Karmarama Stories

The way to a Karmaraman's heart......

2012-01-27T09:05:00.000-08:00

Karmarama are a pretty spritely bunch. For those of you who have met us, often there is some kind of treat hanging around the office be it homemade, from the local Tesco's or brought back from holiday (if you've not meet us this happens pretty much all the time). But today was a day very close to my heart.

Today was not only Meat Friday but it will also now be named "The day we were given cheese bigger than our heads" (this will not be entered into the Guiness book of records, nor will it feature on wikipedia - but believe me no Karmaraman will ever forget it).

Now I know what you're thinking - surely this is creative license being used to elaborate on a rather large piece of cheese, well we don't lie about cheese here (that would be a cruel thing to do) so Gemma's head is proof of our truthfulness!

I would like to point out now that no large mounds of cheese or heads were damaged in the creation of this photo, but bellies are definitely full and warm with the dairy goodness that topped off another top notch meat friday. Three cheers all round!

Lost: eyebrows

2012-01-27T07:17:00.000-08:00

A certain someone is going to kill me for putting this on the blog, but it's too good not to share. After an equipment malfuntion he accidentally shaved his eyebrows off. Asking for kind treatment from the karma krew they responded ....

Vince

2012-01-27T07:15:00.000-08:00

Spotted outside Karma towers today. Vince!!

Happy Christmas everyone!

2011-12-22T04:46:00.000-08:00

We're celebrating the festive season around Barmarama today, with chestnuts roasting on the BBQ. A big thanks to Wayne and his little boy Oliver for making these beautiful Christmas biscuits. We particularly like the cornflake cake 'wreaths' with green food colouring and red berries made of marzipan. Genius. Have a good Christmas everyone! See you in 2012 x

Christmas Party 2011

2011-12-15T22:07:00.000-08:00

The fancy dress theme this year was 'Dave's Ark'.

44 pairs of animals, plus Dave as Noah.

I'll say no more.

Tignes time

2011-12-15T21:58:00.000-08:00

Perfect weather, tonnes of snow and sunshine in The Alps. A perfect weekend for the Karmarama ski trip. Happy days! Had to feel a bit sorry for the beginner group ending up on a red run though - took them 1.5hrs to get back down.

Ping Pong 24 kicks off!

2011-12-15T05:29:00.000-08:00

And so it begins.

Following a tremendous effort last year, Dave is yet again raising money for the lovely Age UK. Last year it was 2000 brussels sprouts for £2000. This year it will be 24 hours of ping pong, even more money and (hopefully) a colon which is still in tact.

One hour in and we are almost past the £700 mark. Please donate, sponsor, watch online and tell your friends.

http://pingpong24.com/

Remember: Work hard, be nice to people, play ping pong.

Christmas Jumpers - Day 1

2011-12-02T04:28:00.000-08:00

It's officially that time of year. Time to bring out the knitwear folks.

Karma Ping Pong Open 2011

2011-11-24T05:34:00.000-08:00

Last night the kream of Karmarama pongers gathered to play for the coveted Bling Pong Trophy. With some of the slickest ping pong moves we've ever seen, Shirwen took home the trophy for the second year running, in a hard-fought final against Nuria - our first ever female finalist and the queen of the killer backhand. Thanks to Toby for providing the sounds and to Raimanda for laying on sausage rolls and cold beer. Pongtastic.

Mariachi Madness

2011-11-16T04:23:00.001-08:00

So it was the lovely Joe De Souza's 50th Birthday last week. I know, he doesn't look it does he? Well to celebrate this rare event, a suitably fitting Mariachi band came and performed at Barmarama. Looks like they're having more fun that he is ...

Artarama!

2011-10-20T03:38:00.000-07:00

The latest do-gooding venture at Karmarama was our Artarama night in which our simple aim was to look at some lovely art, bid on some lovely art, and raise a lot of money for some lovely charities.

In the end we had over 45 pieces, a cracking turnout and raised just under 12k for Age Uk and The White Ribbon Alliance. Not bad eh?! Special thanks to Mr Jamie Wylie and Ms Amy Leach who tirelessly sourced all the wonderful pieces, which included an original Rankin! Auctioneered by Dave, the night included lots of booze, lots of fun and Stuart Finlayson being auctioned off in a crochet gimp suit.

Until next year folks.

The hottest October since Octobers began

2011-10-04T08:05:00.000-07:00

It has been a scorcher of a week, which can usually only mean one thing. Short shorts. And who better to model the classic short short than our very own Jamie Wylie?

Enjoy.

Cheesarama

2011-10-04T07:38:00.000-07:00

Why do people never tell jokes about cheddar? Because they're always too cheesy!

Talking of cheese, we have been spreading our cheddar enthusiasm here at Karma towers. Following several factory tours, a whole load of farm visits and a brand new appreciation for the skill in Pilgrim Choice cheese grading, we decided to share the love with a night of cheese, wine and terrible jokes.

Kentucky Fried Goodness

2011-10-04T06:46:00.000-07:00

Those of you who have entered Karma towers before will know that there is one thing which makes everybody here very happy. Food. So last Thursday, we were all very very happy.

At the agency meeting Wednesday night, our very own Ben Bilboul announced that two lucky people would be getting their hands on something many believed too exciting to actually exist. "Surely it can't be a real thing?" We asked. "Surely it is the thing of fast food fantasy?" But it does exist fellow chicken lovers, it really does...

The legendary KFC Chicken Cheque.

All we had to do to reach this kentucky coated prize was submit the most scandalous story about a fellow Karmarama/Kream/Kaper employee. Put chicken in the equation and suddenly loyalty goes out the window. The scandal came in good and proper - no really, stuff which would make Sid blush. Top of that list was the lovely Alex Holbrook whose story really did take the biscuit and who proved herself all the lovelier by offering her chicken cheque to the whole agency.

19 buckets, 120 pieces of chicken and 500 chips later, we thank you chicken Gods.

Things that Get Our Goat (Part 756)

2011-09-14T05:51:00.000-07:00

Normally we pride ourselves on being relaxed, even, happy-go-lucky in nature here. But just as apostrophe misuse prompts Sidney to throw hard objects through windows, just as criminal activity can cause David to go Postal, and just as the inevitable descent of our little kitchen into student-style squalor makes Rainna threaten to do very unpleasant things with forks, there are some things that get my goat.
This wrapped front page of a recent Metro newspaper is one of them, and I just wanted to get it off my chest.
I feel much better now, thanks. Anyone for a flapjack (or three?)

Garden gig

2011-09-08T11:20:00.000-07:00

Hello folks,

Well it's been a hectic summer, with an amazing amount of work done by the Karma crew. Good to see everyone back from holiday too. To herald in the new season we've a wonderful band playing in the Karmarama Garden. Right now. This is them. They're called Marner Brown.

http://www.marnerbrown.net

Chino Thursday Is Here - Looki Looki

2011-05-26T03:31:00.000-07:00

OMG!

2011-05-25T03:09:00.000-07:00

Now then.

It's well known that we're just about the only agency in this industry that doesn't enter creative awards.

But we do enter effectiveness awards, it's just that we've never entered them before.

Until yesterday. When we won Marketing Week Agency of the Year, and our Costa account won Brand of the Year.

Blimey - not bad for a first try.

We're all delighted and a bit bleary-eyed this morning.

But we're still the same old folk that we were yesterday.

There's just a bit more of a bounce in our step.

Chino Thursday

2011-05-23T07:28:00.000-07:00

Prompted by Robin's weekend escapades in a top fashion retailer where he became the unwilling owner of a pair of lurid pastel chinos, this Thursday has been deemed 'Chino Thursday'.

It's also our 11th birthday and we'll be enjoying a hog roast in our tropical garden. So expect many a grease-splattered chino to be witnessed wobbling around W14 thereafter.

Our Favourite Courier

2011-05-19T08:28:00.000-07:00

We don't know who he is.
How old he is.
Or how his body regulates its temperature as he wears leather ALL year round.
But he's the grooviest courier ever and he pops in about once a week.
If you know this man, please tell us, we want to get him a cake or something.
Or maybe a leather t-shirt for when the sun comes out proper.

Real Ale, Real Men

2011-05-19T08:04:00.001-07:00

On the set of our latest work for Bombardier beer.
Rik Mayal - man's man.
No idea who the other two are.

This is Funny

2011-05-19T07:52:00.001-07:00

Someone here may or may not have done this, based on how illegal it may be.
Or not.
Also, this person probably should have been spending time on client business rather than doing this.
If of course it was down by someone here.
Or not.
Whichever the case may be.
But it's very funny.
And very very good.

Little field trip

2011-04-27T04:27:00.000-07:00

On the 6th April, some of us went to go and see our Nicola give her inaugural speech as IPA President. Here's a picture of her doing it, in front of the live feed from an illustrator who drew her speech as she made it. It was pretty cool, and we think she did awfully well, but then, we're biased.

Chocolate Waterfall

2011-04-27T03:56:00.000-07:00

No, not a euphemism for the effects of a dodgy kebab, but a real live Actual Chocolate Waterfall, currently playing at Whiteleys courtesy of the fabulous Bombas and Parr that Hattie and Fern attended the opening ceremony for, having been invited by our friends at Idea Generation. Look! Here's the back of one and Bombas and Parr explaining the importance of sticking to food hygiene protocol during our visit:

We were awfully excited, as these photographs show:

Truth be told, we think the experience would be a bit more magical if you are a littl'un but the cocktails were fabulous, we have come away with a bottle of customised Chocolate Elixir and we did a little bit of impromptu late night shopping too, so we can't complain.

Cheers!

Sunshine!

2011-04-07T05:20:00.000-07:00

What do you notice about this pic?

and this one?

these?

and this... ?

When the sun shines upon Karma Towers it makes us remember why we live and work out in the countryside west of London. Meetings conducted, food consumed, jokes shared, floors, tables, bikes, Mexican wrestling masks and people all drenched in sun. A fine day indeed.

A final note. Our dear friend Mitch Buchannon, from a land down under, is set to return back home. With his departure he leaves some heavy hearts but many fond memories... he is of course going back in search of more sunshine.

It's Friday, So It Must Be A Post About Food

2011-03-11T01:22:00.000-08:00

This lunchtime at 1.00 we're all off to Cookes for Pie & Mash.

If you live outside of London or indeed the UK this plate of food may look a bit odd and not particularly appetising.

But you would be so, so wrong.

Why not come along?

Or follow us on twitter at #goodworkspieandmash

We'll also be having a live webcast of the event and will be hosting a webinar with leading industry thinkers straight after.

Or you can 'like' this activity in the facebook group 'We're all having pie & mash'.

We've also got a clairvoyant coming along to do a live (ish) seance.

And we'll be sewing a piece of tapestry after to commemorate the occasion.

*Note: Only some of the above may be true

It may only be the 2nd month of the year, but we think it's BBQ time!

2011-02-25T06:09:00.000-08:00

For those of you who have ever been to Karma Towers during the summer you may already be aware of the traditions of our Meat Friday. Although we are only at the beginning of 2011 when the meat feelings start to stir who are we to ignore it!

Armed with our meat stirrings catering for 36 was prepared, cooked, wolfed down and is now slowly being digested by most of the 31 Vernon Street inhabitants so if you are popping in to see us today and we look a little misty eyed, this may be why.

A big thumbs up to all who, cooked, created, and ate the delicious feast including the team who wrote on the plates (how else would people know what they were allowed?), great concoctions of salads to help push the meat loads down (both pasta and boiled potatoes for the salads were cooked on site - we don't skimp on the good stuff) and the genius that decided to shout us some beer. After all it would be rude not too!

So now that the official Meat Friday opening ceremony has commenced, if you happen to be around our humble residence on the last Friday of a given summer month (yes we have done these in the rain and come to think of it, the snow), I suggest you come armed with three and a half English pounds and get your name on the list before the meat fund closes.

My How We've Grown: Now Paddle Steamer Sized!

2011-02-17T06:40:00.000-08:00

Dear Reader,

With every new update of the phone list I tend to do a quick count up of the number of people working out of Karma Towers to figure out how big a company we are.

You may recall from past posts, we started life as a kitchen-sized company, featuring a table and 4 wonky chairs and a kettle that didn't work properly. Growth was rapid-ish and in a few short years, whilst we were all enjoying a Christmas knees-up at the Reindeer Cafe, we realised that we were a shed-sized agency. This was because we were eating our tucker in a shed. Literally. Albeit a reasonably sized shed as opposed to a £99.99 job from B&Q. Then, not a year later we realised we had grown to a village hall/community centre-sized company. Probably somewhere like Appledore, where we have to accommodate the needs of the local WI, the cub scouts and that annoying man with the bad breath who runs the am-dram society. Then, last year we realised that we were operating pretty much at building capacity making us a provincial town nightclub on a Monday night-sized company, complete with ladies night (sic), 3 shots for a quid and that bloke from Steps doing a special PA.

Now, this glorious year of our Lord, 2011, we now realise that, with 87 inhabitants, we are officially a paddle steamer on the Mississippi- sized company. We've got gambling tables on the lower deck, a jazz band on the upper and a nice selection of canapes throughout. Plus a bloody great paddle wheel. And we have no, and I mean NO space left. Things are getting...cosy.

Bring it on. This time next year? Maybees a small isolated Hebridean island perhaps. Wait and see

Employee Of The Month

2011-02-16T03:47:00.001-08:00

We don't often post the winner of the employee of the month, but this one's a bit special.

Every month we pick someone who has in some way gone beyond the call of duty.

Their prize is a slap up meal for two at agency favourite Karama Curry (of course), as well as a strange Barnum-type item of stuffed animal freakery. Our previous squirrel-in-a-canoe contracted a nasty dose of flea and maggot infestation, so we hope that the latest two-headed chick will last a bit longer.

The winner this month is Stuart who, in the most extraordinary demonstration of valour, selflessness and bravery, stayed behind in Geneva to keep Sonja company when she contracted a nasty lurgy on our recent ski trip. With no idea whether he'd make it back for Christmas or not, Stuart went to the hospital with Sonja, held her hand, puffed her pillow, bought her grapes (probably) and then trekked through the streets of snow-sodden Geneva looking for somewhere to stay.

A happy ending ensued. Stuart made it home for Christmas turkey, Sonja's mum came out to keep her company and the young lass finally made it home and back to work to take up her role again as our beloved timesheet nazi.

God bless you Stuart. If our great nation had more people like you we could win back our national pride, and maybe a bit of our Empire as well

Everybody, everybody in the house of love! Karmarama stages a 'Love In'

2011-02-09T02:46:00.000-08:00

As some of you may know January is known as the 'loneliest month of the year' (this is not an official fact but I think you'll all agree that it is a dull skies, lack of natural vitamin D, blue feeling month). So at Karma towers we are embracing February 'the month of Eros' (again not actual fact but it should be) and getting our LOVE on.

Secret cupids are flying around expressing their love for their intended victims (I mean valentines) and the mood is jubilant and full of promise. We've had fake email accounts set up, creative cards, edible fancies and a few restraining order worthy letters.... Yes one was to me and I am pretty scared!

Let the love continue...........

The Winner Of The 2010 Ski Trip Competition

2011-02-09T02:12:00.000-08:00

So now it's an annual-ish event, we decided to re-run the Ski Competition.
You may recall last year's winner, the brilliant karamabet by Simon and Steve, set a pretty high standard.

This year's brief was to design an agency coat of arms or flag that we could print on bags, t-shirts, undies, that sort of thing.
This proved to be a tad challenging and we had a fair few attempts, the majority of which were pretty poor to be honest.
But out of a ragged bunch there was one beacon of design excellence, and what an outstanding winner it was.
Now I know it looks like a fix, and I know he's an art director by trade, and I know he's got the biggest Mac in the agency, and I know he's the founding partner and all, but you have to admit, Dave's design is pretty bloody good.

If the design looks at all familiar, it's based on the kamikaze pigeon that flew into our windows last year. A fitting tribute I think.

Look out for the t-shirts coming to Karma Stores soon.

The First In a New Series: Inside the Drawers of the Famous

2011-02-08T09:05:00.001-08:00

We've noticed here that a certain publication has been doing a feature on various adland people's desks.

Really insightful and always very truthful.

What's far more revealing however, is what lies beneath the desk and lurks in the drawers of people who are caught a little more unawares.

Like Robin for example, one of our Creatives.

This genuinely is in his drawer...

First BBQ of the year

2011-02-08T08:59:00.001-08:00

Happened in January, in the freezing cold.

That's Dave with some hunks of tuna.

That man is hardcore

The 2010 Ski Trip

2011-02-08T08:46:00.000-08:00

So much happened on the trip, so many piccies and so many stories that there's just too much to go into.

Instead, here's a picture of all of us in the Alps...

And here's a bit of wishful thinking on Mr Bill Benboul's account...

And here's the merest hint of what went on in the evening...

Nice. Same time again next year?

Movembarama

2010-12-01T07:24:00.000-08:00

New Faces

2010-11-03T09:25:00.000-07:00

Lordy, it's been a while since we've done a new faces update.
The place is chocker with talented types and we've been remiss not giving them their 15 megabytes of fame.
Here's a selection - many more to follow when I've had the time to hunt them down:

First up is Stuart. He's from up North and is sorting stuff out on Clas Ohlson. A big toast eater, as it's free down South. I wouldn't mess with him if I were you.

Then we've got Emily. The oil in our engine. Keeps the Partners partnering. Wonderful person.

Next is Riannnnnnnnnnna, or something like that. Flies in from Essex daily to man reception. Knows where the biscuits are hidden.

And of course we then have Catherine. Writes risque books, knows her underwear inside and out (!), and is the boss on Capital, Costa, Colman's and La Senza.

Finally we have Charlie. A smooth talker and a fast walker. Holds down Nintendo like Mick Macmanus.

What beautiful, beautiful people.

A Sad Day

2010-10-27T07:21:00.001-07:00

News hot off the wires that Sony are discontinuing the glorious walkman, the little tape playing thingy that started pretty much everything.

Sad times indeed.

Would Sir Cliff still be the icon he is without 'Wired for Sound'?

Would Kevin Bacon ever have been the legendary shagger he was with 'Footloose'?

Would I be the man I am today if I hadn't bought the moody version down East Ham high street in the 80s and listened continually to 'Insecure Me' by Soft Cell?

Although I suppose most youngsters will have no idea what these lovely little fellas were and the extraordinary impact that they had on everyday life, we should all doff our respective hats in their honour.

Phwoargh who knew broadband could be sooo sexy!

2010-10-25T09:38:00.000-07:00

Working on advertising for a broadband company - boring you may say. But this could not be further from the truth. In one of our most recent ads for Plusnet, the good honest broadband company from Yorkshire, the central character Joe's wife is taking a cheeky look at www.yorkshirebeefcake.com on her laptop. This is an imaginary site full of pictures of men embodying all the best "Yorkshire qualities".

Being an office full of red blooded females, we decided that the best thing to do from a creative integrity perspective was to create the site for real. We even found a genuine Yorkshire man from Pontefract called Mark Schofield to star. So now there is an wealth of hot Yorkshire man waiting for you to ogle and share with your friends. Take a look at www.yorkshirebeefcake.com

Stop press: more hats...

2010-10-13T02:42:00.000-07:00

Last week we sent off a huge bundle of little knitted hats for the innocent big knit
Since then, Tricia's Mum finds she can't stop knitting and has created 44 new ones, Caryn whipped up an extra 26, presumably to take her mind off her imminent wedding preparations, and to cap it all off (see what I did there) Rainna's Mum sent these two hats for our collection. We don't know why she was driven to create woolly effigies of Creative Duo Lisa and Gemma, but we hope its positively karmic rather than voodoo inspired. Given that its all for our lovely clients AgeUK we can only assume it is.

We've knitted an awful lot of hats

2010-10-05T08:21:00.000-07:00

As AgeUK's advertising agency, we are always on the lookout for ways to make older people's lives a little bit more cheerful, and the Innocent/ AgeUK "Big Knit" struck as just the opportunity we needed to sit down, with a cup of tea and a lot of sweeties to have a knatter and knit pompom-festooned headwear for bottled juices.
Turns out, our finance department are practically professional knitters to woman, with Caryn astonishing and delighting all with her perfect cabling technique, Sonja producing intricate Pineapple Shaped toppers in a special Finnish-Fashion (they knit differently in Scandiwegia) and Juli inventing whole new genres of hat, such as the Hat-That-Wears-A-Hat, the Acorn-Hat and the Tiny-Little-Cottage-Hat. Then Tricia arrived with a bundle of hats she commissioned from her Ma, and Tom's girlfriend sent us her collection which included a Spurs hat (unless that was Tom's actual hat he threw in, he is quite small) and a charming rose decorated beret. Nicola put her kids to work with all the zeal of a Victorian Factory Boss, making teeny tiny pompoms for all our creations.
But the rest of us gamely joined in, with lots of people converting to the craft along the way. And in the end we made 58 little tiny hats, which is, by my reckoning, an awful lot of hats.

We Don't Care About Creative Awards, But We Do Care About 'Best Stall' Awards

2010-10-04T09:27:00.001-07:00

More craaaazy goings on down at the big political conferences the other week.
No, it's not just that that chap Jeremy Paxman was loving a nice cuppa at the Mum's Cafe we set up on behalf of The White Ribbon Alliance at the Labour Conference.
It's the fact that the Cafe was voted best stall!
Now we don't know if ours was the only stall, or we were next to the Milliband Banana Stall, or quite what was going on, but we are well chuffed.
Watch out for us at the Tory Conference where we're going to try and sort out that thorny Middle East conflict thingy.

Bling Pong 2010

2010-09-27T08:35:00.000-07:00

100 Players
3 tables
50 T-shirts
100 balls
600 beers
75 tequilas
250 quid
1 winner

Congrats to Sherwin who destroyed all who stood in his way.

Thanks to Dave for running the show.

Brain Food From Karmarama Kat

2010-09-27T06:07:00.000-07:00

Now I know it may seem like this blog is only for frivolous nonsense and the odd party photo. But there is the occasional serious post.

Like this one. Below you'll find a 1000 essay that our very own planning genius Kat Ellis wrote for a WACL competition to win training in whatever field she fancied.

It's very good and very well thought through.

Oh, and it won. Get in.

Should companies lead or be led by their consumers? How does this translate to CSR?

Any essay on the topic of power relations between a company and its consumers cannot ignore the impact of recent market forces and new two-way media channels (Smith and Duffy 2004). Consumers now have the opportunity to gain a significant, collective voice through social media. This essay will discuss the shift in the company-consumer relationship to assess the extent to which their consumers should lead businesses. It will then address how this translates to Corporate Social Responsibility, arguing that a change in the definition of CSR is needed.

In the past companies decided what was best for their consumers – both in terms of their commercial offering and CSR. Shareholders, government and policymakers held more sway than a company’s consumers (Weinkrantz 2004). Their views and financial decisions were more directly and instantaneously felt by the business, and therefore more likely to be responded to. CSR, if engaged in at all, was limited to Corporate Philanthropy (Sethi 1977, Simcic Brnn and Belliu Vrioni 2001, Feldwick 2006). Initiatives were typically large and benefited society as a whole (Enderle and Tavis 1998, Cotton 2006). They were supported either because they were pet interests of the business owners/shareholders or as a response to studies indicating that consumers were more likely to choose ethical companies that were good citizens (Cone Roper 2001, Wilmott 2001).

With the advent of social media, individual consumers have a forum to make their voices heard (Trickett 2007, Clift 2010, Ives, Wickerham and Shi 2010). The inherent social nature of the new digital landscape makes it ideal for individuals or small pressure groups to gain traction for their views. A recent example of a small-scale campaign that snow balled with the help of social media is the pressure put on the Gaymer Cider Company to discontinue its new Blackthorn product. To appeal to a wider market the company reduced the cider’s alcohol content and made it sweeter. The softer taste caused outrage amongst a hardcore West Country audience. A Facebook group, started by less than 70 loyalists, inspired defacing of advertising, boycotts, press coverage and eventually a meeting with the brewery. The old Blackthorn variant has subsequently been reinstated in the Bristol area.

So, consumers today are far from being isolated individuals whose opinions, historically, would never have been picked up in consumer research run by brands. Now, they have channels that are megaphones for their opinions, and forums for hooking up with similarly minded individuals to form a voice that cannot be ignored by brands.

Brands are not as naïve as this essay question assumes. They have known for a long time that in a world of parity products and services, being seen to listen and respond to consumers can offer competitive advantage (Kay 1993, Simcic Brnn and Belliu Vrioni 2001, Murphy 2002, Smith and Duffy 2004, Cotton 2006, Ives, Wickerham and Shi 2010). Shareholders too are increasingly interested in socially responsible companies, as they generate more sustainable returns (Cordasco 2002). It seems as the degree of influence exerted by shareholders and consumers becomes evenly balanced, so their interests are less at odds.

A business will always be led by its commercial imperative – the need to generate returns for its shareholders (Murphy 2002, Mahmoud 2008). Listening to newly empowered consumers should not be seen as at odds with this objective. The ability to clearly hear consumers through social media is an opportunity, superseding the limited consumer research conducted in the past (Nicholas 2005). Gaymer Cider Company saw the failings of structured research, when focus groups and product testing did not pick up the bad feeling loyalists would feel at the eradication of the old product.

So, in terms of CSR this essay argues it can no longer be an add-on, as the old Corporate Philanthropy model was. Being in touch with publics and responding is no longer separate from the way it does business and its commercial objectives (Feldwick 2006, Mahmoud 2008). There is no longer a need for a top down model where shareholders and company owners blindly decide what is best for society. Initiatives can be directly guided by what your consumers want because now they can be heard. CSR initiatives and policies can be more relevant to the people a business is selling to, and for this reason more commercially valuable (Gadsby 2004, Hansted Blomqvist and Posner 2004, Nicholas 2005, Davis and Moy 2007, Lowe 2008, Oxley and Pace 2009). One only has to look at Marks and Spencer’s recent use of comprehensive social media monitoring to uncover Busts4Justice, a group of ample breasted women disgruntled by the fact they were paying more for bras above a D cup, than their smaller breasted contempories. The company proactively responded by dropping their £2 premium on D+ cups, and ran advertising promoting the initiative; capitalising on a valuable audience and creating a competitive differential that actually mattered.

This essay argues that a redefinition of CSR is needed, primarily to address how the shift in company-consumer relationship has changed what is covered by Social Responsibility. In the past Social was very much with a capital S. Businesses were responsible to Society at large, with almost a Reithian attitude towards improving the world. Today Social should have a lower case s. Businesses no longer have to make assumptions about what is best for society at large; they can focus on what is important to audiences that matter commercially (Visser 2010). social Responsibility should mean listening and responding to a range of relevant societies with a range of relevant initiatives. This ability to focus is invaluable in a recessionary climate where the wide scale Corporate Philanthropy of the past would be impossible (Hilton 2008)

Ultimately the question of whether a business should be led by its consumers is a commercial one. A company must do what is best for its own financial health and responding to every consumer whim, as some new media analysts would suggest, would be impossible and unnecessary. But today listening to consumers is easier, and responding to a significant voice makes financial sense. Shareholders also increasingly accept that their need for sustained returns and responding to the needs of consumers are complementary. The fact that consumers now have a stronger collective voice should be seen as a commercial opportunity. Businesses should allow themselves to be led by consumers as far as it offers them a competitive advantage, good will, and the associated fiscal rewards. Surely this has always been best practice, it is just easier to do and more transparent today.

Nick Clegg Gets Mumsy

2010-09-22T03:06:00.000-07:00

We don't have political allegiances here at Tramarama, but if we did we'd probably choose the Party that was run by people who valued decency, enterprise and nifty shoes.
Every now and then, when we get a bit bored with producing astonishingly effective communication campaigns for our clients and cooking up a meatfest, we turn our hand to good causes.
Which is exactly what The White Ribbon Alliance is. I won't go into details here, but search it out as what they are doing is worth a bit of your attention span.
We do lots of stuff with them - Tattoo parlours for the famous at Glastonbury, spanky t-shirts designed by Naomi Campbell, amazing Rankin shots of pregnant women, and Mum Cafes and newspapers at all the big party conferences.
Which is where this shady looking character was snapped having a gander at the latest copy The Mum.
Nice tie mate. But do you have nifty shoes on?

Ping Pong Frenzy

2010-09-16T04:57:00.000-07:00

It happened last night. I'll try and find some photos. Lots of blokes in check shirts and silly hats turned up. It was all a bit East London. Beer was drunk, bagels chomped, chats chatted, promises made and broken and the odd client politely flirted with. Good fun all round. Sherwin won, which is unsurprising as he's a bit of a pong god and moves at the speed of lust.

New Term at Karma High

2010-09-16T04:52:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of blog posts as we are furious busy producing lots of top stuff that’s all about to go live. We’ll find some silly nonsense to post about soon, promise.

In the meantime, just a quick line about the new school term here at the Karmarama Institute where we had the latest speaker for Academy K, David Meller.

Not to be confused with the bespectacled Tory shagger from the 90s, this David is a brilliant entrepreneur who specialises in creating ranges for private label, branded fashion and home accessories.

David wowed us with stories of wheeling and dealing in the boardroom, a bit of celebrity goss, the low-down on some of those TV Dragons, and the inside track on exactly how you make a million pounds in an afternoon.

He dished out some cracking advice, the best of which was probably ‘be passionate about the business, not the product’. This is deep stuff and, judging from the fallout from last night’s Karmarama Ping Pong Open 2010, there was a fair amount of passion knocking about, so good work there David.

Next month Al Gore. Maybe

Film Night!

2010-08-23T09:17:00.001-07:00

We're all a bit busy here at the mo', but still find time to do nice things.
If you're in the area this Thursday 26th August, drop on by for some old-style film fun.

It's shaping up to be a good day...

2010-07-30T04:55:00.000-07:00

Karmarama bears fruit

2010-07-23T07:52:00.000-07:00

Quide liderally...
In our wildly tropical garden we have just had our first harvest of loquats.

Here they are on the tree

and here they are on the plate

How eco-friendly, self-sufficient, billy bonkers is that!

And if you want MORE - here's the low down on this fruity little number

LOQUAT

Eriobotrya japonica Lindl.

Rosaceae

Common Names: Loquat, Japanese medlar, Nispero.
Distant Affinity: Apples (Malus spp.), Medlar (Mispilus germanica), Stone Fruit (Prunus spp.), Pears (Pyrus spp.) and others.

Origin: The loquat is indigenous to southeastern China. It was introduced into Japan and became naturalized there in very early times. It has been cultivated in Japan for over 1,000 years. It has also become naturalized in India and many other areas. Chinese immigrants are presumed to have carried the loquat to Hawaii. It was common as a small-fruited ornamental in California in the 1870's, and the improved variety, Giant, was being sold there by 1887. Japan is the leading producer of loquats, followed by Israel and Brazil.

Adaption: The loquat is adapted to a subtropical to mild-temperature climate. Where the climate is too cool or excessively warm and moist, the tree is grown as an ornamental but will not bear fruit. Well established trees can tolerate a low temperature of 12° F. The killing temperature for the flower bud is about 19° F, and for the mature flower about 26° F. At 25° F the seed is killed, causing the fruit to fall. Extreme summer heat is also detrimental to the crop, and dry, hot winds cause leaf scorch. High heat and sunlight during the winter often results in sunburned fruit. The white-fleshed varieties are better adapted to cool coastal areas. In a large tub the loquat makes a good container specimen.

DESCRIPTION

Growth Habits: The loquat is a large evergreen shrub or small tree with a rounded crown, short trunk and woolly new twigs. The tree can grow 20 to 30 ft. high, but is usually much smaller than this--about 10 ft. Loquats are easy to grow and are often used as an ornamental. Their boldly textured foliage add a tropical look to the garden and contrast well with many other plants. Because of the shallow root system of the loquat, care should be taken in mechanical cultivation not to damage the roots.
Foliage: Loquat leaves are generally eliptical-lanceolate, 5 to 12 inches long and 3 to 4 inches wide. They are dark green and glossy on the upper surface, whitish or rusty-hairy beneath, thick and stiff, with conspicuous parallel, oblique veins. The new growth is sometimes tinged with red. The leaves are narrow in some cultivars and broad in others.

Flowers: Small, white, sweetly fragrant flowers are borne in fall or early winter in panicles at the ends of the branches. Before they open, the flower clusters have an unusual rusty-wooly texture.

Fruit: Loquat fruits, growing in clusters, are oval, rounded or pear-shaped, 1 to 2 inches long with a smooth or downy, yellow or orange, sometimes red-blushed skin. The succulent, tangy flesh is white, yellow or orange and sweet to subacid or acid, depending on the cultivar. Each fruit contains three to five large brown seeds. The loquat is normally pollinated by bees. Some cultivars are self-infertile and others are only partially self-fertile. Flowers of the early and late flushes tend to have abnormal stamens and very little viable pollen. Thinning of flowers and young fruits in the cluster, or clipping off all or part of flower and fruit clusters is sometimes done to enhance fruit size. Under most conditions the loquat tends to develop an alternate-bearing pattern, which can be modified somewhat by cluster thinning in heavy production years. For the highest quality fruit the clusters are sometimes bagged to protect from sunburn and eliminate bird damage.

CULTURE

Location: Loquats are wind tolerant and grow best in full sun, but also do well in partial shade. The round headed trees can be used to shade a patio. Loquats also make attractive espaliers.
Soil: Loquats grow well on a variety of soils of moderate fertility, from light sandy loam to heavy clay and even limestone soils, but need good drainage.

Irrigation: Loquat trees are drought tolerant, but they will produce higher quality fruit with regular, deep watering. The trees should be watered at the swelling of blossoms and 2 to 3 waterings should be given during harvest time. The trees will not tolerate standing water.

Fertilizing: Loquats benefit from regular, light applications of nitrogen fertilizers, but too much nitrogen will reduce flowering. A good formula for applications of chemical fertilizer is 1 lb. of 6-6-6 NPK three times a year during the period of active growth for each tree 8 to 10 feet in height. To control excessive growth, other authorities recommend fertilizing only once a year in midwinter.

Pruning: Judicious pruning should be done just after harvest, otherwise terminal shoots become too numerous and cause a decline in vigor. The objective of pruning is a low head to facilitate fruit thinning and harvest. Prune also to remove crossing branches and thin dense growth to let light into the center of the tree. Loquats respond well to more severe pruning.

Propagation: Generally seeds are used for propagation only when the tree is grown for ornamental purposes or for use as rootstock. For rootstock the seed are washed and planted in flats or pots soon after removal from the fruit and the seedlings are transplanted when 6 to 7 inches high. When the stem is 1/2 inch thick at the base, the seedlings are ready to be top-worked. Loquats can be propagated by various grafting methods, including shield-budding or side-veneer grafting and cleft-grafting. The use of loquat seedling rootstock usually results in a comparatively large tree with a high canopy. Cultivars grown on quince rootstock produce a dwarfed tree of early bearing character. The smaller tree has no effect on fruit size and gives adequate fruit production with the advantage of easier picking. Loquat cuttings are not easy to root. Grafted trees will begin to bear fruit in 2 to 3 years, compared to 8 to 10 years in seedling trees.

Pests and Diseases: In California there are few pests that bother loquats. Occasionally infestations of black scale may appear. Fruit flies are a serious pests in areas where they are problem. Birds will also peck at the ripe fruit and damage it, and deer will browse on the foliage.

Fire blight caused by Erwinia amylovora is a major enemy of the loquat in California, particularly in areas with late spring and summer rains or high humidity. The disease is spread by bees during flowering. Fire blight can be controlled somewhat by the use of preventive fungicides or bactericides and by removal of the the scorched-looking branches, cutting well into live wood. The prunings should be burned or or sealed in a plastic bag before disposal. Crown rot caused by Phytophthora and cankers caused by Pseudomonas Eriobotrya are also occasional problems.

Harvest: Loquat fruits should be allowed to ripen fully before harvesting. They reach maturity in about 90 days from full flower opening. When ripe the fruit develops a distinctive color, depending on the cultivar, and begins to soften. Unripe fruits do not ripen properly off the tree and are excessively acid. Harvest time in California is from March to June. The fruit is difficult to separate from the cluster stems without tearing and must be carefully clipped individually or the whole cluster removed and the fruit then snipped off. Ripe fruit may be stored in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 weeks.

The loquat is comparable to the apple in many aspects, with a high sugar, acid and pectin content. It is eaten as a fresh fruit and mixes well with other fruits in fresh fruit salads or fruit cups. Firm, slightly immature fruits are best for making pies or tarts. The fruits are also commonly used to make jam, jelly and chutney, and are delicious poached in light syrup. Loquats can also be used to make wine.

Commercial Potential: In California, only in the coastal areas from Santa Barbara to San Diego counties is the fruit produced regularly in quantity and of sufficiently good quality to make commercial production feasible. Harvesting is somewhat labor intensive and the difficulty of handling the fragile fruit in addition to the relatively short self life and storage ability, limit the loquat as a major commercial fruit. Even so, the availability of loquats when few or no other local fruits are in the market is a factor in their favor. The fruit is also popular in ethnic markets and is offered in limited amounts in specialty fruit stores and through Farmer's Markets in many communities.

CULTIVARS

Orange-fleshed Varieties

Big Jim
Originated in San Diego, Calif. by Jim Neitzel. Large, roundish to oblong fruit, 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 inches in diameter. Skin pale orange-yellow, medium-thick, easy to peel. Flesh orange-yellow, very sweet but with some acidity, of excellent flavor. Ripens midseason, March to April. Tree vigorous, upright, highly productive.
Early Red
Originated by C. P. Taft in 1909. Medium-large, pear-shaped fruit, borne in compact clusters. Skin orange-red with white dots, tough, acid. Flesh orange very juicy, sweet, of fair to excellent flavor. Seeds usually 2 or 3. Ripens very early, late January or early February in California.
Gold Nugget (Thales, Placentia)
Large, round to oblong-obovate fruit. Skin yellow-orange to orange, not thick, tender. Flesh orange-colored, juicy, firm and meaty. Flavor sweet, somewhat reminiscent of apricot, quality good. Seeds 4 or 5, the seed cavity not large. Ripens late. Fruits borne only a few to a cluster, keep and ship well. Tree vigorous, upright, self-fertile.
Mogi
Selected from numerous seedlings planted at Mogi, Japan. Small, elliptical fruit, weight 40-50 grams. Skin light yellow. Flesh relatively sweet. Ripens in early spring. Tree cold-sensitive, self-fertile. Constitutes 60% of the Japanese crop of loquats.
Mrs. Cooksey
New Zealand cultivar. Large fruit, up to 1-1/2 inches long and 1 inch in diameter. Yellow flesh of very good flavor.
Strawberry
Medium-sized fruit with yellow flesh. Named for the strawberry-like flavor detected by some tasters.
Tanaka
Named after Dr. Yoshio Tanaka. Very large fruit, usually obovoid, weight 2 to 3 ounces. Skin orange-yellow, attractive. Flesh firm, rich orange, aromatic, slightly acidic to sweet, of excellent flavor. Seeds 2 to 4. Ripens very late, the beginning of May in California. Keeps unusually long, if left for a week it wrinkles and dries but does not rot. Tree vigorous and productive.
Wolfe
Originated in Homestead, Florida by Carl W. Campbell. Fruit obovoid to slightly pyriform. Skin yellow, relatively thick. Flesh juicy, firm, flavor excellent. Seeds usually 1 to 3. Ripens in winter and early spring, several days later than Advance. Suitable for all purposes, but excellent for cooking. Tree to 25 feet tall. Blooms during fall and early winter.
White-fleshed Varieties

Advance
Medium to large, pear-shaped to eliptic-round fruit, deep yellow in color, borne in large, compact clusters. Skin downy, thick and tough. Flesh whitish, translucent, melting and very juicy. Flavor subacid, very pleasant, quality good. Ripens in midseason. Seeds commonly 4 or 5, the seed cavity not large. Tree is a natural dwarf, height 5 feet. Highly resistant to fire blight. Self-infertile, pollinate with Gold Nugget.
Benlehr
Originated as a seedling on the property of Charles E. Benlehr of Encinitas, Calif. Medium-sized oval to oblong fruit, 1-1/2 to 1-3/4 inches long. Skin thin, peels very well. Flesh white and juicy, flavor sweet, quality excellent. Seeds 3 or 4.
Champagne
Fruit medium to large, oval to pyriform. Fruit cluster large, loose. Skin deep yellow in color with a grayish bloom, thick, tough, somewhat astringent. Flesh whitish, translucent, melting and very juicy. Flavor mildly subacid, sprightly and pleasant, quality very good. Ripens late. Seeds 3 or 4, seed cavity not large. Perishable, good for preserving. Tree self-infertile, prolific.
Herd's Mammoth
Fruit large, long and slightly tapering at the stem end. Flesh yellow orange with white to cream-colored flesh, good quality. Ripens earlier than Victory. Subject to black spot.
Victory (Chatsworth Victory)
Large, oval fruit. Skin yellow to orange, becoming amber on the side exposed to the sun. Flesh white to cream-colored, juicy and sweet. Ripens in midseason to occasionally early. The most popular cultivar in Western Australia.
Vista White
Small to medium-sized, roundish fruit with blunt calyx end. Skin light yellow. Flesh pure white, very high in sugar content. Ripens 1 to 3 weeks later than Gold Nugget. Excellent for dessert.
FURTHER READING

Butterfield, Harry M. A History of Subtropical Fruits and Nuts in California. University of California, Agricultural Experiment Station. 1963.
Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia: a Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990. p. 380.
Johns, Leslie and Violet Stevenson, Fruit for the Home and Garden. Angus and Robertson, 1985. pp. 159-161.
Morton, Julia F. Fruits of Warm Climates. Creative Resources Systems, Inc. 1987. pp. 103-108.
Ortho Books. All About Citrus and Subtropical Fruits. Chevron Chemical Co. 1985. pp. 57-58.

10 Year Anniversary Party - Part Nine

2010-07-23T07:38:00.001-07:00

10 Year Anniversary Party - Part Eight

2010-07-23T07:36:00.001-07:00

10 Year Anniversary Party - Part Seven

2010-07-23T07:34:00.001-07:00

10 Year Anniversary Party - Part Six

2010-07-23T07:32:00.000-07:00

10 Year Anniversary Party - Part Five

2010-07-23T07:31:00.001-07:00

10 Year Anniversary Party - Part Four

2010-07-23T07:27:00.001-07:00

10 Year Anniversary Party - Part Three

2010-07-23T07:24:00.000-07:00

10 Year Anniversary Party - Part Two

2010-07-23T07:20:00.001-07:00

10 Year Anniversary Party - Part One

2010-07-23T07:11:00.000-07:00

Sorry, technical glitch last time around.
Here's a veritable banquet of piccies from our recent 10 year party spent in our spanky garden.
Enjoy.

Guerilla Marketing, Karmarama style

2010-07-22T01:46:00.000-07:00

You may not know this (you may not care), But Dave lives opposite the legendary but not sadly brown-bread Mole Man of old London Town who used to enjoy burrowing under his house, digging out tunnels and filling them with all sorts of nonsense.

Dave, being a believer in free speech, free expression, free cakes, but most especially the freedom to dig where ever you please, decided to erect a blue plaque to the infamous Mole Man lest we forget one of this great county's more colourful eccentrics (because that's what we are if anyone is reading this from the US - all us Brits are stark raving bonkers - trust me, we are).

Dave's local paper covered the story and gave a nice piece to our mischievous freedom fighter. Once again a cracking example showing how we like to manipulate the news wires here at Karma CBI.

We're preparing Dave's plaque pending his demise as we speak.

10 Year Anniversary Party

2010-07-20T07:43:00.001-07:00

Sorted.

2010-07-09T01:36:00.000-07:00

It all started when the BBQ caught fire at the Last Meat Friday and IToby (computer wizz) got a suspected 3rd degree burn on his mouse finger.

Pondering the shocking circumstance of the overzealous flame it dawned on us that the BBQ hadn’t been cleaned since we bought it. Not because we’re lazy but because we didn’t have anything to clean the mothership with- like a useful scraping thingy. We then also realised that we actually didn’t have anything useful at all to help with the BBQing- like tongs (scissors from reception) or a poker (the metal ruler from production). So we decided something should be done and midst a creative briefing and budgety chat at our lovely clients Clas Olhson Shiv quickly wipped around the useful shop and bought everything that looked useful for the BBQ as well as a load of other useful things for doing all those jobs the production ruler couldn't do.

So where we had two chopping boards, we now have a WALL of chopping boards.

And pineapple and strawberry consumption has increased 10 fold since the strawberry and pineapple slicer made an appearance.

And who knew that salad spinning could be so satisfying? Or that cutting onions with a knife with a blade that doesn’t resemble an axe made such a difference.

We’re now all a lot happier and the number of kitchen punch ups has gone down considerably.

Thank you Clas and thank you Shiv.

Academy K - food for our brains

2010-06-16T08:36:00.000-07:00

“So”, I hear you ask, “you lot over there at BarmyRama, what do you do all day when you’re not banging out top drawer creative solutions for new age entrepreneurial client? I mean, I know you do lots of barbies and stuff and you clearly like having a drink and a bit of a get together, but what else?”

Alright, alright, I didn’t expect the Spanish Inquisition! (cue: ‘Nobody expects…’).

Well to answer your rather nosey question, we train. Boy we train hard. You know that bit in Rocky IV with the logs in the snow and the biceps and stuff, well old Sylvester ‘aint got a thing on us. We work hard to be match fit for our everso demanding (but everso lovely) clients who expect us to do the do with aplomb (I’ve never written that word before, but I kinda like it now – aplomb – nice, a bit like a 3 year old talking about Def Con 3).

I digress (another nice word). To help us with our training and all round fitness we’ve been exercising our grey matter. Not with weights, plastic stretchy bands and steroids, but with inspiration….

...inspiration in the form of (check us out) our very own academy! (round of applause). It’s much more interesting than all that boring school stuff, it’s where we actually get to talk about interesting stuff and fill our brains with lots of goodness. In fact, my head feels a little sore from all the new knowledge I’ve stuffed into it.

Over the last few months, we’ve had loads of great people through the doors at Karmarama Towers imparting their words of wisdom. We’ve been wowed by the booming Mark Lund (CEO of COI) who gave us some top tips about working client side vs agency side. Roisin Donnelly (Corporate Marketing Director and Head of Marketing at P&G) inspired us to think about how we work with our clients and Adam Morgan (from eatbigfish fame) had us completely hooked (excuse the fishing pun) with his thoughts on the number of different ways challenger brands can behave. I have to say, he left me running to order a copy of his latest book!

As I said, we’ve been swotting up. In fact, so much so that I need to buy a ‘back-up’ brain to fit all the new stuff in. 10 out of 10 for effort I say.

Bad Karma In The Air

2010-05-07T01:29:00.000-07:00

Just what the ruddy hell is going on?
What have we done wrong?
So far, Spring has been a dreadful bad karma month for your friendly neighbourhood creative do-dah company.
It started with Wayne being knocked off his bike.
Then Ray, the dark destroyer from the studio came a cropper when a white van man opened his door on him A shoulder gash and a smack to the head and a blood wagon journey ensued.
Then someone who keeps being referred to as 'that girl from Kream upstairs' was also knocked of her bike.
And then this!

A sign!
A big fat London pigeon flew, karma-kaze style, smack bang into our office window and dropped down on the floor brown-bread dead.
Now this is not good.
We shall be having a special service today for said pigeon and quietly slaughtering an innocent to appease those unhappy gods.
Please, no more.

Hold On To Your Tea Mother, This One May Send You A Bit

2010-05-04T09:50:00.001-07:00

Now it may be that the Karmablog is fast becoming a bit like the local A&E, but there do happen to be quite a number of accidents occurring to us lot as the moment - clearly a bit of bad karma is visiting.
Next to get a free ride in a blood wagon was antipodean Mitch who is enjoying life in our tranquil isle combining work at western Europe's most progressive communications company, DJ-ing and footy.
Unfortunately the latter all got a bit messy, Mitch had a collision, and the following piccies sort of set it out so words are not necessary...

Karmarama: Now A Proper Official Agency

2010-05-04T01:04:00.000-07:00

When does an agency become a 'proper' agency? It's a good and chewy question?
Could it be when you reach over 50 people?
Could it be when you get an agency garage?
Could it be when you go on annual company ski trips?
Or could it be when your largest supplier is The Ivy?
Actually none of the above.
It just has to be when your agency gets its very own apple corer.
Yes, extraordinary I know. And bizarre. And a little bit wonderful and spooky.
This, by all accounts is one of our Clas Ohlson client's iconic products.
So that's why we've got it and that's why it's here.
If you have aspirations of being a proper agency too, you now know what to do.

More Near Death Experiences In West London

2010-04-29T05:56:00.000-07:00

As you know, we like a nice bike round these parts.
Fixies, singles, geared, mountain, hybrids, the lot.
But we must always remember to do what our Mums used to tell us and take extra, extra care out there (just like the baldie fella in Hill Street Blues, but it was alright for him as he never left the bleedin' precinct - anyway, I digress).

So horror of horrors, poor old Wayne Hanson who's doing some top stuff creative wise for us at the mo' had a nasty run in with a white van driver on Hammersmith High Road.
Wayne took a tumble, splattered onto the windscreen but the van kept going and right mashed up his bike.

Sends a shiver right down your spine.
And just in case you're asking, yes Wayne was wearing a helmet (not wearing one is all a bit too Shoreditch for us).

He reckons if he wasn't he'd either be brown bread or seriously wheelchaired right up.

Be safe out there people.

Steak and Eggs for breakfast

2010-04-19T06:04:00.000-07:00

Due to the recent good weather we needed more excuses than just lunch to use our new BBQ. So Paul bought 16 ribeyes and some eggs from his local butcher (William Rose in East Dulwich), we all got in 10 minutes earlier than usual and the rest is history.

Match of the Day

2010-04-19T03:10:00.000-07:00

Dave punishes Steve's lackluster defending.

Paul 'cleans up' at the back

A New Baby At Karma Towers

2010-03-19T09:22:00.000-07:00

We are all VERY excited.
Today we had the grand unveiling and the first burn of our new BBQ.

This is big news over W14 way as we do like our Meat Friday BBQ.
Many of you who may have dropped by on the off chance of grabbing a quick bite in the past only to have to join an hour long queue can now take heart.
JUST LOOK AT THOSE BURNERS! LOOK AT THE STORAGE CAPACITY! FEEL THE HEAT!

Ladies, gents, friends and neighbours, Karmarama is now officially cooking with gas.

Is This The Nicest Man In the World?

2010-03-18T03:49:00.000-07:00

Meet Jim, He's brilliant and nice.

Everyday without fail he'll be the first to ask if anyone wants a latte from Mirabelles around the corner, and then when we get to lunch time Jim will be the one that asks if anyone wants some grub form one of the neighbourhood's nice eateries.

Case in point, today is Best Mangal day and Jim has got his nicely printed menu doing the rounds for what is without any doubt London's best kebab.

Now it could be that Jim is a dirty workshy scrot, but I don't think so. The man has a heart of pure gold. Obviously gold that is rapidly furring up with manky cholesterol from fatty foods, but gold all the same

Meet Ben - He's The Future, Here Already Like Marty McFly

2010-03-18T02:43:00.000-07:00

Ben Milligan has joined us by way of digital agency Holler and them groovy folk Naked where he worked for 8 years. He's our bright shiney new Planning Director and he's good looking and terribly bright. He's also got all that integrated thinking thing going on inside his brain which means he can sort of see the Matrix in everything.
We're delighted to have him here and young Ben represents the brave new face of your friendly neighbourhood KarmaTrama, so it's like glimpsing the future just for a moment and thinking 'ooh, that looks good'.
Ben is also a music lover and owns 47,000 vinyl albums and 4 CDs. He's currently dominating the airwaves here and Jo, who sits next to him, is getting a bit miffed with his constant electro-reggae. Ben also runs approximately 72.5 miles a day and has a quiff that defies gravity and fashion.
Which makes him look a lot like Robert Wagner, which is no bad thing.

We think he's great.

Woooo, Look At You Fancypants: A Top 30 Agency

2010-03-18T02:06:00.000-07:00

Well well blooming well.
After 10 years of working hard, being nice to people and playing lots of ping pong, everyone's second favourite agency has now crashed into Campaign's top 30 league table.

Now whilst this doesn't really matter a jot and is not really something we could brag about to our Mums as they (like everyone's Mum) don't really understand this weird world of ours and unless you work for Maurice or Don they get a bit confused, it's a nice demonstration of how being genuinely decent types can pay off.
Now that we are 'proper' however, we'll be shipping out the ping pong tables, BBQs, cakes and nibbles on Barmarama, dodgey old all-agency music playlists and Kitchen-Kam to make way for big parking spaces, grey suits, rolled up twenties and sensible shoes.
Thanks to all that have helped us, clients, workers and the occasional decent journo. We love you all.

Bike Accident No.47

2010-03-16T02:19:00.001-07:00

Yes, it's happened again, I've fallen off my bleedin' bike, slipped on some black ice, really hurt my arm, still managed to ride into work, had a Nintendo media meeting followed by a lastminute.com European meeting and presentation before finally going to A&E and getting a fractured arm diagnosis. That, my friends, is commitment. Now get back to work.

Karmarama 10 Year Anniversary: The History Chapter 3

2010-03-16T02:03:00.000-07:00

In January there was a brief for an exciting new project for Selfridges. Yoinks!
The whole company went to Bombay to research Bollywood, and or three days they explored the delights of the thieves market, the Bollywood district, and Topaz the strange strip club. When they returned they were suitabley inspired and produced the Twenty Three and a half Days of Bollywood event.
Almost immediately IKEA briefed them to produce a new campaign and they created the NOSH and SCHLOMP work that led to them meeting a falsetto singer / heavy metal guitarist called Justin Hawkins who did the music and then used the golden coins he was paid to go off and become a famous musician. Other projects began coming through the door, they began working with UKTV and they realised that they would need more people.

Karmarama 10 Year Anniversary: The History Chapter 2

2010-03-16T02:01:00.000-07:00

In the early part of 2001, Karmarama moved out of its tiny office in Spitalfields and decamped in a quaint studio in Chalk Farm.
Naresh, Dave, Dan and Jon were joined by a print producer called Anna and started working with a young ginger chap called Ben Bilboul who had set up his own company called Outfit and rented a desk at the other end of the studio. Together both companies began working on the IKEA business.
Then something very bad happened, thrice! Their small offices were burgled three times in a week, but the people of Karmarama are a resilient bunch and soon forgot about all that nasty stuff and marched onwards.

Uncle Paul's home

2010-03-03T07:55:00.000-08:00

First a stuffed squirrel, now a bed side lamp, framed oil painting, bottle of Mateus, a crystal whisky decanter and three tumblers.

Karmarama 10 Year Anniversary: The History Chapter 1

2010-03-03T03:13:00.000-08:00

Once upon a time two young men called Naresh and Dave decided to set up their own business doing adverts for people.
They didn’t have much money, but they saved up £8000 and bought some computers, and because they came from immigrant stock they saved on office rent by working out of Dave’s kitchen.
It all went swimmingly and soon the money started rolling in.
After a few months they had saved enough money to rent a small office in a swanky part of town, called Spitalfields and even had enough room to put up the table tennis table.
Everything was going well until one day Naresh banged his head playing football and couldn’t come in to work for several weeks.
Dave was sad.
Miraculously, when Naresh came back to work the building was still standing, none of the computers had been pawned and with their partnership re established the good times continued.
They did a project for Selfridges and the business began to grow. At the end of the year they met and hired two charming young men called Dan and Jon.

Liam's mixed emotions on his last day

2010-02-26T08:47:00.000-08:00

Karmaroma mourns today as office manager, stand up comic, handy man, driver, plumber, electrician, thespian, fork stealer, spoon confiscator, kitchen cam watcher, crime preventor, all round gentleman and general legend Liam leaves us. Great speeches last night were matched with an epic send off in the boozer. We'll miss you.

Hello again. It's been ages!

2010-02-26T07:46:00.000-08:00

So the Christmas party was over two and a half months ago and as the saying goes what goes on in Morzine stays in Morzine. However, when hunting for an old presentation today on the effectiveness of using small dressed up animals in deodorant advertising I came across the pictures on the server. They're brilliant so stay tuned.

Time To Bragg?

2010-02-08T01:05:00.000-08:00

See what I've done there? The picture, and the line, and the story? Oh whatever.
So, we don't, no we DON'T like to brag here (and it's not that we don't have much to brag about, it's just that we're all sincere and stuff), but I thought I just HAD to show off this quite remarkable stat from TNS Mercury who have recently evaluated over 280 TV ads from 2009 to discover that our campaign for Nintendo Wii and DS was the second most effective campaign of the year.
Quite extraordinary really, especially as we lost out on the top spot to Dettol, which was a swine flu campaign so a pretty important topic.

Having spoke to the terribly nice fellow at TNS, he said that the Nintendo campaign scored amazingly highly on engagement, recall and motivation to buy. Lordy, there was us thinking we were just banging out a few good ads and all of a sudden we know what we're doing.
BUT SERIOUSLY...it's nice for the work to be recognised seeing as we don't enter creative awards and have never entered any form of effectiveness paper (although some people here really REALLY want us to but it's all such a bore and let's be honest, I mean REALLY honest for a moment, we all know that the argument is always post-raionalised and the figures have a bit of a Swedish massage).
So there you have it. KarmaBrama: nice people, working hard, playing ping pong and producing good work that really does work. Hurrah!

10 Years Young

2010-02-05T03:46:00.000-08:00

Stone me, we just realised.
This is our 10 year anniversary.
Yes, 10 years cranking out nice little bits of cultural currency for all the world to see.
Our official birthday is May 1st.
Lots has changed, lots had got better, people have come and stayed and gone.
We've had some amazing client and some of the best of times.
And we've remained resolutely independent and committed to doing the sort of good work that our clients love us for.
I'm going to try and convince Dave to pull together an overview, ideally without expletives, to give a taste of what we've done, highlights and all that sort of thing.
Keep watching and we'll see what can be served up to ya.

Why We Love W14

2010-02-05T03:10:00.001-08:00

This is funny.
It's just around the corner from here.
I know we're being juvenile but come on, it is Friday.

It's Not That I Particularly Dislike Turkish Airlines Or Anything...

2010-02-05T01:59:00.000-08:00

You may recall a couple of months ago we posted a nearby Kevin Costner ad for Turkish Airlines and asked if it was possibly the worst ad ever made. Well, they've sort of done it again with possibly the greatest airline advertising fail ever. Turkish Airlines, we salute you. Please, keep on with this madness.

ForkGate - Or Why I love working at KarmaBanana

2010-02-05T00:54:00.000-08:00

Here's the latest all staff email from our operations manager. We're a bit worried that he may be having a life crises and taking it out on us.
P.S. If you come in for a meeting or a chit chat, make sure you bring a swiss army knife.

Karma Stores Is Open For Business

2010-02-04T06:32:00.000-08:00

Over the years we've always had a healthy NPD division here at KarmaKarpets, known famously in W14 as Karma Industries. This little industrious body has created numerous Christmas gifts (who could forget our ingenious Mince Pie Roulette or our Karma Snowballs for a climate chaos Kristmas?), t-shirts, tea and coffee mugs and a device to transform water into a tequila slammer. Actually the last one is a fib but boy are we trying.
People have always said "Oi, cheeky chops, how can I get my mitts on some of that exclusive stuff then?". Well ask no more kind punter as Karma Stores is here and open for business.
Stocked chocker full of kwalidy merchandise, there's everything from our ping pong t-shirts, our fabled (and highly illegal) mugs, our water bottles and all manner of karma inspired tatt.

Also, we have in stock possibly the only surviving t-shirt printed for the anti-war march when we produced our iconic 'Make Tea Not War' placard (to give you an idea about how collectable this is, an original poster supposedly ripped from a placard from the march recently went up for auction getting $250. Some peoples is just plain crazy).

So don't delay, get your order in today (what copy magic that is). You can pay in person or online or, if you are especially cunning, you can probably nip in and pinch the lot. But then of course Dave will come after you and trust me, you don't want that man on your back.
So, Karma Stores is here, yet another inspired business venture from your friendly neighbourhood ad folk.

The Canoeing Squirrel

2010-01-07T07:37:00.000-08:00

You might have seen this in an earlier blog post in Dan's entry into the Still Life Competition. At the time you may have thought is that a squirrel in a canoe?! Well, yes it is and more. This was the trophy that Paul received for being employee/ legend of the month for December and sits proudly on his desk. If you want to see more squirrels doing cool things go here.

Karma Towers gets a face lift for 2010

2010-01-07T07:03:00.000-08:00

So we're all now back in our lovely building here at Karack Orama. The Christmas decorations have been taken down and to cover up all the paint Liam ripped off in the process we've got some new original Karmarama artwork up. They not only look amazing but are all loaded with a wealth of Ping Pong business logic. So next time you're in a meeting here and lose your train of thought or just simply forget why you are here just look to the walls...

This Just In From Arj: More Celeb Brushes With Death

2009-12-21T11:30:00.001-08:00

Dwight Yorke beat me up at school because I did more keepy uppys with an empty coke can than he did!!

This Just In From Liam: More Celeb Brushes With Death

2009-12-21T11:29:00.001-08:00

Gordon Burns (of the Krypton Factor) knocked me out of the way when I was on Work Experience at BBC Manchester – brushing me aside he boomed “Hello young man” as I flew into a heap on the floor.

Emily Blunt also pushed me over whilst ice-skating at Ally Pally.

Darren Days bodyguard also pushed me out of the way but that’s another story.

This Just In From Trisha: More Celeb Brushes With Death

2009-12-21T11:28:00.001-08:00

Michael Grecco almost ran me over in his bright yellow sports car while in crouch end

This Just In From Jamie: More Celeb Brushes With Death

2009-12-21T01:57:00.000-08:00

Gus from Eastenders tried to kill me 4 years ago

We were at a party in London and my mate pointed at him shouting 'there's that short bloke from Corrie'

He threw a glass at my head missing by inches

Celebratory Near Death Experience

2009-12-21T01:50:00.000-08:00

This morning, Dave was overtaken by a bright pink mini on his bike.
The car was all over the road because the driver was on the phone.
At the bottom of Kensington Church street the driver got into the right hand lane to turn right.
The lights to turn left changed and she decided she wanted to turn left.
She tooted at Dave and accelerated almost into him, so Dave moved out of the way as she just swung into the left lane, hitting a lorry who took her wing mirror off, the outer casing of which hit Dave on the back.
He picked it up and handed it to her saying,
"Here you are Trinny".
The painfully thin and rather drink addled minor celebratory told Dave to F**K OFF, before screeching off to catch the lorry that smashed her.

Anyone else had a near death experience with someone famous?

Still Life No.1 - The Winner

2009-12-16T02:37:00.000-08:00

Creative whiz kids Simon & Steve pulled out all the stops on this one. A beautiful piece of thinking and execution. Click on it to enlarge and enjoy in its full. Letter by letter it shows and tells exactly what that Karma difference is. A stunning, stunning piece of work and very worthy winner

Objective: Define the Karmarama spirit, the magic, the difference
Entry: Simon & Steve
Concept: Karma A-Z
Number: 1st place

Still Life No.2

2009-12-16T02:35:00.000-08:00

Objective: Define the Karmarama spirit, the magic, the difference
Entry: Fernly
Concept: Collaboration proper
Number: 2nd place

Still Life No.3

2009-12-16T02:34:00.000-08:00

Objective: Define the Karmarama spirit, the magic, the difference
Entry: Wylie
Concept: It's what we do
Number: 3rd place

Still Life No.4

2009-12-16T02:18:00.000-08:00

Objective: Define the Karmarama spirit, the magic, the difference
Entry: Craig
Concept: Our recruitment mantra
Number: 4th place

Still Life No.5

2009-12-16T02:16:00.000-08:00

Objective: Define the Karmarama spirit, the magic, the difference
Entry: Jono
Concept: Our mantra
Number: 5th place

Still Life No.6

2009-12-16T02:13:00.000-08:00

Objective: Define the Karmarama spirit, the magic, the difference
Entry: Big Mitch
Concept: Toilet trauma
Number: 5th place

Still Life No.7

2009-12-16T02:07:00.000-08:00

Objective: Define the Karmarama spirit, the magic, the difference
Entry: Digi Andre
Concept: Flying high in the Karma sky
Number: 7th place

Still Life No.8

2009-12-16T02:06:00.000-08:00

Objective: Define the Karmarama spirit, the magic, the difference
Entry: Knoxy
Concept: A moment in Karma time
Number: 8th place