The Luxury & Lifestyle Lions launch recognises the significant transformation and disruption to the creative marketing of brands in the luxury space
The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity has introduced the Luxury & Lifestyle Lions, setting a global standard for luxury brands, with the goal of acknowledging and celebrating the most influential creative work, experiences, and business solutions within the luxury and lifestyle sector.
Simon Cook, CEO, LIONS, said: “When we introduce a Lion that reflects the needs of an industry sector, the Award is crafted in collaboration with the relevant industry. Our global committee of experts have advised us that this highly disrupted sector needs its own benchmark, so that we can move from driving awareness to recognising solutions that are changing business models and setting a new creative standard for a market in flux. The Luxury & Lifestyle Lions will recognise branded communications and solutions that drive business performance and brand loyalty. A multi-disciplined Jury will set a new benchmark for the luxury sector, with the Lion recognising creative work that elevates the discipline and the sector.”
Marian Brannelly, Global Director of Awards, LIONS, added: “The luxury market has faced significant disruption in recent years and post-pandemic. A shift in consumer behaviour and an accelerated shift towards e-commerce and emerging technologies are just a few of the areas the market has had to navigate and innovate in at speed. Add to this the changing values of new demographics, the evolving definition of luxury in non-Western markets and the need for a heightened focus on sustainability and conscious consumption, and you begin to see the pivotal role that world-class creativity can play in this transformation.”
This change is supported by WARC’s ‘Guide to Luxury Marketing in an Era of Change’ and Euromonitor research, which indicates that sales in the luxury category have rebounded after COVID-19 and are expected to surpass pre-pandemic levels in 2023. Additionally, research by IPSOS demonstrates that the global luxury market is evolving, presenting new opportunities and challenges. It is predicted that demographic shifts in emerging economies will create more than one billion first-time consumers, primarily concentrated in China, India, and Southeast Asia – as their purchasing power is bolstered by rapid digital adoption among a youthful, urban, and tech-savvy population.
Commenting on the Award, Charles Georges-Picot, Global CEO at Marcel and Publicis Luxe, Global Client Lead, said: “At a time where the luxury sector must constantly reinvent, transform and honour brand heritage with a keen eye on the future, the introduction of a Luxury & Lifestyle Lions will help set a new creative benchmark for this highly disrupted and exciting sector. We know that creativity has the power to push boundaries and progress sectors and disciplines. We’re excited about a new industry standard that will redefine how we look at branded communications, business models and creative transformation in this dynamic space.”
At this year’s Cannes Lions, ‘Kaguya by GUCCI’ by Dentsu Inc., Tokyo, was awarded a Bronze Lion in Film Craft. The work featured music that celebrates a mix of historical Japanese artforms with the latest technology in creativity. The creative director behind the piece, Toshihiko Tanabe, said about the launch of the Luxury & Lifestyle Lions: “Luxury campaigns aren’t just about glittering celebrities dancing in the sunset. For years, luxury marketing has served as a rare platform to exhibit visual art and pop culture in the most contemporary way.”
In other changes to the Lions, Brannelly commented: “It’s important that the Awards reflect the current landscape and pave the way forward, so as well as evolving the Lions, it’s equally important for us to retire Lions when necessary. In 2024, following consultation with our Juries, we will close the Mobile Lions. Mobile devices are embedded in work across every channel and discipline, and over the past number of years, mobile-led creativity has been expanding into almost every Lion.”
Full information on the Luxury & Lifestyle Lions, including the definition, criteria and categories, will follow, along with the Entry Kit, in November. Details of the Jury President and Jury will be announced early next year, with submissions into Cannes Lions 2024 being accepted from 18 January 2024.
Click here for further information on the Cannes Lions Awards along with the 2023 winners.
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As the official representatives of the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, Motivate Media Group and Motivate Val Morgan are pleased to announce the line-up of shortlisting jury members from the UAE who will complete the initial stage of judging for this year’s Cannes Lions awards.
Health and Wellness Lions
Alok Gadkar
Executive Creative Director & Managing Director
Group Partnership
Born Sagittarius, 1977. Dribbles the ball at Don Bosco High School. Clicks the shutter & acquires BFA from Sir J. J. Institute of Applied Art. Wins state & art school awards. Hopps, skips & jumps as Art Director from Mudra Communications to Leo Burnett to Enterprise Nexus. Works hard on brands like Times of India, Killer Jeans, McDonald’s, The Economic times & more.
Represents Lowe from Asia as one of the youngest creatives at Cannes Lions on invitation by Adrian Holmes. Drops into Dubai on the way back. Falls in love with the hottest melting pot of culture. Moves to Dubai. Joins Partnership in 2003. Named Campaign Magazine’s young creative to watch in the region. Quits Partnership in 2007. Joins Lowe MENA. Moves back after 9 months.
Creates Iconic Splash Calendar in 2011. Continues to be Iconic every year. Wins first One Show Silver Pencil for Khaild Javed, a humble cobbler in Bur Dubai. Wins first Gold & Silver Cannes Lion for Aster Clinics & the UAE in Health.
Starts judging at Cannes Lions in 2018. Continues jury journey at Clio Health, LIA, Adstars, AME Awards, The Global Awards, New York Festivals & KYIV Festival. Keeps winning. Amassing over 200 awards at Cannes Lions, Dubai Lynx, One Show, D&AD, & more. Named among region’s Top 10 ECDs multiple times. Creates first-ever global campaign on invitation by SA Federation for Mental Health in 2018. Speaks on the global stage at Cannes Lions, Dubai Lynx, Mena Cristal. Mentors students at GEMS International School, FAD Fashion Institute & Middle Sex University.
Continues the show as MD & ECD.
Media Lions
Racha Makarem
Chief Executive Officer MENA
Starcom MENA
Racha is responsible for driving business outcomes by putting forward solutions that accelerate growth for partners as they navigate through an increasingly complex & uncertain ecosystem. Passionate about building brands, Racha strongly believes that key to any business or marketing transformation starts with investing behind the human capital & the right partnerships. In her role, she continues to focus on building diverse capabilities to solve for & unlock growth opportunities for clients across the region. What excites her about her role is that she gets to work with world class talent to accelerate growth for some of the most exciting global & regional brands/partners. Her experience spans across tourism, tech, luxury, automotive, government, CPG, payment solutions, entertainment & commerce to name a few.
Throughout her career Racha has worked closely with industry bodies to enhance & set measurement guidelines and principles. She is an elected board member in the IAB MENA & an active member in the D&I committee dedicated to positively influence corporate leaders & policy makers to value diversity & inclusion as a key currency for the growth of the digital economy. She has actively worked & collaborated with industry leaders to technically consult on ways of advancing audience measurement across MENA.
Previously to leading Starcom, Racha spent 15 years overseeing the A&I (Analytics & Insights) practice at Publicis Media. Her last assignment as a practice lead was to merge the DTI (data, tech & innovation) practice with A&I to create the Data Science Practice for the Groupe.
Racha is a mother of two and enjoys building puzzles & Lego with her kids, in addition to reading, meditating & spending quality time with her family, friends & dog.
Direct Lions
Aunindo Sen
Senior Creative Director
Leo Burnett MEA
Aunindo is Senior Creative Director at Leo Burnett, Dubai. With a career of 14 years, Aunindo started his career at JWT Mumbai, on Cadbury’s and various other brands. Spending the last 12 years in the MENA Region, he has previously worked at FP7/Mccann and Impact BBDO where he has been Creative Director on Nestle CPW, Snickers, Coca-Cola, Pepsico, Dove, JIF, Omo and Dettol among other brands, on both regional and global campaigns.
Along the way, he has been recognized with nearly a century of awards at Cannes, One Show, Clio, London International, Cresta, Epica, Dubai Lynx, Effies, Loeries and the Cristals.
He was recently ranked as the No.32 Copywriter in the world in the Big Won Report for advertising.
Film Lions
Ivan Bormaister
Associate Creative Director
M&C Saatchi UAE
Ivan is a Senior Creative from São Paulo with 12+ years of experience, now living in Dubai .
His work has been honored at Cannes Lions, The One Show, D&AD, LIA, Dubai Lynx, New York Festivals, Loeries and AdStars, among others. He also served as a jury member in Ad festivals and had his work published on Adweek, AdAge, Campaign and Lurzer’s Archive.
After traveling with indie bands photographing concerts, he started studying design and advertising. He did some graffiti and illustrations for brands such as Nike, which invited him to work on projects for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and 2016 Rio Olympics.
He worked at creative agencies in Brazil as an Art Director, the last of which was DM9DDB. In 2017, accepted an invitation to move to the Middle East to work at Saatchi & Saatchi Dubai, later VMLY&R, the 2020 Middle East and Africa’s Cannes Lions Agency of the Decade. Having achieved success on his projects, Ivan was recruited to be part of the M&C Saatchi Group, the world’s largest independent communications network.
PR Lions
Dana Tahir
General Manager
Red Havas ME
With over 14 years of experience in the PR & Communications industry, Dana has been a pillar at Havas PR Middle East, where her role has spanned across all aspects of the agency’s growth, strategic counsel, team management and overall operations. Recognized for brand building, consultancy, and crisis management, know-how, and do-how, Dana has successfully led the agency’s post-digital transformation in recent years, allowing Havas PR to expand its footprint and diversify its portfolio across industries and disciplines.
Aligning with the global strategic direction of the Group. The new agency vision embraces the micro networks merged media strategic model which integrates earned, social, and experiential capabilities with content at the heart.
Prior to joining Havas PR, Dana worked at Leo Burnett, directly handling the Procter & Gamble portfolio. Dana has also recently joined Middle East Public Relations Association as a strategy board member.
Design Lions
Pablo Maldonado
Executive Creative Director
Grey Dubai
Pablo is Executive Creative Director at GREY Dubai but has also been named among the Top 10 Creative Directors in Argentina for the last 4 years by Lürzer’s Archive.
Over the past 17 years he has been one of the most effective and awarded Argentinean creatives in different markets such as Argentina, Mexico, US Hispanic, and now in the UAE.
His key role in Unilever’s ‘Degree Inclusive’ project, the world’s first deodorant designed for people with upper limb and visual disabilities, earned the Wunderman Thompson network its first Cannes Lions Grand Prix in 2020/21, and the first Grand Prix for Innovation in the history of Argentina.
Prior to this, he helped LatinWorks rank #9 in all of USA on Ad Age’s Agency A-List, and DDB as the #1 Mexican agency in the Gunn Report 2012, and #2 in 2011.
A standout in most young creative competitions, Pablo has not only been awarded 1 Grand Prix at Cannes, but 6 other Grand Prix’s and nearly 400 awards (32 Golds) from some of the most prestigious festivals in the world, including Cannes, Clio, One Show, D&AD, LIA, Epica, and Effie, among others.
At the last Cannes Lions, he helped Wunderman Thompson become the Most Innovative Network of the Year and the LIA’s 2021 Regional Agency of the Year in South America.
He is a regular member of Global Creative Councils and has chaired and judged several industry shows, such as the One Show, New York Festivals, The Drum, Cresta, and many others.
Outdoor Lions
Till Hohmann
Chief Creative Officer MENA
Memac Ogilvy
Since late 2021, Till leads Memac Ogilvy as Chief Creative Officer across 14 offices in the diverse MENA region based out of Dubai.
A role all about accelerating the network’s ability to deliver connected solutions, smart experiences, creative concepts, and borderless creativity for some of the world’s most exciting brands. This demands a decidedly media-neutral and channel-agnostic approach as well as a focus on work that has an impact.
It’s this approach and focus that he has built his 20+ year multinational career on. He has lead units, offices, countries, and regions at famous creative independent agencies as well as powerful global networks – out of Germany, the UAE and Singapore. His work for brands such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, GSK, The Economist, ACDelco, Unilever and many more has won 450+ industry awards across all disciplines at all major industry competitions. He has also been a member as well as jury president at many iconic festivals.
Interestingly, one of his achievements includes leading the regional Memac Ogilvy network to claim the Dubai Lynx Agency of the Year 2010 title, while based in Dubai for the first time, years ago (2007-2010).
Shortlist jurors will judge remotely online in advance of the festival and will receive full complimentary jury registration to this year’s Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity from 20-24 June in Cannes, France.
This year’s Festival will also witnesses the highest ever representation of both awarding and shortlisting jurors from the UAE across 12 categories – Print & Publishing, Sustainable Development Goals, Brand Experience & Activation, Industry Craft, PR, Creative Commerce, Health and Wellness, Media, Direct, Film, Design and Outdoor.
The Cannes Lions Festival will be accessible to everyone, and delegate registration is now open. If anyone is unable to travel for any reason, LIONS Members get exclusive digital access to Cannes Lions – plus a series of other benefits, throughout the year.
