Experiential agency Verve expands in Singapore

Verve, the Dublin-founded experiential agency and certified B Corp, has entered Asia with the opening of a Singapore office, betting on rising demand for live brand experiences across the region as marketers look for more meaningful audience engagement beyond digital channels.

This is Verve’s fourth office after Dublin, London and Amsterdam, and its first in Asia. The Singapore operation will be led by Michael Pring, who also holds the role of global client & development director, supported by founder Ronan Traynor, COO Barry Muldowney and group creative director Mike Kettles.

“Singapore is a natural next step for us,” Traynor told Campaign Asia-Pacific. “We’ve always grown by following clients—Dublin, then London, then Amsterdam—and now Singapore. We’ll support existing global clients, and we also see a strong opportunity to work with new clients in the region.”

This approach has been central to Verve’s expansion strategy. The agency’s roster includes prominent clients like Diageo, Coca-Cola, Google, TikTok, LinkedIn, Intel and BMW, and Verve has already delivered work in Singapore for several of them without a physical office.

“We’ve produced work for our clients in Singapore for years, so it became logical to put boots on the ground and scale properly,” said Muldowney. He cited crypto brand Ripple and Google among the clients Verve has activated for locally.

Pring said the new office would allow the agency to deliver more connected programmes for multinational brands. “APAC is a dynamic region for live experience, events and sponsorship activations. Leveraging our global client relationships here makes sense because we know their brands deeply. It brings consistency and shared learnings across markets.”

However, Verve enters a market already crowded with local and global players competing for brand experience budgets. Traynor said the agency intends to differentiate through a more strategic, creative and sustainability-led approach, rather than traditional production-focused delivery.

“We don’t just produce events; we're best in class [recognised by Campaign] and we bring expertise and focus to create events with measurable impact,” he said. “Sustainability and CSR sit at the core of our approach, which sets us apart from more transactional production agencies.”

To reinforce that positioning, Verve brings with it certified B Corp status and ISO 20121 and ISO 14001 sustainability standards. The agency was also named Best Event Team in Europe at Campaign’s Experience Awards 2025.

Looking ahead, Verve plans a measured build-out in Singapore. The office will start with 16 staff and grow to around 20 by end-2026. Rather than replicate large, full-service teams in each city, the agency will adopt a “fluid talent model” drawing from its wider network.

“Clients don’t just get the local office team—they get access to talent across all our offices,” Pring explained. “A project may involve people from Amsterdam, Dublin, London or Singapore. It’s efficient and gives clients the full network, not just one city.”

The initial focus will be on delivering for existing global clients to establish a foundation before scaling regional business. Founder and global CEO Traynor said Verve would avoid aggressive first-year financial targets in favour of sustainable momentum. "Historically, our Dublin office took ten years to make any money. In London, it was four years before revenue really started flowing, and Amsterdam took about two,” he said. “Growth happens — you just have to be patient. We’re not a holding company with hard financial KPIs because that puts too much pressure on teams. One or two standout events can unlock growth, and events are such a visible, referral-driven space. We prefer organic growth rather than saddling teams with strict financial KPIs."

Innovation in experience design will also be part of the agency’s offer. Verve is experimenting with how AI can enhance personalisation without diminishing human interaction. Pring highlighted a recent activation for Google at the World Summit AI 2025 in Amsterdam, where the agency created an AI-powered barista experience using Google’s Gemini.

“Guests entered prompts about their mood and taste, and AI generated a personalised coffee recipe which a barista then made,” he said. “It added a layer of personalisation and showcased Gemini in a tangible way.”

Muldowney added: “Our digital team often finds creative ways to use clients’ own AI products—sometimes in ways they haven’t thought of—so it’s exciting for them and for us.”