When your business model is repurposing discarded shipping containers – everything’s a custom job. Back in 2009 when we launched our company, there was no blueprint on how to turn 20′ metal containers into hip, green hospitality suites. For example, shipping containers don’t usually have hinged side walls. But over the past year or so we’ve expanded beyond our standard hospitality suites into a whole new realm of modification. From creating a double-decker unit for Sprint at Comic-Con to a building a mobile convenience store (complete with refrigeration) for Red Bull to an amazing custom (and top-secret) build we’re currently involved with for TED Long Beach at the end of February – we are taking customization to a new level.

And we love it. As far as we’re concerned the possibilities of our boxes are limitless, and we are willing to put that theory to the test. Let us know what challenge we can help you solve with modified shipping containers.

In the past, Event Marketing was all about how far big brands would be willing to go to have the most impact and touch the most people. But 2012 will be the beginning of an era when brands seek to be more nimble with multiple touch-points. Instead of one massive display or one major sponsorship, brands today are looking to do smaller attractions and spread them around venues and events as well as doing smaller monetary sponsorships but in higher frequency around a region or demographic that they are targeting.

Getting a consumer to actually engage a product with their senses is far easier in an intimate setting as compared with the gargantuan branded behemoths of the past. Event displays that actually do more to intimidate, than engage. Brands today are learning that when they encourage the consumer or partner to feel at home, to feel more comfortable and welcome within an environment, they are more likely to interact with the product.

Touching your demographic, and having the most impact with them no longer means building the biggest mouse trap.  It means thinking differently with smaller, more mobile pieces that mesh with the flow of an event.

For more information on how Boxman Studios can help you make the most of your next event, contact Josh Wells the Director of our Events Division.

Our top secret custom build is top secret no more. Last fall we were tasked by Red Bull to create a mobile convenience store that they could move around the country to serve their biggest clients. The result was the modified shipping container you see here, which represents a convenience store for Circle K. Red Bull rolled out this mobile convenience store at their annual New Year’s Eve bash, which took place this year in San Diego. The container was a total custom build complete with refrigeration. The event was Red Bull: New Year. No Limits.

With a product as versatile as shipping containers, we say No Limits indeed. Click here to view the whole photo set on Flickr.

In case you haven’t seen it yet, Starbucks has created a drive-up/walk-up store in Tukwila, WA, made entirely of shipping containers. Brilliant. We caught wind of this a couple of weeks ago and have had lots of people ask us whether we were involved. We were not. But this innovative use of shipping containers for retail is exactly the kind of thing we’ve been talking about for a couple of years now. And yes, we’re perfectly capable of modifying shipping containers this way. In fact, if you’re considering doing something similar, give us a shout. It doesn’t matter whether it’s for a coffee shop, a micro-mall or any other form of retail – using repurposed shipping containers instead of new raw materials is a great way to create an eco-friendly retail solution. And of course since we are experts in mobile immersion – if you didn’t want a permanent location (like this Starbuck store), we could build a custom solution that moves from location to location. And we could handle all the logistics.

Photos: Starbucks

With the recent success and conclusion of the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show held annually in Las Vegas, the trade show season is officially upon us.This year, rather than settle for the latest trend in display art, consider immersing your audience in your brand. Boxman Studios has a portfolio of unique and eco-friendly exhibition solutions that will help you get noticed and stand out in the crowd.

Here at Boxman Studios we continue to experience pretty amazing growth. Sure, we’re working with brands across North America to bring one-of-a-kind immersive experiences to their audiences via repurposed shipping containers, but we’re also growing as a company.

Since last fall we’ve added several new faces to the Boxman team.

Katie Rothweiler who heads up the administrative and logistical arm of the company.

Josh Wells who is now leading our Event Division, and Scott B. Young who heads up our Trade Show Division.

Don King is our new controller, and Justin Haugens and Vinay Patel are our Spring 2012 marketing interns.

Of course we also have designers, fabricators, drivers and other staff, but we wanted to take a moment to acknowledge the newest members of our team and encourage you to reach out to them.

We’re excited about the people we have in place to help us continue growing in 2012, and beyond.

Wow. Another year under our belts. It’s hard to believe how far we’ve come as a company since the Spring of 2009 when all we had was an old shipping container rescued from a container graveyard, and a dream. But in 2011, we were able to create some amazing experiences for our clients. From helping Shaun White launch his new company in Las Vegas, to venturing into Canada with Fiat; and from multiple, concurrent activations in various cities for Hewlett Packard, to providing the venue for the rollout of the NYC Taxi of Tomorrow – it’s been quite a year. Interestingly, the most important thing we learned this year is that we’re not really a shipping container company at all. Rather, we’re an innovation company that specializes in providing the kinds of experiences that people remember – with shipping containers. Anywhere. 

And the year ahead looks brighter than ever. We’re adding to our staff, we’re branching out into new markets and we’re doing things with repurposed shipping containers for the experiential marketing and immersion branding industry that only a couple of years ago were only a dream. So as we turn the calendar into a new year, we wanted to take a moment to thank the people who have helped us get to where we are today. Specifically, you. Without the support of people like you who have encouraged us, we wouldn’t have gotten very far at all. From our family here at Boxman Studios to yours, have a joyous and safe holiday season and may 2012 be the best year of your life.

This week was had an opportunity to be part of something pretty special. ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition show selected the Friday family, who live in Lincolnton, NC, for their latest build. When we heard this news, we reached out to both Bellamy Homes and the Extreme Makeover production team to offer the use of our services. As it turns out, they used three of our hospitality suites – two as staging areas for volunteers, and one as a VIP area for the neighborhood. We visited the site yesterday and were absolutely amazed at the positive energy (and heavy construction) taking place in this quiet little section of Lincolnton. There’s a lot to be said about hundreds of volunteers working together to pull off something as dramatic as a one-week custom home build. Such great karma.

We are really proud to do our part in helping make one deserving family’s dream come true.

Volunteer staging area

The Friday Family

 

 

The VIP Boxman for the neighborhood

The Boxman Studios team

Last week we were in Los Angeles for the 2011 Opportunity Green business conference. We consider it an honor to be part of a global event that focuses on the convergence of sustainability and innovation. For our second year at Opportunity Green, we provided venues for Weaver’s Coffee and American Apparel – and we also hosted the VIP speaker’s lounge for the event itself. All told, it was a great time once again. It’s pretty special to be around so many people who embrace sustainability through innovation.

We recently had the privilege of working with Mary Giuliani Catering & Events in NYC to host the Taxi of Tomorrow rollout for Nissan in Midtown Manhattan.

Our setup for this event was a total custom build that included one standard 20′ unit and one 20′ cabana branded to the teeth, connected by a custom designed clear-roof pavilion with bleacher seating and speaker area. The three structures helped create a totally immersive environment for the launch of the Taxi of Tomorrow. Discovery Channel’s Cash Cab even filmed an episode of their show inside of our branded environment.

Shots here are from Press Day. Click here the full gallery. All photography provided by Stanley Stevens.