Stagwell's Sport Beach

AI, Apps and All-Stars: A Digital Ecosystem Connecting Athletes and Brands at Cannes

Stagwell's inaugural Sport Beach (2023) earned widespread positive recognition — a first-of-its-kind event on-site at Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity. It featured curated innovation and marketing panels celebrating the intersection of sports, technology, and culture. Stagwell, a leading global marketing and communications group, aimed to double down in 2024, elevating the flagship summer event at Cannes with more original programming, activations and a star-studded lineup of world-class athletes and marketers, including Megan Rapinoe, Travis and Jason Kelce, Alexis Ohanian, Tammy Henault and more than 100+ renowned marketing leaders.

While the in-person event was gaining momentum, Stagwell needed to ensure its digital ecosystem across web and app were as premium and dynamic as the event itself. Stagwell tapped Code and Theory for a comprehensive digital transformation, designing and engineering an all-new Sport Beach website and app. In less than five months, Code and Theory created an entire Sport Beach ecosystem to support event marketing, attendance, engagement, and immersion — all while embodying Sport Beach’s spirit of play.

Impact

  • 89% User registration completion rate (+50% over the industry average)
  • 30M Impressions from press in People Magazine, Ad Age, Adweek, Digiday, Page Six and more
  • Both the app and website were designed, engineered and launched in less than five months
App

Designed for Speed and Play

Inspired by the visual ID from 72andSunny (another Stagwell agency) and incorporating Material Design principles, we crafted a fully bespoke digital experience for Sport Beach. Our web approach was iterative, building pages and functional components that resulted in a scalable experience that gave Stagwell full creative and operational control for not only this event, but future event iterations too.

We designed the Sport Beach app to deliver the beauty of Cannes' beaches with the ease of scheduling and information at our user’s fingertips. The app’s main objective was making scheduling clear, compelling and fast. We leveled up the experience by giving users the ability to build their itineraries manually or through our AI Assistant in less than three taps.

Roster

AI That Anticipates User Needs

The app's cornerstone was an AI Assistant that could answer a myriad of questions about the event (from how to access the beach to event schedules to best local restaurant picks) and tailor event recommendations to each user based on their interests. Using Stagwell's Enterprise ChatGPT as a backbone large language model, we fine-tuned our AI on a large, static dataset about Cannes and Sport Beach. We leveraged Sanity, our CMS for the event, to constantly update changing events or critical event information.

While the AI Assistant interfaced with the CMS to update its context, it also interfaced with an event recommendation engine developed in-house and hosted on Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, taking advantage of Code and Theory's partnership with Oracle. The AI Assistant "got to meet" each user during a conversational onboarding interview, and saved those learnings to suggest customized itineraries, ensuring attendees wouldn't miss relevant content. As that content shifted (speaker changes and event schedules moving), the recommendation engine and the AI Assistant could rely on their connection to the CMS to ensure their responses were explicit, accurate, and based on real-time feedback.

Powering Rapid Innovation

Code and Theory leveraged Sanity's Content Cloud to manage all event content, including sessions, speakers, event details and more. The combination of Sanity as a content provider and Vercel as a hosting platform enabled Code and Theory to rapidly build a recommendation engine and AI chat, significantly accelerating development and reducing delivery time. This approach allowed real-time data integration and scalable solutions, feeding first—and third-party data dynamically to the AI chat system.

Sport Beach Panel Share Card no image
Sport Beach Invite

The Technology Powering SPORT BEACH

Revised tech slide

There's no sign of slowing down for Sport Beach, which earned more than 30M impressions from the press in publications ranging from People Magazine to Adweek and Ad Age. By building the digital ecosystem to scale for future events, Stagwell is primed and ready for Cannes 2025.

Fueling the Automotive Future

We bring over two decades of experience building and designing digital experiences for automotive giants and disruptors.

Screenshot 2023 09 29 at 3 51 52 PM
The Ritz-Carlton

Redefining the Legacy of Luxury for a Powerhouse in Hospitality

The hotel giant partnered with Code and Theory to bring its hotel's luxury into every element of its digital experience.

Read More
  • Built a scalable design system for both The Ritz-Carlton and The Ritz-Carlton Reserve.
  • Created a guest-centric site structure to facilitate booking, content exploration and discovery.
  • Strategy, design and launch in under one year.
Hero Star Trib
The Minnesota Star Tribune

A Transformation Redefining Local News

In less than six months, Code and Theory delivered a comprehensive business and digital transformation for

Read More
  • Launch day was the website's highest traffic day in its history
  • Less than 24 hours after launch, The Minnesota Star Tribune hit 32% of its monthly subscriber goal
  • Transformation earned press across The New York Times, Washington Post, Adweek, Ad Age and more
Black BoxBlack BoxBlack Box

Recognition

  • Code and Theory

    Ad Age A-List

    2024 Business Transformation Agency of the Year
  • YETI x Code and Theory

    Innovation by Design

    Best in Marketing for Brand Campaign - Year in Preview
  • Code and Theory

    ANA B2s

    B2B Agency of the Year

Sports Experiences Built to Scale

We've partnered with sports leagues, teams and disruptive brands to elevate the fan experience and stimulate growth.

Social image 1
Sutter Health

Meet Scout: A Powerful Tool Building Resilience in Today's Youth

Scout is a mental health and resilience app making care and intervention more accessible for teens and young adults..

Read More
  • +40% Increase in reported user resiliency
  • Developed as a progressive web app for maximum accessibility across the socio-economic spectrum
  • 2024 Webby Winner in Apps & Software - Health, Wellness & Fitness
  • Code and Theory built, designed and launched Scout.

Driving B2B Growth

Partnering with some of the world's largest companies to fuel their business-to-business expansion.

Thrive 3
Thrive Market

Growing a Billion Dollar E-commerce Brand

In less than four months we built a personalized shopping experience and accelerated sign-ups to drive conversion.

Read More
  • +9.7% Membership sign-ups
  • +16% First-time orders
  • +33% Customers completed orders in-app
  • +24% Faster speed to check out
  • E-Commerce Award Winner in The Webby Awards, Fast Company Innovation by Design, W3 Awards and more
Screen Shot 2023 03 01 at 11 14 04 AM
Marriott Bonvoy

Reimagining Marriott Bonvoy as a Hub for Travel and Commerce

Evolving Bonvoy’s design system to be more modern and immersive while staying true to the core strong brand identity.

Read More
  • Mobile-First
  • Contextualized Conversion
  • Flexible Design and Content Systems

Evolving E-commerce to Fit Modern Audiences

We are shaping the digital transformation of the industry by creating strong connections between audiences and brands.

Image 35
Polestar

Electric Driving For a Progressive Future

Designing and engineering a state-of-the-art web experience as impressive and exhilarating as the Polestar car itself.

Read More
  • Led design and product strategy for Polestar's web and mobile experiences
  • Developed an information architecture with no dead ends
  • Designed a flexible UI kit to unify every digital touchpoint
  • Fast Company Honoree for Retail and User Experience in Innovation by Design Awards

Leading With Empathy and Inclusivity

Having deeper conversations, widening the funnel, and driving innovation with an inclusive-first lens.

Albertsons 2x 1
Albertsons

Simplifying Grocery Shopping for Millions

Building and unifying the digital ecosystem for one of the largest food and drug retailers in the US.

Read More
  • Modernized the ecommerce experience
  • Created a scalable design system
  • Integrated 10+ disparate apps into one, reducing overhead
  • Launched in six months
Untitled design
Allspring

Speed to Market for a Portfolio Optimization Tool

Crafting a UI for a complex product through user input and clear data visualization.

Read More
  • Improving workflow processes through enhanced user interface design
  • Clear and simple data visualizations for complex data sets
  • Designing a roadmap to continue to iterate and optimize the product on a rolling basis post-launch

All Work

Tipico | Succeeding on a Mission to Win Ohio

Simpli.fi | Building a Brand for the Future of AdTech

Amazon | Amazon Ads: Ads that work as hard as you do

Equifax | Modernizing Equifax Canada’s Customer Tools

Comcast | Commercializing the Comcast Cybersecurity Experience

The Ritz-Carlton | Redefining the Legacy of Luxury for a Powerhouse in Hospitality

YETI | Map The Gaps - Taking Google Street View Way Off The Street

YETI | Year in Preview

Champion | Evolving an Iconic Brand for a New Generation

Albertsons | Simplifying Grocery Shopping For Millions

Electric Driving Built for a Progressive Future | Electric Driving Built for a Progressive Future

Harris Williams | Modernizing Harris Williams with a Future-Leaning Tech Stack

Allstate Protection Plans | Bringing SquareTrade Into The Allstate Family

TikTok | Building Confidence in TT4B Solutions

Marriott Bonvoy Leisure | Reimagining Marriott Bonvoy As A Hub For Travel Content And Commerce

Meta for Business | Creating Connective Tissue to Drive Engagement

Pfizer World | Shaping a Platform into a Beacon for New Priorities and Ways of Work

Allspring Remi Advisor Tools | Crafting a UI Through User Input and Clear Data Visualization

Citizens Bank | Driving Growth For a Storied Financial Institution

Galleri | Introducing a Revolutionary Medical Feat to the Market

Adidas | Engaging a Demographic With Digital Storytelling

The New School | Building Flexible, Data-Driven Pathways for an Academic Innovator

Citadel | Citadel & Citadel Securities Websites

KPMG | Reimagining KPMG US

Johnson & Johnson | Transforming a CPG Powerhouse Into an Inclusive Digital-First Marketer

Daymaker | A Platform Redesign That Supports Local Nonprofits in the U.S.

Bare Necessities | Redefining Fit

Kaplan | Transforming the Digital Ecosystem of a Major Education Provider

Pagaya | Empowering Financial Opportunity

1-800-FLOWERS | Celebrating Gifting With a One-Stop Shop

ConEd | Building A Future Vision For Clean Energy In New York

Party City | Turning a Brick-and-Mortar Mainstay Into an Online Phenom

KYLA Kombucha | Elevating A Beverage Brand's Positioning And Creative Strategy

Washington Football Team | Charting A New Path For An Iconic Institution

Legence | Designing the Digital Presence for a Formidable New Brand

Bustle Digital Group | Scary Mommy: Not Your Mom's Mag

Bustle Digital Group | Gawker | Don't Call It A Comeback

Amazon Ads | Making Amazon Essential for Every Ad Buy

H&M | Modernizing The Intersection Of Inspiration And E-commerce

College Board | Positioning College Board as an Integrated Partner for Students

The Commonwealth Fund | Rebuilding a 100-Year-Old Foundation for the Next Century

National Council on Aging (NCOA) | A Personalized Digital Experience For America's Older Adults

adidas Superstar | Change Is A Team Sport

adidas Running | Bringing In-The-Moment Running Experiences To Boost Product Discovery

adidas Originals James Harden | Launching The Next Chapter In Adidas Basketball

The Venetian | Redefining Luxury in Las Vegas

MetLife Investment Management | Introducing A New Platform For An Institutional Powerhouse

William Hill Estate | Putting Chardonnay On Trend

Nexstar Media Group | Helping 130+ Local News Stations Transition to Digital

Giffords | Launching A Powerful Resource To Spark Action On Gun Violence

PGIM | Unifying PGIM's Global Asset Management Network

Bustle Digital Group | Modern Storytelling For Bustle Digital Group

J.P. Morgan | The First End-To-End Digital Platform In Commercial Real Estate

Xerox | Making Now Work: A New Campaign For A New Time

Mailchimp | A Digital Platform For Emerging Writers And Creators

Sky Italia | A Modern Digital Experience For The Italian Media Platform

Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library | Defining The New Digital Museum Experience

Nylon | ReIntroducing An Iconic Publishing Brand

Mailchimp | Launching The New Digital Home For Tomorrow's Filmmakers

Input | A Brand New Destination About Technology In Our Lives

Morton Salt | Putting More Salt On US Tables

Cartier | Reimagining Cartier's Retail Experience

Sunbrella | Redefining The Digital Textile Space

Axe | An Iconic Men's Grooming Brand Known For Bold Marketing

CoinDesk | Relaunching A Pillar Of The Blockchain Community

Dignity Health | Delivering A Best-In-Class Digital Experience

NYCEDC | A New Hub For New Yorkers To Grow Their Business

Indigo AG | Adopting Regenerative Practices With The Terraton Initiative

TEGNA | Creating A Centralized CMS For 39 Local News Stations

The Jewish Museum | Bridging The Museum's Physical And Digital Experiences

Bustle Digital Group | Fatherly: From Dude to Dad

Rally | Elevating the Site Experience for a Crypto Pioneer

Bustle Digital Group | Mic – Stories That Fuel Curiosity, Creativity, and Change

CBRE | Building A Digital Infrastructure A Major Real-Estate Firm

Dean & Deluca | Connected Physical And Digital Gourmet Grocery Experiences

Vogue | A Fresh New Look for Vogue.com

SOM | Designing a Site For The Legacy of Architecture’s Most Prolific Firm

Xywav | A Flexible Component Library For The Jazz Brand

BioReference | Launching An On-Demand Healthcare Offering During A Pandemic

Says a Lot —

Latest

News — 

Code and Theory Launches Government Experience Practice

News — 

Code and Theory Expands Strategic Partnership with Adobe

News — 

Code and Theory Earns 20 Wins in w3 Awards for JPMorganChase, YETI, The Ritz-Carlton and more

News — 

Ad Age | Brand safety—how marketers can embrace real-world discussions that match their message

News — 

Mediapost | Wieden + Kennedy's Ismaila Traore Joins Stagwell's Code and Theory

News — 

Adweek | T. Rowe Price Chooses Code and Theory for Global Digital Transformation

News — 

Digiday | Why AR and VR are not going away, as AI advances personalization, measurement

News — 

Campaign | Big Tech is missing the mark when promoting new AI tools

We Are a Technology-First Creative Agency

What We Do

Code and Theory is a strategically driven, digital-first agency that lives at the intersection of creativity and technology. We solve consumer and business problems with end-to-end solutions that flex to meet the needs of today’s ever-changing digital landscape.

Our Services

We provide a range of offerings built to support the entire ecosystem.

  • Data, Analytics and Research

    Our data-driven approach enables us to understand every aspect of end-to-end consumer journeys, and powers our work from start to finish.

  • Business & Organizational Consulting

    We work with our clients not only to define and deliver products, services and communications, but also to design the business itself.

  • Transformational Technology

    We help our clients reinvent their technical infrastructure and roadmap in order to deliver for the needs of today and tomorrow.

  • Services, Platforms & Products

    We create best-in-class platforms built around both the user and the business goals, often extending into connected physical expressions.

  • Integrated Marketing

    We deliver the right messages to new and existing customers across the entire ecosystem.

Our Offices

We have locations around the world.

Join Our Team

We're not typical, and neither are you. We're always looking to hire smart, interesting and forward-thinking people.
See All Open Positions