Corporate Culture, the UK-based sustainable behaviour change agency, and M Creative Thinking, a branding and communications specialist based in the UAE, have formed a new agency partnership to provide specialist expertise in sustainability and behaviour change communications, a first for the Middle East.
The partnership comes following a surge in demand from major businesses and government organisations in UAE to access strategic and creative support to develop sustainability programmes and behaviour change campaigns. Corporate Culture and M Creative Thinking’s joint capabilities and shared culture and thinking will come together to support sustainability and behaviour change across the Middle East.
Alongside offices in the UK and UAE the partnership will provide clients with access to a network of service provision in Europe, North America, Africa and Asia. As well as creative, digital, planning and strategy teams, the partnership has specialist in-house research and training and development capabilities.
Corporate Culture has a well-earned reputation for developing some of the UK’s most compelling sustainable behaviour change programmes, with the agency’s work in developing the national Recycle Now campaign strategy and brand on behalf of resource agency WRAP helping increasing average household recycling rates from 12% to over 40%. Its subsequent work with WRAP on the Love Food, Hate Waste campaign has helped cut annual food waste by over one million tonnes and saved an estimated £2.5bn.
Corporate Culture’s client experience includes global brands Microsoft, Wal-Mart ASDA, SKY, LendLease, ING, BT, Unilever, Standard Life, Bank of America, T-Mobile, FCC, AstraZeneca, Skanska and Pfizer. The company is also currently working with the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi developing a range of sustainability toolkits for the region’s business owners and policymakers.
M Creative Thinking has been working in the Middle East for over nine years, creating and evolving some of the region’s most prominent brands through strategic, design and communications solutions. In the UAE, the agency is currently working with ADPC, Kizad, Dubai Properties Group, Yum Restaurants and, further afield, The Volkswagen Group, Real People and Neotel.
Andrew Hewitt, Managing Director of Corporate Culture, said: “We are really excited by what we know this partnership can accomplish: working with clients to address the challenges and opportunities of tomorrow through positive commercial and social action today. Demand for sustainability programmes across the Middle East is growing and together we are confident that the right changes can be achieved.”
Matt Laubscher, Founder of M Creative Thinking, added: “The experience, shared thinking and goals of our two businesses made this a natural move from the moment we started working on projects together. Our work will be focused in three key areas: developing sustainability strategies and communications; devising evidence-based behaviour change and engagement campaigns; and creating brand and creative solutions that transform perceptions and behaviours.
It’s a unique and very relevant offering for this market, especially now with the UAE firmly focused on sustainable growth and the long-term advancement of society, we know we have the right set of local skills and international expertise to help achieve these ambitions.”
