Spotted: How to twist a traditional material into a new use to spearhead a market and go back to the competition?

After concrete, marble, lace, discover UrbaCer, ceramic- and porcelain-based street furniture. A project lead by French Chamber of Commerce and Trade of Limoges (Chambre de Commerce et d’Industrie de Limoges et de la Haute- Vienne) and the CRAFT European Center (Centre de Recherche sur les Arts du Feu et de la Terre). 

TV report (in French only, very sorry, unable to find English articles or videos though it's part of a European research center..):

Source: www.tf1.fr

Yes indeed, so long! It's been so long, too long, a while I stopped posting on my blog! I know you've been desperating and cherishing the day where I would resume posting! Come on, don't deny, you readers!

But why-oh-why did I stay silent on my own blog? Because of my new venture as an entrepreneur! Remember some posts about the Creative Professionals Worldwide on this blog? Yes? No?

Anyway, this is my new venture: an exclusive international networking & business club dedicated to the professionals of the creative industry. At the Creative Professionals Worldwide, we aim at:

• for our Members: creating networking opportunities, whether online on our community website www.creativeprofessionalsworldwide.com or face-to-face (in Paris, France and Copenhagen, Denmark right now, in new cities soon)
• to companies providing the creative industry: offering on- and offline promotion operations through brand content and help them create a strong and quality link with their prospects and intermediaries and engage them with their brands.

I hear you say: damn it, a further social network like LinkedIn or Facebook or something alike, what's the h**l for?

I wish I could have a few percents of their success stories! However, (fortunately? unfortunately?), no, it's no further LinkedIn or Facebook venture. Truth is common point is the Creative Professionals Worldwide is a social network. In the sense that:

• it's a community of people, of professionals to be more precise
• using a community website offering standard features like Member's Profiles, Member's Wall, InMail, Live Chat, Directory, Portfolios Board, Forums, Blog Posts, etc.

But...

• we value the human link since we believe the true human link leads to confidence that's a key basis to create a business link from scratch.

Now you wanna know how that human link is valued?

1. There's an identified Founder (ok, Mark is also...) you can find hanging around the community website every day, you can contact and ask quite anything, chat with her (have you ever chatted with Mark? Please, don't tell me Yes)
2. Each new Member has to request to join the Creative Professionals Worldwide and must go through a process of approval. Which lead us (me right now) to know each of the Members
3. Complement to the online community are a few face-to-face local clubs where we organize meetups every month (now in Paris, France + Copenhagen, Denmark. Should expand in new cities soon) for the Members to meet for real. Where we get to know the Members more deeply
4. With that knowledge of mine, I do involve myself deeply into making valuable face-to-face or online connections between Members
5. Just to mention a few examples.

Coming back to the venture in itself, there are lots of things to convert the Creative Professionals Worldwide from an arty-crafty group I created and used to manage during the latest 2 years and a half while following my husband through our multiple travels around the world to a real business!

After a few years as an Account Manager working on the European power&gas financial markets, followed by a few years as a Consultant and Project Manager in Corporate Branding for a design agency (???!!!), now I'm in for a new professional "switch": I'm a "web 2.0 entrepreneur" hanging out in Entrepreneurs/Venture Capitalists clubs (yeah, that rocks, baby!). That's the power power of being graduated from a business school ;-)

Which basically means: I'm an Entrepreneur-to-be, I'm a CEO-CFO-and-a-bot-of-a-CTO-to-be, I'm a (online and face-to-face) Community Manager-to-be, I'm a Head of HR and Manager-to-be, I'm the Head of Marketing & Communication-to-be, I'm the Sales person, I'm the Event Host, the not-that-geek person... In other words, I'm the handy-man of the Creative Professionals Worldwide ;-) And happy to be actually! That rocks too, baby!

So should you be interested to follow and be part of my new venture as well, you know what to do. No? Just join us on www.creativeprofessionalsworldwide.com here!

See you there too

etnies PAS House for Public Domaine La Gaite Lyrique from etnies on Vimeo.

It's such a cool project footwear and apparel brand Etnies, founded by ex skateboard champion Pierre André Sénizergues, ordered in their research theme "Imagine the future of skateboard"!

French artist Gil Le Bon Delapointe with the help of architect François Perrin imagined how skateboard could be even more present in our daily lives and devised the PAS House: a in-house skate ramp/park for skateboarders!

A whole house dedicated to skateboarding where interior architecture as well as furniture has been thought to serving the purpose of skateboarding. A real fan's dream! Might be a nightmare for the fan's parents actually...

Very interesting project you can see more about if you're lucky enough to be in Paris before August, 7th, since it's part of a series of exhibitions, talks, performances about the skate culture initiated by new creative venue La Gaîté Lyrique. I am and I've already bought my ticket! Not tat I'm a skateboarder myself (I wish I could) or living the skate culture, but I've always been interested in that culture! See you there!

Source: www.trendhunter.com

Great advertising I've ust fallen upon that perfectly fits the message and brand/product promise. And makes the brand promise a reality at each contact point.

To highlight the benefits of the Smart Fortwo Electric Drive car, that is to be fully environment-friendly thanks to its 100% electric engine, BBDO Düsseldorf interpreted that feature by creating an imperceptible advertising. In practise, the ad has been cut into thin strips stuck on the inner side of the fence. From front: nothing to see; from aside: the full ad!

It may not be a first of its kind; still, in the overflooding of billboards in the city environment, that ad works: people stops to see it! And if you read the small billboard nearby the invisible ad, what can you read : "Für die Umwelt kaum wahrnehmbar und deshalb absolut ökologisch korrekt." In other words: Quite imperceptible to the planet, 100% environment-friendly. The promise starts with the ad! Good job guys!

Sources: www.reversestreetads.com + http://advedia.wordpress.com/

Today, no post about the brand initiatives but a little bit of promotion for the network I'm the Founder of!

If you're part of my super large readership, I guess you're also part of the creative industry! So, why not joining the Creative Professionals Worldwide, a network dedicated to the professionals working in/with the creative industry? It's free! Plus, right now, we have a contest: invite your connections to join and become the next Featured Member!

Join us on www.creativeprofessionalsworldwide.com and move your career forward:

• by participating to our online activities
• or to our face-to-face activities in selected cities (so far, available in Paris, France, and Copenhagen, Denmark)
• so that you can:
•     promote your work to the community of agencies, freelancers, brands and related companies
•     share and develop your professional knowledge
•     nourrish your inspiration
•     broaden your local and global network.  

And should you be a brand, the Creative Professionals Worldwide are a great tool to promote your brand through brand content to an audience of prospects and intermediaries and:

• increase your brand spontaneous notoriety
• and get new business opportunities. 

Discover how here:

Events at Creative Professionals Worldwide from Vanessa Moulédous on Vimeo.

So, what are you waiting for? Go sign up :-)