Getting to Know… Bearded Kitten

Founded in 2008, Bearded Kitten has evolved from drawing whiskers on festival-goers and hosting mud wrestling, to a global creative experience agency delivering award-winning campaigns.

With offices in both London and Sydney, the agency brings its festival-first mindset to create the unforgettable. Bearded Kitten is powered by boundary-pushing ideas and in-house production capabilities to transform ordinary brand experiences into cultural moments with measurable impact.

The company's mission remains clear: be brave, fearlessly champion fun and create the unforgettable.

LBB> Tell us a bit about Bearded Kitten – when did you form and why?

Barney> Festivals are where we blossomed, but Bearded Kitten’s inception was long before that.

Even before myself, Joana, and Timmy became the trio that scaled the business beyond what they initially imagined.

Back in the day, we weren’t trying to build an agency. We were very young, wanted to have fun, and did some silly stuff. We never thought we could turn this into a job, we just wanted to get into festivals for free.

It started with mates dressing up, throwing parties, and pulling off festival side quests – we were always in the thick of it. We learned about audiences by playing with them through interactive games or immersive theatre. We knew what they wanted – and still want – to be a part of.

Brands started taking notice; a young collective with no budget or brand, but drawing massive crowds.

We still inject our festival learnings into our projects today, even our most corporate experiences. We’ve grown from interacting with crowds at local festivals to activating on a global level.

LBB> What’s the story behind your name?

Barney> A group of our friends used to go out armed with eyeliner, drawing beards and whiskers on partygoers. We were rushing to pick a name for our first flyer, and we went through a few variations of Whisker Crew, Whisker Massive, Whisker Beards… THANKFULLY, we landed on Bearded Kitten pretty quickly.

LBB> Tell us about three campaigns that epitomise what you do as a company.

Joana> Oh, this is tough. To be fair, I’ll pick a project from each category.

I chose the following three projects because although they’re all very different, each perfectly encapsulates our love for performance, set design and world building.

First is Backlot Studios, a B2E event where we built a double-storey film studio with seven movie sets, actors, and even a fake film crew. One minute, you’re in a ‘20s hotel lobby; the next, you’re floating in a space station or getting interrogated in a police station. Guests got fully stuck in, posing in sets, acting, and fully immersed the whole time. Even the F&B was woven into the experience. A talent buggy chauffeured guests around, and you could even meet the star in her private trailer. Cinema magic, IRL!

Then there was Beavertown’s Dead Carpet. Silly, fun, bearded to the core. We took over the Prince Charles Cinema for the Beavertown Screamings, a week of vintage horror movie marathons, complete with a ‘90s video shop lobby takeover. Outside was bonkers. We rolled out The Dead Carpet for horror’s biggest stars – Frankenstein and his bride, a mummy, and a very unsettling clown. They walked the carpet and worked the press line, with screaming superfans, paparazzi, and interviewers. Absolute carnage, in the best way. It was Bearded Kitten to a tee.

Last but not least, Amazon Wishlist, a B2B event, made Bearded. Every year, Amazon’s Christmas Wish List event shows off the best festive products to UK media, so we built them a house. A supersized, double-storey house inside Old Billingsgate, packed with Christmas magic, gifts, food, and Amazon’s full festive range. It felt like stepping into a real home, except this one had serious press power behind it.

LBB> Give us a fun fact about your company.

Barney> We almost changed our name to Kitten Creative. I know, what were we thinking?!

Three of our biggest clients at the time said they’d never work with us again if we did… We thank you for your service.

Also, the very first award we won was Best Festival Activation, and we beat Arcadia! It was mindblowing at the time… Arcadia! If you know, you know. They’re such good friends of ours, and what they pull together every year is insane, so we were really honoured.

LBB> What are your strongest opinions relating to your specific field?

Barney> Let’s talk about the great RFP scam.

Far too often, brands send out RFPs knowing full well they’ve already chosen their supplier.

This means agencies pour precious hours and brainpower into a pitch that doesn’t stand a chance.

We’re not coming for brands who shop around for different quotes. That’s fine, you should be doing that. But even when they know exactly who their supplier will be, some brands still send RFPs to four or five agencies ‘to be fair,’ but, it goes against exactly that. It isn’t fair.

What’s even worse is when there’s no job at the end; they just wanted to scout ideas. We love the competitive nature of our industry; it’s what keeps us going and motivates us to be the best we can be. We just want it to be fair.

LBB> What are you proudest of as a company?

Barney> I'm most proud of responding to every single brief with a brave idea, one that truly pushes boundaries – and maybe scares a CEO or two. A perfect example is our work with Battersea Power Station. They booked Elton John for a concert years prior, and when they considered doing something similar, we pushed them to think bigger.

Instead of another two-hour gig, we imagined an incredible opening ceremony, happening two days before the mall opened. Superman was flying from the rafters, Batman rode in on his Batmobile, pyrotechnics and 200+ performers took over. It was a huge achievement to create a venue out of a shopping mall two days after it opened.

We could have played it safe, but they trusted us. We wanted to do something that had never been done before, in an environment where it had never been done before. I’m so proud of it. We all are.

Every brand asks us to do something that’s never been done before. This is what we relish.

We thrive on creating these concepts.

LBB> What are some upcoming projects our readers need to keep an eye out for?

Joana> We’ve got some huge projects in the works, we have to keep those under wraps but they’re big.

Barney> Internally, we’re making serious headway on future tech. We’re working away on developing engagement tools and measurement systems that will complement our in-house Impact-ulator and take social listening to a whole new level.

As well as further investing in Bearded Kitten Studios, something we’ve already done at scale over the past couple of years. We’re so proud of the huge, incredible structures we’re not designing and building… just check out our Winter Wonderland gate!

Watch this space!

LBB> Looking beyond LBB, what socials can we check Bearded Kitten out on?

Barney> Find us on Instagram, LinkedIn, and our website. Expect a mix of serious industry creds, mind-blowing event highlights, and maybe an occasional cat meme. Because, well, we’re Bearded Kitten.

You can also check out our in-house creative fabrication and build partner, Bearded Kitten Studios.