The One Event is an award winning event management and PR agency based in Accra. They class themselves as a ‘boutique’ agency, which means they are a small but highly specialized team, representing a limited client list and offering each client a highly personalized level of service. The company’s principle commitment is to provide an exceptional service that goes above and beyond client expectations, delivering the most inspirational, memorable and distinctive events and PR campaigns within Africa and the UK.
The One Event is an event and PR management agency that was set up in 2006, what propelled its establishment?
The journey began nine years ago when I was living in the UK and had just become a mother. I felt a strong need for a better work and family life balance, and started to realize that in order to truly achieve that balance, I would need to create my own schedule and have more control over my day-to-day life. So I decided to pursue my vision of taking all the skills and relationships I had built up from years of working in leading PR and events agencies, and use that experience to open my own company; thus creating ‘The One Event”. My husband, Agbeko Mortty, popularly referred to as Bex, has been an amazing mentor who believed in my ability from the very start and always encouraged me to pursue my dream. Having started his own successful IT company, his entrepreneurial advice served as a great source of inspiration, motivating me to push hard in the pursuit of my own dreams.
Kindly give us a brief history about how it started?
The One Event started as a small business in London, with the intention of specializing in weddings, but ended up finding its niche in the execution of charity events, putting on big fundraising events for clients like the African Caribbean Leukemia Trust and Rio Ferdinand Live the Dream Foundation to name but a few. Over the years, the company has grown to execute events and PR activities in the UK, Ghana and Nigeria. We are defined by our highly personal, creative and can-do approach, which is why we have produced some of the most exclusive and high profile events, ranging from award ceremonies and charity fundraising galas to fashion shows, product launches, private parties and conferences. The One Event has also found success creating imaginative and results-driven PR campaigns for emerging and established brands. After about 20 years in the events and public relations business, we know what makes a client stand out from the crowd and how to talk to different audiences using events, traditional media, social media and experiential tactics.
What were some of the challenges you faced, especially starting out as a new PR company in Ghana?
Relocating to Ghana in 2012, was definitely a challenge, because after spending many years building up my career in the UK, I had to start all over again, convincing potential clients that we could work in any terrain, including Ghana, and still deliver great results. It was both frustrating and humbling, but ultimately proved to be very rewarding as I watched the business grow from nothing into what it is today.
How did you break through the market to become one of the most sought after event management companies in Ghana and even beyond?
The company’s first breakthrough was providing support to organize the annual fundraising classical concert for The Infanta Malaria Prevention Foundation (IMPF), of which I am a member. The foundation, chaired by Mrs. Rebecca Akufo-Addo, is a non-profit organization with membership drawn from women in Ghana that aims to combat malaria through collaboration with leaders in research as well as educational and social projects across urban and rural Ghana. I was thrilled to help the charity in organizing this event because I have so much experience putting together charity events, and it always feels great to work for a cause you really believe in.
From there, our first major client was Vlisco, an account we won through a competitive pitch. From there, I just worked incredibly hard to carry on the standard I had maintained in the UK and began to build a reputation for professionalism and distinctive events that people talked about and remembered. Although we have never advertised, clients know us by the unique elements we include in all our events, and that level of refinement has really gone a long way to secure clients as such Philips (Lighting, Consumer Lifestyle & AVENT), L’Oréal West Africa (Dark & Lovely, Blue Ice & Maybelline) Porsche, Nissan, and L’aine Services amongst other premium brands.
What services do you provide?
We handle the many ranging needs of our clients within the events and public relations field. With PR this can range from activities such as press briefings, press tours, media relations, product launches, key influencer engagement to conceptualizing and executing eye-catching brand experiential campaigns through a range of tactics including live experiences, activations, sampling, stunts and road shows.
We also consistently deliver unique and cutting-edge events handling all aspects from conception through to completion.
What makes The One event stand out from other PR organizations in Ghana?
Because we are a boutique agency, we place a premium on delivering quality, highly personalized service to each one of our clients, endowed with the skills gained from executing countless successful campaigns internationally. We think big, we are passionate about the work that we do, and we take the time to truly listen to our clients and understand their business. Once we understand exactly what the client needs, we then use our expertise to deliver their vision in ways that make our clients stand out from the crowd. Our mantra is a Richard Branson quote which is based around this – Instead of thinking about the cheapest or easiest way to do it, we think about the most amazing way to do it, and that’s what separates us from the rest.
Also as a boutique agency, our clients benefit from having:
- Direct access to me as the MD/owner of The One Event
- A team that knows how to react quickly and get things done
- A team that pitches a piece of new business is the team that works on that business when it becomes a client
- A team that is always very flexible and responsive
- A team with the ability to work with various scales of budget but still deliver good results
What marketing strategies did you adopt in the past, as a start up, to move you to your current position and which ones are you using now?
As I mentioned earlier, we have never done any advertising for The One Event. We are extremely fortunate to be able to now depend on word of mouth and referrals from clients who have been impressed with our work. I believe this kind of advertising is most effective because no one can tell you about the quality of our work better than those who have experienced it firsthand, and we’re very proud that our existing clients have been spreading the word and helping us grow our company.
What are the basic factors are needed to come up with a successful event?
The key to a successful event is listening to your client and attention to detail. Our clients always walk away happy that we’ve worked extremely hard to ensure their needs are met while still presenting something exciting and different. We ensure no stone is unturned, providing for every detail of the event and ensuring the overall product is impeccable. Taking the time to understand our client’s brand and business allows us to deliver quality that is on time, on budget and on point. We make big things happen despite our small size because we think big and are incredibly passionate about what we do.
Kindly share with us some of your achievements over the years.
We were honored to be presented with the Best Service Business Award during the 2008 Precious Awards Ceremony in the UK. We also pride ourselves on working with leading brands such as Vlisco, who has been a major client since our inception and are one of our biggest supporters. Holding on to loyal clients has been our greatest reward, as well as the key to success for our continued growth.
What is the bigger picture for The One Event, say in the next 5 years?
We will always be a boutique agency, never exceeding a team of ten. And we will never work with more than one client in a specific field. We look forward to continue on building our team of incredibly talented ‘gladiators’, (we’re big fans of the TV show, Scandal) – the strongest and the best workers in the field! Through our professionalism and talent, we will continue to grow and become most admired and respected boutique agency in Ghana.
