Q1: The Top 100 European event agency leaders list has provided a who’s who of the events industry for the first time. How do you see this recognition, and what does it mean for your agency?
I was delighted to be included in the Top 100. After more than 20 years of building and continuously developing Jazzunique, it is a special recognition of what we have achieved together. Although my name is on the list, the recognition reflects the work of an outstanding team. The recognition also reinforces our ambition to think beyond conventional event production. Brands are experienced across many different touchpoints – through their communication, physical spaces and shared live moments. We aim to connect these touchpoints and create a consistent brand experience.
Q2: Live events seem to be the buzzword of 2026. With the industry going from strength to strength, how do you see the future of events?
I do not see live events as a buzzword or a short-term trend. In an increasingly digital world, the need for genuine encounters, exchange and shared experiences is growing. I am therefore convinced that live formats will continue to play a central role.
At the same time, simply bringing people together in one place is no longer enough. People are becoming more selective about where they invest their time and attention. Events must offer a genuine reason to attend and create qualities that cannot be replicated digitally: direct exchange, shared energy and the feeling of being part of what is happening. I believe the future belongs to formats that focus on these qualities and make coming together truly meaningful.
Q3: How are economic and political turmoil, rising production costs and ambitious client expectations affecting your agency’s business model?
Economic uncertainty, rising production costs and high expectations create a challenging tension: clients still expect creative quality and reliable execution, while needing to use their budgets far more consciously. For us, this means considering the idea and its realisation together from the outset. When strategic, creative, spatial and production perspectives come together early, feasibility, cost and quality can be aligned more effectively. Clear prioritisation is also becoming increasingly important: Which elements genuinely contribute to an impactful experience, and which merely add effort and expense?
As a result, our business model is shifting further towards early-stage consulting, integrated collaboration and long-term partnerships.
Today, concepts must not only be creatively compelling, but also feasible, adaptable and, wherever possible, designed for use beyond a single occasion.
Q4: Artificial intelligence is rapidly reshaping creative and operational processes. To what extent have you integrated it across your processes, and which jobs remain out of its reach?
For me, AI is first and foremost a tool and a major opportunity. We use it to research and distil information, explore creative approaches, visualise ideas at an early stage, and develop different variations more quickly. In this way, it can make processes more efficient and open up new perspectives. What matters, however, is that technology serves the experience rather than becoming an end in itself.
I therefore believe it is less a question of which professions are entirely beyond AI’s reach or might disappear because of it. Instead, tasks and roles will evolve. Wherever empathy, intuition, responsibility and an understanding of the specific situation are required, people remain indispensable – whether in consulting, creative decision-making, team leadership or direct interaction with people on site. As AI becomes capable of producing increasingly polished results, human authenticity and genuine encounters will become even more important.
Q5: Sustainability has become both a strategic responsibility and a measurable business criterion. How is your agency translating environmental commitments into concrete results and accountability?
We do not view sustainability as a static compliance issue, but as an ongoing transformation guided by the principle of human-centred experiences. We focus on creating experiences that inspire while maintaining an ecological, social, and economic balance.
● Leading by example in our own agency operations: In our day-to-day business, we systematically reduce resource use and energy consumption, promote circular practices and work with certified partners. Our social commitment ranges from internal knowledge-building to partnerships with initiatives such as Dialogue Impact gGmbH.
● Industry engagement and reporting standards: Together with industry peers, we advocate for binding minimum standards in event and spatial design. We disclose our progress through the UN Global Compact Communication on Progress (CoP), the fairpflichtet guiding principles, our EcoVadis audit and future reporting in accordance with the VSME standards through the German Sustainability Code (DNK). This makes our approach to sustainable brand management transparent and verifiable for all stakeholders.
Q6: How does your event agency attract and retain young talent?
In my view, attracting and retaining young talent takes more than benefits. Above all, it requires trust, development opportunities, and meaningful involvement. At Jazzunique, different disciplines work closely together. This allows young colleagues to learn beyond the boundaries of their own field, contribute their perspectives and take on responsibility at an early stage. This requires an environment with room for questions, new ideas, and mistakes, while also providing guidance, honest feedback, and support. People stay where they feel seen, recognise the value of their own contribution and have the opportunity to grow alongside the company.
Q7: If you could enter a time machine, what would you advise yourself when you first started in the events industry?
I would advise my younger self to find the courage earlier to question what I had learned and what had become established. When something is successful, it is only natural to hold on to it. Over more than 20 years with Jazzunique, however, I have learned that moving forward also means letting go of familiar ways, welcoming new perspectives, and accepting that you do not need an immediate answer to every question. The very things that made a company successful must not become what limits its future development.
Q8: If you had to single out one event from your portfolio, which would it be and why?
One project that particularly stands out to me is the reveal of Discover Airlines’ new “Ocean Blue” long-haul cabin. The challenge was that, at the time of the presentation, the cabin did not yet physically exist. Rather than recreating a product that wasn’t yet available, we translated its materials, functions, and distinctive features into familiar, playful objects and formats.
This resulted in a multi-phase reveal strategy featuring a spatial installation, interactive elements and an open workshop. The project exemplifies our approach because a clear idea brought communication, space, dramaturgy and activation together. At the same time, parts of the installation and selected formats continued to be used beyond the reveal itself.
“The uncomfortable truth is that our industry often demonstrates its value through what is easiest to count: attendees, contacts and interactions.”
Q9: Which industry buzzword would you permanently ban, and what uncomfortable truth should event agencies start discussing instead?
I would ban the term “maximum reach”. Reach is a relevant metric, but it should not become the default measure of an event’s quality. Live experiences are not an inefficient substitute for digital mass communication – their particular strength lies in the intensity of the encounter.
The uncomfortable truth is that our industry often demonstrates its value through what is easiest to count: attendees, contacts and interactions. Yet these figures reveal little about whether people were genuinely involved, whether a message resonated emotionally or whether the experience remained memorable. We therefore need a more honest discussion about how we evaluate not only an experience’s reach, but also its depth and quality.
Q10: Does Europe genuinely operate as one event market, or do outdated divisions between established Western markets and “New Europe” still influence budgets, visibility and access to opportunities?
Europe is now a closely interconnected event market, but it is not yet fully integrated or equitable. International clients, agencies, and production partners increasingly work across borders. At the same time, budgets, visibility and access to projects continue to be influenced by national networks, procurement structures, differing market conditions and established perceptions.
The quality of creative thinking and production is not determined by geography.
A truly European market should evaluate ideas and expertise independently of location and make cross-border collaboration easier. At the same time, a common market should not mean erasing regional differences. Europe’s diverse cultural perspectives and local expertise are among its greatest strengths. The key is to bring them together on equal terms.
Learn more about Jazzunique and their projects here.
