ES. Hello Aakash! You are one bright, talented and passionate youngster in the industry. Please share with us your professional journey. What have been the major milestones in your MICE industry career so far?
Aakash. Blue Apple Digimedia is one name synonymous with Exhibitions & Tradefairs. We are dedicated into weaving stories, dreams, emotions, relations and responsibilities through our Event Photography and Film-making. We started off in Mumbai, gradually marking our presence in Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Noida. Today individuals, families, Corporates, big organisations; all trust us for sleek & sophisticated Photography and Cinematography solutions at all levels – local, regional, national and international. Led by passionate and uber progressive team, we believe in breathing life in the work that we create.
There have been some really important moments and some amazing achievements in our journey with the exhibition & event industry over the years. The IHFF 2019 video that we made for ABEC was a game changer. It was on par with the International Olympiad video. The video was shared by everyone on digital platforms, which gave it momentum and was equally appreciated by all the body-building and fitness fraternity. Thanks to Mr. Manish Gandhi and Mr. Sumit Gandhi, and the entire ABEC team for the opportunity and the support they provided.
One major milestone for us as an organization, came when we were presented with the ‘Most Valued Partner’ award by Messe München India. That was one of the most overwhelming moment for us, because we were appreciated by one of the leading Exhibition & Events Industry giant. During the Covid-19 lockdown as well we made sure to stay motivated, and in that purview we created a video along with Exhibition Showcase – “The Song for Solidarity for the Exhibition and Convention Industry”. This video was highly appreciated and shared and it helped bond the exhibition industry during these trying times.
We focus on capturing the emotions of the people involved in the shows, the togetherness of a sector and how they connect with each other under one roof
ES. Please share with us the legacy of Blue Apple. How did it come into existence and why did you choose this field?
Aakash. The zeal to progress and the dream to create films and photographs which narrates stories led to the formation of Blue Apple. It started off as a college project, initially I would take projects on freelancing basis. But by the end of the 2nd year of college, I already had a fully functioning office space to work. Our major break came, when we started working with RPG enterprises and group companies, which was one of our first clients. There was no looking back after that. The legacy that we maintain and would pass on is, always working with a straight forward philosophy -“providing quality media solutions, efficiently” which has served us well in becoming a one-stop solution for any kind of digital production related services for the Exhibition & Conferences Sector. We chose this field because we understood how important this industry is when it comes to contributing to our economy, and we really just wanted to make sure it gets the quality media coverage it deserves. Over the years it has made its place in India’s Top 10 media service provider for Trade Fair & Exhibitions. We have a created a niche for ourselves in the Event Media Production.
ES. What are your major offerings and how do you differentiate them from others in similar domain?
Aakash. Our major offerings are primarily Photography and Videography services. But we don’t just offer that, we provide our clients with much more. From on-day live edits, post-show videos, Event promo videos to live feed display, Social Media Live Streaming & Testimonial Shoots; all are a part of our comprehensive package that we provide to our clients. We were actually the first ones to provide the service of ‘on-day live edit’ of the show – a small video capsule of the day’s activities which can be displayed on LED screens during the Event. What differentiates us from the service providers in the similar domain, is the quality of work that we provide to our clients, and the flexibility of a client-agency relationship. We never compromise on the quality of work, be it a big or small project. And we work hard to deliver superiority in our content through constant innovation in the process.
ES. What is the secret of creating a good video capsule that you and your team follow?
Aakash. There isn’t a secret per se, but we do know the emotional engagement an Organizer has with a particular Event and we want to make sure that it is portrayed through our work.
We don’t just shoot photos and videos, we create films that capture the essence of the Event. We focus on capturing the emotions of the people involved in the shows, the togetherness of a sector and how they connect with each other under one roof. That’s what makes the content more connecting with the viewers. We understand our organizers needs and their offerings to the clients, and thereby we try our best to communicate the crux of the show. We create content that is more engaging and show a lot of activities in a short span of time.
ES. What have been your biggest learnings from this industry?
Aakash. Two words – Composure and Exposure.
We learned that presence of mind is very important when you’re doing any job in the Events and Exhibition Industry, especially when you’re doing media coverage. This has been a key learning from the years of work in this field and one can say we’ve mastered composure. The second thing that we have learnt comes from the exposure that we have had to the varied facets of business through the Events and Exhibitions that we have done. We have interacted with stakeholders from industries like Building & Construction, Food, Architecture, Travel & Tourism, to industries such as Logistics, Technology, Pharma, Packaging and many more. This has helped me and my team develop ourselves in many ways, and we don’t just apply it in our work, but we use it in our daily lives.
ES. Please share with us your take on this situation and its effects on your business.
Aakash. We were equally impacted as any other event and exhibition company as we were majorly revolving around the same ecosystem. Many of our projects were shelved or postponed. But we decided to stay strong during this unprecedented situation. We made sure that we kept in touch with all our clients and showed our unconditional support to them. We tried to innovate in every way possible to meet the changing needs of our clients. We created personalised promotional content for all our clients. All of this, while keeping in mind the health of our team members.
ES. How have you evolved your business model during these times?
Aakash. With the ongoing scenario, we were immediately sure about the boom which the digital sector was going through. We realised how important of a role it is going to play in the ES. How have you evolved your business model during these times?
Aakash. With the ongoing scenario, we were immediately sure about the boom which the digital sector was going through. We realised how important of a role it is going to play in the upcoming months, so we came up with ‘The Webinar Studio’, a post-webinar service specially to visualise and design webinars in a polished way. We started creating content which made it easy to grab the attention of the audience on digital platforms. Another diversification that we have added, is our venture into the world of Weddings. Earlier this year, we captured my wedding and we realised how timelessly valuable that moment was; so we came up with “Blue Apple Weddings”, so that anyone who wishes to have their valuable moments turned into their very own film, could just do so by reaching out to us. To underline our evolution in one word during these times, I would say, it is all because of our resilience.
ES. What is your take on virtual events and the role of technology going forward?
Aakash. The technology is already flourishing at a top speed and it is astonishing for us to see that the Events and Exhibition Industry has adapted to the “new normal”. Informa Markets were the first to start with Virtual Expos and we are very grateful to them for giving us the opportunity to make promotional videos for their organisation. We are, for sure going to be totally adept with the new technology by the end of the pandemic and learning always comes in handy. Going forward, as much as the Virtual space has given us the opportunity to walk instead of just sit in our homes in the contemporary times, what I’d really like to see is, us run. Running forward and moving past this phase in a healthy environment. Because we’re humans and we cannot go longer without human interaction. And that’s what this Industry is all about. Bringing different people, different perspectives and personas under one roof, celebrating innovation and welcoming new ideas.
