The 4As Philippines PR Kit for CreativeFest & Kidlat Awards 2021

The 4As believes that imagination and inventiveness

should always be celebrated, in whatever form or scale. Thus, we have the CreativeFest and the Kidlat Awards.

Last year, in the middle of the pandemic, the festival's theme, Stories Don't Stop, echoed the relentless, creative spirit against challenging times.This year's theme, Creativity Unlocked, is again a call of defiance, creating stories from our dining rooms, living rooms, and bedrooms. Despite cramped spaces, limited movement and physical interaction, we've proven that the creative mind knows no boundaries and that great work is undoubtedly possible.

We will learn from a diverse group of storytellers worldwide how they've overcome obstacles: a creative leader rising above personal tragedy, a performer emerging from a culture of exclusion to mainstream acceptance, an innovative coach sharing her insights on mental exhaustion, to name a few.

We deliberately skipped the annual Kidlat Awards last year, because we felt that winning an award at that time was not as important as creating and learning. This year, Kidlat is back to recognize two years' worth of work exploding like lightning, not from the skies but our homes.

Our celebration this year is made possible by industry

talents who have dedicated months planning the event on top of running their businesses. A big thank you to CreativeFest Chairperson JC Valenzuela and his team at Propel Manila for generously sharing their talent and resources, and Kidlat Awards Chairperson Russ Molina of Seven A.D. and his committee of heavyweight creatives, assisted by our production partners Plan B.

At 4As, creativity means business, and the CreativeFest and Kidlat Awards are all about celebrating the business of creativity. Join us on Nov. 24 and 25 for the festival and Nov. 26 for the awards show, and see how creativity thrives when the world is locked up or on lockdown.

After the successful virtual run of CreativeFestNOW
last year, the Philippines 4As (Association of Accredited Advertising Agencies) is once again bringing back CreativeFest from November 24 - 26, 2021. With the theme CREATIVITY UNLOCKED, this year’s CreativeFest highlights the relentless power of creativity to move not only businesses and individuals but the whole world, especially in the context of today’s ever-changing creative landscape. While the past year has had its diculties and challenges, we’ve also seen creativity persevere. That in the face of limits, creativity can unlock its best work — finding and creating solutions, bridging gaps, and being a force of good in the world. The three-day online festival will be filled with some of the biggest creative names from all over the world, culminating with the grand comeback of the Kidlat Awards.

CreativeFest is the country’s biggest gathering of creative minds, local and global experts, and thought leaders from dierent industries across continents. So expect nothing short of three days of back-to-back inspiring talks, extraordinary stories, masterclasses, idea-sparking roundtable discussions, and keynote speeches from our remarkable lineup of speakers — all coming together at an online festival that celebrates the power of creativity to move business, people, and nations.

She’s here for only one reason — to SLAY!
That’s right, get ready to unlock your creativity
with our illustrious keynote speaker, Manila Luzon!
This Fil-Am international drag icon, recording artist,
and comedian has taken the world by storm with her
endless creativity. Don’t miss her talk as she shares
her knowledge and expertise on the art of drag and
how to fully unlock your creativity.

When creativity strikes, Alice Chou isn’t far behind.
Alice is a lion, Sherpa, and a prime number rolled
into one.

As one of Taiwan's greatest creatives ever, she
guides new hires to the global stage, and her prime
pursuit of creative excellence can't be divided. Part of
Adweek’s Creative 100 and selected in "Women to
Watch," she holds the highest award-winning record
in Taiwan’s ad history, bagging the country’s first
Cannes Lions Grand Prix and garnering accolades in
ADFEST, Adstar, and other Asia-Pacific awards.

Undeniably the world’s most revered benchmark for
creative excellence, the Cannes Lions is THE pinnacle
for most creatives. With 30,000+ entries every year
across 28 Lion Awards, the Cannes Lions champions
creativity like no other.

And for #CreativeFest2021, meet the woman
who leads the research and design for each of the
specialist Lion Awards—Susie Walker. She leads the
team for research and design, engaging with 3,000+
global companies who vie and claw their way to the
illustrious Grand Prix.

With 17 years of experience in creative communications
and culture, Susie has stories to unlock your best ideas.

Plug in to the sound of creativity with a bonafide
music and audio legend, the leader of Hit
Productions, a Cannes-winning studio and 19-time (!!!)
Production House of the Year—Vic Icasas!

Track every milestone in this decades-spanning
journey that has made audio such a powerful tool in
unlocking creativity. And better yet, look forward to its
bright, bright future in advertising and more!

UnionBank UPAY for MSME: Helping level the playing field for the country’s growing number of MSMEs

Filipinos are now utilizing digital payments more than ever. Last month, the Banko Sentral ng Pilipinas reported that digital payments made up 20.1 percent of all transactions in 2020, more than double the figure from two years ago of 10 percent. This strong momentum is creating opportunities particularly for
enterprising Filipinos who engage in e-commerce.

To help micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the country capitalize on this growing trend,

Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank), the region’s digital trailblazer and the country’s foremost
bank for MSMEs, has launched a groundbreaking feature that will make e-payments easier and secure
not only for customers but also for MSMEs—the new UPAY for MSME.

This was unveiled at the Bank's 12th E-TalkTales media event, wherein UnionBank Vice President and MSME Segment Head Jaypee Soliman, and UnionBank Merchant Acquiring and Payment Gateway Head
Gerry Austria led discussions on the critical role of digitizing payments in the country's fast evolving market.

Soliman began the discussions by talking about the state of digital payments in the country, citing the significant growth in the number of Filipinos who utilize these payment solutions. This is an indication that Filipinos are now more open to the idea of becoming a cash-lite society.

“This shows how the consumers are now transacting digitally. They are ready. They are there. The number of Filipinos having e-wallets and bank accounts continue to grow. But the question is, are the MSMEs ready to accept digital payments"

This is where UPAY comes in. UPAY is a groundbreaking digital payments solution designed to make acceptance of multiple payment options accessible to MSMEs. It offers a fully integrated, single platform payment collection complete with other features that can make inbound payments easier for entrepreneurs, including the option to generate payment links with multiple collection channels, and
the option to generate InstaPay QRPH for digital and physical channels.

"UPAY for MSMEs is a payment gateway that is embedded in our MSME Business Banking App.

Businesses of all sizes and types now have the power to generate payment links, request payments, send it to their customers and provide multiple payment options, all these reconciled and credited to a single UnionBank account" Soliman said.

What makes UPAY convenient for accepting payments is that customers can choose their preferred payment channel either via Unionbank Online, InstaPay, Other Digital Wallets, Credit/Debit Cards and even over-the-counter through UnionBank’s expansive network of partner channels nationwide.

"When we conceptualized UPAY for MSMEs, we wanted to do away with all the different hassles that
the merchant is experiencing to set up his payments, one of which is having to connect to a point-of-sale
system, having to have different devices, having to have to download different apps" Austria said.




"Second, it's the efficiency in doing business. You don't need to be in your physical store to actually have a customer pay you. You can actually be vacationing somewhere else and someone wants to buy a product which they saw through your post on Instagram or Facebook. You can actually just create a payment link and send it to that customer, so it's very convenient for both the merchant and the customer" Austria added.

Through the new feature, UnionBank wants to level the playing field for MSMEs by making the feature accessible to them, which was previously only available to the bigger merchants as part of enterprise platforms that are too technologically demanding and expensive for smaller players.


For more information about the company and this article, please visit

www.unionbankph.com/msme/upay

SM Megamall is going " Bright 2021 " this Christmas

 

SM Supermalls are bringing out your holiday spirit with exciting deals, scrumptious feasts, and snap-worthy spots where you can create and share wonderful moments with your loved ones dahil siguradong #ChristmaSayaAtSM.

SM is bringing out the fun at every SM Supermall. Celebrate with SM in the most wonderful season of the year where you and your family is certified to have a safe and fun Christmas #TogetherAtSM. #EverythingsHereAtSM

Christmas may be different from years past, but the meaning behind this season remains. Although the pandemic has forced us to downsize our traditionally large Noche Buena gatherings, we have hope in better days ahead that will allow us a merrier celebration – the blessing of once again being able to gather with fully-vaccinated loved ones around the same Christmas tree.

SM Supermalls brings this same celebration to its shoppers with a series of memorable Christmas celebrations, all while implementing strict #SafeMalling protocols.

Christmas reimagined. To help reignite and uplift the hearts & spirits of Filipinos this holiday season, SM has reimagined safe bonding experiences with dazzling indoor and outdoor attractions that allow for picture-perfect shopping and dining activities for the whole family from November 5 to January 6. There will be Christmas markets, parks and villages, Santa appearances, character meet and greets, Christmas medleys, magical firework displays & drone shows, and other surprises. You can also look forward to an online Simbang Gabi which you may attend with your loved ones via SM Supermalls’ official Facebook page on https://facebook.com/smsupermalls/.

Noche Buena favorites during SM Holiday Resto Week. Noche Buena is the hallmark of every Filipino’s Christmas Eve celebration. Now that you’re able to celebrate with your loved ones, make this year’s Christmas spread more festive with delicious meals & treats available at SM. From December 13-25, you can look forward to SM’s Holiday Resto Week and enjoy special treats, promos, and exclusive deals from your favorite restaurants and food merchants.

Explore, shop, and win at SM Christmas Saya Village. Though online shopping has become more accessible during the pandemic, we still find ourselves missing the experience of being physically present at the SM Malls. With that in mind, SM has made shopping and dining much more safe, convenient, and exciting by launching the SM Christmas Saya Village! Register online at smchristmasayavillage.ph or through SM Supermalls’ Facebook page to join this fun tech experience where you can play and create your own avatar to immerse yourself in a virtual Christmas zone at SM– from dining & shopping, to exquisite Christmas centerpieces and a fun play area! Plus, you can collect coins to redeem tons of exciting deals and vouchers from SM. Just be sure to pre-register from November 5-14 so you can enjoy an online shopping experience on a whole other level! This promo, which will run from November 15 to December 25, is not to be missed!

Share smiles with SM Bears of Joy. This pandemic has taught us to share what we have with those who have less. Every year, SM Supermalls and Toy Kingdom come together to give shoppers a chance to share the holiday season cheer with children in need. Starting November 12, shoppers can purchase the bears at P200 per pair – one to keep, and one to be donated to charity. This simple act of kindness can go a long way, especially during a time when empathy is needed most.

ndeed, Christmas has evolved with the times, but knowing that SM has our happiness and safety in mind, we are able to relive great holiday memories with our loved ones in the malls we call home.

SM implements strict #SafeMallingAtSM protocols nationwide and offers an equally convenient online shopping option with the SM Malls Online app on the Google Play or App Store. For more information, visit http://www.smsupermalls.com and follow @smsupermalls on all social media accounts.

SM Aura Premier Lights Up A Christmas To Fall In Love With

 

In true fashion to the BGC-based upscale mall, saying that the holidays will be grand is something of an understatement. Going with an extravagant theme of reds and golds with shimmering bright lights, SM Aura Premier invites all to experience a Christmas that makes one feel like they’ve popped into their very own Christmas romance movie, like a wonderful scarlet dream.

What’s so wonderful about these movies is that, apart from being aesthetically beautiful, they evoke heartstring tugging feelings of hope, wonder, joy and love. These are the very same emotions that SM Aura Premier is bringing this holiday season.

As mallgoers visit SM Aura Premier to complete their Christmas lists, they’re greeted not just by the glimmering mall decorations. An abundance of seasonally festive offerings are also in line to experience, enjoy and love.

The Christmas tree centerpiece features giant red trees, Broadway-light adorned archways and larger-than-life romantic swans. Integrated into this is a safe designated dining area that’s decorated to match. The mall-based Christmas tree tradition is made more special as visitors are allowed to just admire but to also dine among and within a move set-like experience.

The opportunity to dine and get fancy is heightened with a by-reservation-only high tea service. Hosted by the mall’s newly opened store, T2, which is an Australian tea brand, will be open to accept reservations and to serve their selection of delectable teas in their exquisite teaware. The Royal High Tea with T2 will be available from Thursdays to Sundays of December 2021.

The Christmas tree set-up will also play host to a Santa Meet & Greet. The much awaited appearance of the iconic Christmas symbol of laughter and love is a yearly tradition and will return to SM Aura Premier on December 24th and 25th, 3pm onwards.

These immersive experiences aren’t just contained at the centerpiece vicinity. An equally spectacular experience awaits at SM Aura Premier’s Skypark at Level 5. At 7pm on all Sunday nights of December and December 25th itself, a jaw-dropping show will entrance and excite all who visit the Skypark’s red carabao sculpture. They can stop and enjoy the choreographed audio and visual performance, titled Nights of Dazzling Music & Lights.

All the holiday features and activities aren’t the only offerings to fall in love with. There are amazing deals and discounts from participating stores around the mall. This can even be enjoyed online through SM Supermalls’ new shopping app, SM Malls Online which SM Aura Premier is now a part of, just in time for the holidays. From November 1st until the end of December, app customers can enjoy a discount of 15% OFF when they use the special code: SMAURA.

For more information on SM Aura Premier’s holiday offerings, visit @SMAuraPremier on Facebook and Instagram

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