pre-recorded video, so we connected. They would bring clients to me, or we would bring clients to them – and when Covid started to wind down, I joined STURDY. and built out our video production component and helped expand the company from doing the visuals for live shows to being able to handle production in-house and build more business verticals. We crossed paths at the exact right time.

Let’s dive into some of your work with brands, starting with an experience you put together for the Liquid I.V. brand – and for anyone unfamiliar with that IP, what is Liquid I.V.?
Liquid I.V. is an extremely fast-growing hydration drink. It comes in powder-form – you pour it into water, and it hydrates you. Their competitors are brands like Gatorade and Powerade, but Liquid I.V. is way more advanced and more adult. You’ll find it in pharmacies and sports facilities. It’s a growing brand and they’ve been smart, because they didn’t cater solely to the sports market – they targeted the pop culture circuit instead.

We noticed they had a large event at Coachella and from that, we knew that were interested in creating experiences with artists. We wanted to align ourselves with a brand that shared our mindset in how to create an effective moment-centric brand experience.

On that, how would you describe ‘moment-centric’ brand experiences?
Well, obviously brands want their logos everywhere, but Liquid I.V. trusted us to create an experience that didn’t feel too brand-centric; creating memorable moments was the key aim. It’s the moment that people will remember longer than the brand logo. When a moment is tied to effective visuals, audio and a feeling, it stays with you. That’s how you leave a lasting effect on people, and smart brands recognise that.

That collaboration was between Liquid I.V. and your own brand, Oasis. That’s an event-based brand right?
Yes, it’s an event we run at Coachella, but we’re finding ways to tie Oasis into festivals around the globe. We come up with the event concept and then we bring it to brands to collaborate with. It’s kind of the opposite of the agency format where a brand comes to us with needs. It’s cool to sit in the driving seat!

What sorts of brands would suit a collaboration with Oasis?
Well, it’s an interesting one. Look at F1… It’s a bespoke car brand that’s successful all across the globe, but it’s been making waves in the US recently. A big reason for that is pop culture and how F1 has become more infused in that. Look at how Lewis Hamilton associates himself with music and high fashion and different artists… On paper, it seems like there’d be a big gap between Oasis and F1 but the synergy is pop culture. Another area we’re interested in working with well-known fashion brands.

You’ve been involved in collaborations involving musicians. Why is that an interesting space to play in?
When artists or bands understand their reach and their creative power, it can lead to some really exciting brand extensions. For example, we’re working with an amazing young artist and creative directing his tour and album rollout. His project and brand is based on moods and emotions, so we worked on a collaboration with Futuremood – an awesome eyewear company. They have different coloured lenses designed to evoke different emotions, and there’s science behind it. The goal is for fans at his shows to experience the music and our creative through various emotions heightened by the lenses. We find collaborations like that incredibly interesting.

Kyle, this has been great. Before we wrap up, one last question: What fuels your creativity?
Pressure! I’m always listening to music, but when it’s crunch time, pressure helps everything magically click into place for me. You’re in the moment and don’t have the luxury to dwell on things.

Thanks Kyle – and anyone interested in connecting with the team should head to https://sturdy.co. Speak soon!