Kristyna O’Connell visits the Portsmouth HQ of event agency asembl. and talks to CEO Gavin Farley about his career and the issues facing a typical agency like his:
Can you explain your business and what you do?
asembl. is predominantly a brand experience agency that builds connections with impact for brands, people and places. The agency was born in Portsmouth but grown to have roots in London and has delivered projects globally. We mainly plan and execute live and digital events and work with some of the world’s biggest brands such as Oracle, Autodesk, TalkTalk, Adobe, Softcat, EPSON, and Google. Staffing wise, there are 30 of us here at asembl. and we also have a venue-finding business and a logistics company within the group.
How did you get into your role?
The world of incentive travel was introduced to me at Southdowns College in Portsmouth. They told me you could organise events for corporates and travel the world for free, whilst getting paid for it. My first job at 18 was flying to Mount Nelson Hotel in Cape Town in Business Class, looking after 200 people, drinking wine, staying in a five-star hotel, taking a helicopter, and playing drums on Table Mountain. And I thought, if this is work, then I’m in. A few years later, I’m still here.
What would you say is your company’s ethos?
We’re here to build something great! Our ethos is to facilitate connections. Ninety-five percent of what we do, from an event management point of view, is the same as 20,000 other companies out there in event management, but the point of difference is that extra 5%. We want to be a value- added partner and not just another supplier. We want to know whether you like a Chinese takeaway or an Indian takeaway, what your favourite drink is, or maybe what your dream destination is, because it’s that personal understanding and connection which is the extra 5% and is what asembl. does well.
When was asembl founded?
Although asembl. is only two years old, we have years of experience within the agency and in 2025 we will be celebrating our 20th anniversary. In 2022 we rebranded from In2Events to assembl.
How do you explain your vision to the rest of the team?
I use the analogy of Selfridges – we want to be a one-stop shop, offering an easy solution where everything is in one place. We can make everything simple, wrapped up in a lovely package and the client gets an unforgettable experience.
Tell us about trends in terms of demand from your clients and in the wider industry?
We’ve picked four trends that we feel will be key contenders for the year ahead. They are AI Uber Personalisation, Connected Communities, Neurodiversity and Keeping it Playful. We will dive into these topics across the year and use them as discussion points. Our clients are asking us for more value for money because that’s not easy now. So, we’re creatively coming up with ideas on how we can support them on that. They are looking to us for advice because that’s our job. They are also asking if they can come to Portsmouth and get away from London, so we have started to do things locally. Every year we have a series of events in the summer called asembl. socials, and we partner with a good friend of mine who owns a boat company; we take our guests out on the Solent, and we go for lunch on the Isle of Wight. I’m proud of our Portsmouth roots and bringing people here and showing them around. Sustainability is also on the radar. We have an initiative called assembl. cares that we adopt as much as we can and we are partners with Isla. One of my biggest frustrations is that it’s not necessarily about doing things from recycled plastic or cardboard or going paperless – we’ve been doing that for years. It’s more about the weight of venues and the food chain. So much food is wasted at hotel buffets. I recently discussed the issue with the former COO at MGM Resorts in Las Vegas. They’ve found that during multi-day events, guests tend to eat less as the days progress. By adjusting food quantities based on this pattern—like serving less breakfast after guests have had a gala dinner the night before – they significantly reduce waste. It’s a smart strategy that I hope more venues and hotels, including ours in the UK, will adopt. This aligns with our commitment to sustainability.
What are the challenges facing the industry and, indeed, your company?
Money, people and budgets; I think that’s always been the thing. Getting people together is harder and the demographic of people and how they perceive things is changing. We’ve gone from the past, ‘Let’s just do an event and everyone will come’ to ‘What is in it for me and what experience am I going to have?’ It needs to be special and enticing. In terms of budgets, people want more for their money as costs rise and, circling back to the sustainability piece, this can cause tension between maintaining company values and accommodating budgets.
Is recruitment an issue?
If you want to get good people, recruitment should be a challenge. It shouldn’t be easy. We’re fortunate asembl. has been going a few years, and has a legacy behind it, so people know it and see what we do.
Any favourite events that you’ve done?
My favourite event ever is one we did in 2016, which was with Google DeepMind. That was my favourite event because we made history. I lived in the Four Seasons for four weeks in South Korea, we live streamed to over 200 million people. We had an award-winning film at the Sundance Film Festival. For me, personally, that was the highlight of my career.
Why Portsmouth?
I really care about this city. I was born here, and I think everyone cares about their home, as it holds so many memories. I have always had an ambition to build something here and leave a legacy. Community is also a big thing here.
How are your revenues looking compared to previous years?
We’ve grown year on year since the pandemic, so we came out of last year in a good place and we’re going to be topping that a little bit this year and continue to grow. We’ve got good control over our profits, good investments coming in, we’ve got new business opportunities launching. We’re doing well.
How do you relax? Do you have any hobbies?
I try and go to the gym every morning. I think that is crucial for me – not necessarily physically, but mentally. I know if I don’t go there, I’m not on my game. I try to switch off, and generally that’s when I get most of my ideas.
Do you have a favourite venue?
Well coming from a city by the sea, I always love somewhere where you can sit and have a look at the sea or be near the sea, enjoy a nice glass of wine and take in the views.
