HP and Spikes Asia announce finalists of Young Spikes Design Competition: ten teams to compete

Ten teams of young creatives will vie for the prestigious Young Spikes Design Competition Award at Spikes Asia 2018, a three-day festival of creativity held between 26-28 September 2018.

The competition garnered 123 submissions – the most of any Young Spikes competition – from executives aged 30 and under across the Asia Pacific and Japan. Given the level of response, HP expanded the number of finalists from the original three teams to 10. All will go on to compete in the Festival grand finale.

Finalists of the Young Spikes Design Competition will receive a brief on 26 September onsite at the Festival. They will then be given 24 hours to create a campaign for a global brand with the possibility of it being brought to life. Submissions will be printed using HP’s digital presses at the Graphics Solutions Business Center of Excellence in Tuas, Singapore, and presented for judging.

“The number and quality of entries submitted for this competition exceeded our expectations,” said Joe Pullos, Festival Director, Spikes Asia. “The Young Spikes competition is designed to identify and nurture up and coming young talent in the APAC advertising community. This year, the design competition set out to challenge the community. The responses we received demonstrate how emerging marketers understand the versatility of digital printing and how to connect with their audiences through the effective combination of online and offline experiences.”

The first-round brief presented three issues stemming from Rapid Urbanization – transportation, cultural preservation and urban decay. Participants were asked to select one of these issues, consider how it affects their city, and create a local awareness-building campaign. Shortlisted campaigns range from the creation of a city-wide museum to smart food packaging. The resulting submissions demonstrated how print can solve modern day challenges through meaningful engagement. They were scored against four criteria – insight, strategic idea and creative use of print, effectiveness, and design and execution – by an eight-member jury consisting of top creative agency leads and brand marketers.

“The marketplace today is more cluttered than ever,” said Puneet Chadha, Director, Marketing, Graphics Solutions Business, Asia Pacific & Japan, HP Inc. “Brands need to find new ways to engage with their customers by leveraging more than one channel, message or medium. These young creative talents have shown the breadth of what digital printing can do. Their submissions put insights at the core and outline how print can be used to create and increase targeted engagement. By working closely with the creative ecosystem, we are reinventing the possibilities of what can be printed, how it can be printed and where it can be printed.”

With Spikes Asia, HP aims to inspire and harness the energy of young creatives in the region. It also seeks to showcase tools and technology that can enable an entire creative journey, from ideation to production. At the Festival, HP will offer Young Spikes competition participants the use of its Z by HP range, including the HP Zbook Studio x360, workstations and displays. This will give them the power and versatility to reinvent their creative possibilities.

A summary of the winning submissions can be found in alphabetical order below.

CITY IS LIVING MUSEUM

Sayuri Nakagawa & Yu Watanabe

Dentsu Inc., Japan

The cultural diversity of Tokyo is often forgotten, and pales in comparison to other Japanese cities like Kyoto.

To raise awareness of Tokyo’s unique cultural landscape, a conceptual museum will be created. This “museum” will involve Tokyo citizens as curators, featuring their photographs of Tokyo as artwork.

CLTR + SAVE

Suen Jia Ming from GOVT, Singapore & Soon Yong En MullenLowe, Singapore

Millennials play a big part in preserving culture and tradition, but they tend not to do so unless they have a larger platform.

Through Instagram Stories, CLTR+SAVE will encourage millennials to capture snippets of Singapore’s culture and practices. These stories will be shared with friends and preserved using postcards and on a website.

EMPTY CURRENCY

Irish Wendy Bautista & Audrey Jewel Aparis

Dentsu Jayme Syfu, Philippines

Social media has created hype about cafes and other Instagram-worthy locations, drawing millennials away from museums – like the AFP Museum in the Philippines.

To pique their curiosity, millennials will be provided with Empty Currency – dollar bills and coins that are missing the standard cultural elements. This will prompt them to investigate and rediscover those meaningful sights. Posters of empty bills equipped with AR functions will also be displayed in public spaces to encourage more interaction.

FARE TRADE COFFEE

Taro Taniwaki & Takayuki Ichida

Hakuhodo, Japan

The “punctual culture” in Japan means that office workers are often packed in the same trains at the same time, causing congestion. While the government has encouraged staggered work hours, the Japanese do not regard this as appealing, as there is no personal benefit.

Providing them with Fare Trade Coffee could be the solution. Commuters who reach the coffee shop by 7am will be given a cup of coffee with an NFC chip for the price of the transport fare. The chip will also be used in place of the train ticket at the ticket gate.

MUSEUM À LA CAFÉ

Kevin Wijaya & Abdul Rahman Bin Abdul Rashid

Ogilvy Singapore, Singapore

Heritage museums are not considered to be #instaworthy experiences for millennials. In Jakarta, these museums face low and irregular visitors. To counter the perception of heritage museums being boring, Museum à la Café will make museums popular by turning boring exhibits into part of pop culture.

The Museum à la Café experience will feature #instaworthy cafés catered for the millennial’s Instagram page. These cafés will be modelled after cultural heritage museums, offering a fully immersive experience for visitors.

NOSTILEGIA

Carmen Cheong & Hansel Lok

TBWA\ Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Kuala Lumpur’s heritage is in a vulnerable state, but its historical buildings and sites have beautiful hand laid mosaic tiles.

To attract millennials, nostalgic and aesthetically-pleasing experiential installations that combine the past and present will be designed. These installations will be equipped with AR functions and consist of recreated old tiles from historical buildings. Passers-by can hover their phones over the tiles to unveil the stories behind them.

PATTERN MANILA

Nikki Sunga & Andi Olbes

BBDO Guerrero, Philippines

“Don’t stay in Manila” is advice that even the proudest Filipinos tell travellers. However, Metro Manila has a lot to offer.

Inspired by the Philippine tradition of storytelling through pattern-making, Pattern Manila promotes the metropolis from a whole new perspective.

Each unique design generated will be available for ordering as posters, postcards, or scarves and the proceeds will help restore Manila neighbourhoods’ local culture. Textile prints of neighbourhood patterns will also be displayed around the city, while locals and travellers will be encouraged to use the hashtag #PatternManila to share their Google Maps location.

#RECOLORTOKYO

Maria Shimizu & Tomoya Mori

TBWA Hakuhodo & IDEO, Japan

Tokyo is losing its colour – it no longer has distinct characteristics due to rapid urban development.

#RecolorTokyo will help preserve Tokyo’s heritage and contribute to the city’s sustainable urban development. Limited edition sneakers will be made available in Tokyo, as part of a collaboration with a leading sneaker brand. These sneakers will each be decorated with Japan’s traditional colours and an address in Tokyo directing buyers to where it is most prominent.

REFOUND SINGAPORE

Melissa Ho & Winona Wee

Ogilvy Singapore, Singapore

Singapore’s culture and nation have been collectively built by hardworking locals, whose stories have been forgotten while Raffles’ is preserved.

This Bicentennial, Raffles’ pedestal will be hijacked, and millennials will be challenged to lead the creation of a #RefoundSingapore. This will be done by replacing his statue with statues of 20 local heroes of Singapore. 3D printed statues mimicking the Raffles pose will flank his original statue in Clarke Quay, forcing the audience to rediscover the true founders of Singapore. A content partnership with Our Grandfather Story will help feature these rich stories of these 20 founders who had their own part to play.

THE TASTE OF FUTURE

Amos Chen & Tuo Zhou

Havas Worldwide Singapore, Singapore

Chasing the latest food trends has consequences – it could mark the eventual demise of authentic local fare.

To remind locals of what the future of local food heritage would be like if not preserved, dummy packs labelled with names of local dishes will be distributed. Locals will also receive food vouchers containing a QR code that leads to a microsite where they can discuss their favourite local fare with other Singaporeans.

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