Adding a ‘Cultural Layer’ to Apple: Meet TBWA\Media Arts Lab’s LATAM Hub
Last month, Luana Azeredo relocated from Brazil to Miami to join TBWA\Media Arts Lab, Apple's dedicated agency, as its Miami office managing director. Most recently, she held the role of LATAM director of creative strategy at Natura &Co in Sao Paulo. Previously, she had held the head of strategy role at both CP+B Brasil, FCB Brasil and Wieden+Kennedy Sao Paulo.
Luana partners with Pedro Prado as the leadership team for Media Arts Lab's regional hub for Latin America. Pedro has been executive creative director in Miami since April 2021, before which he worked at Leo Burnett Tailor Made and had a lengthy stint at iconic Brazilian agency F/Nazca Saatchi & Saatchi.
As this new dawn for TBWA\Media Arts Lab begins, LBB's Addison Capper caught up with Luana and Pedro to find out more about their plans and more generally the place of Apple as a brand in Latin America.
LBB> Luana, congratulations on the new job. What appealed to you about the opportunity at MAL Miami that was too good to turn down?
Luana> A combination of irresistible things: to work side by side with such an amazing creative as Pedro Prado; to keep working for — and with — a region that I love, Latin America; to create work for a brand that is so connected with the culture and so fond of creativity and craft;. and the opportunity to put my 25 years in strategy at the service of an entire ecosystem and not for just one department.
LBB> Tell me a bit about Media Arts Lab Miami and its place in the LATAM market right now. How big is the office and what kind of capabilities do you have?
Pedro> Latin America has always been a vibrant and challenging market, full of creative opportunities and unique talents. Our three offices together — Miami, Mexico City, and São Paulo — have around 50 of those unique talents, not to mention those in other places in the region.
Luana> Within those offices we have capabilities that may be found at other agencies — such as creative, account and project managers, strategy, production, media (specifically, in Brazil) — and some that are very specific to Media Arts Lab, like editors, and business affairs.
The Miami hub is somewhat new and has been growing each year, adding new capabilities, hiring new talent, and developing new and bigger work, year by year.
LBB> What are your main aims and ambitions for the office? How are you looking to expand these capabilities?
Luana> The leadership that was responsible for starting the hub and for bringing it to this point has certainly set the stage for us to focus on the next step that the region asks for. We have much for which to thank the previous managing directors and executive creative directors — and especially, members of the senior team, many of whom have been part of the Media Arts Lab LATAM family for many years.
With this senior team — and with important additions in the creative, account, and planning departments — we can keep delivering flawless daily work while strengthening our creative muscle, and leveraging integration among offices.
Pedro> Our ambition is to make sure that we leverage local opportunities with efficiency and relevance for the client, through award-winning creativity.
LBB> What are some of the trends that have driven the type of work you have done in recent times?
Luana> Our work is driven by the strong pulse of local culture and, at the same time, by a clear perspective on the state of the business in the countries we work for. I would say that we don’t look for trends to follow, but for new and surprising local opportunities — to impact the culture and, maybe, to set new trends. New platforms — such as TikTok, gaining some attention — fuel our work with fresh insights, and bring more challenges to the way we think and produce creative work.
LBB> What kind of status does Apple have in markets around Latin America? What drives that?
Luana> Apple is one of the most-loved brands around the world, and that is no different for Latin America. The big difference is how financially accessible the products are. This undeniable truth forces us to face different challenges — which end up making us find unique angles and opportunities that can make a real difference in each market.
Pedro> The good news is that the entire Latin America region breathes creativity. Creativity, forged at the very core of each culture, manifested through art, music, and even business: A form of resistance, and resilience. And — when you work for a brand that has creativity at its very core—magic can happen.
LBB> When it comes to creating work for the Latin America market, what kind of things do you need to consider compared to, say, work that is created for the US? How does the work differ?
Luana> It’s always hard to compare markets! The main difference for the kind of work we do is connected to the culture, the state of business, and to consumer insights. Starting from here — and considering the brand’s tone of voice and values — each market asks for a slightly different point of view.
Pedro> Taking into account that Apple is a truly global brand, our challenge is to add this cultural layer — sometimes, more vibrant; sometimes, with more humour — without losing sight of how the brand is portrayed globally: not just through the ads, but through the whole brand experience.
LBB> Which campaign for the Latin America market that you've been involved in are you particularly proud of and why?
Pedro> One of the major advantages of working for Apple is precisely being proud of what you do. In general. From custom activations on social media, to big 360 campaigns, the attention to detail, the love for craft, the passion for impacting culture.
LBB> With less than half of the year remaining, what do you hope to achieve across the rest of the year?
Luana> We will keep working and pushing for creative opportunities and creative ideas that make sense for the markets and the business. And working to turn Media Arts Miami into a prolific and cool hub!
LBB> Any parting thoughts?
Pedro> Work hard, but — stay foolish.
