Inviting a Broader Universe of Players and with a New Purpose, Empresas Creativas de Chile Is Born, Replacing ACHAP

Inviting a Broader Universe of Players and with a New Purpose, Empresas Creativas de Chile Is Born, Replacing ACHAP

Column originally published in ANDA

 

It’s now official and public. The Chilean Advertising Association (ACHAP) has ceased to exist as such and is becoming a new trade association named Empresas Creativas de Chile (Creative Companies of Chile), encompassing a creative world broader than advertising agencies and thus aspiring to a greater purpose and impact on society.

 

This was announced by Andrea Matte, president of the (now former) ACHAP, during the Chile Creativity Festival, an annual event organized by the association, where creativity, innovation, and great ideas are discussed and awarded.

 

Her opening speech highlighted the value of collaborative action involving a range of players in the creative industry: “Good things are the fruit of collective work, and who better than us, those of us who truly love this industry, to be invited to believe that we are capable of creating a different reality for the industry and the people who work in it, of building a new reality where creative capacity is the engine that opens up spaces in society, creating value, quality of life, and the common good… Today I announce the end of ACHAP, to move toward something much greater.”

 

And so the new association, Empresas Creativas de Chile, opens its doors to organizations that want to join, beyond advertising agencies, with some production companies already interested. Ultimately, the goal is a large joint movement that drives the country’s creativity.

 

“We are moving from Advertising to a cross-industry conversation among creative companies, with strong cohesion, to be respected in our creative rights, validated by society, and where we achieve the long-awaited horizontality to build the sustainable businesses of the future,” she said.

 

“Much of the conviction to make this change came from a process carried out together with the consultancy Almabrands,” added Andrea Matte, referring to the advisory process conducted with the firm during 2022, which was carried out with a deep collective spirit, bringing together the perspective and collaboration not only of members but also of other stakeholders, in order to redefine the institution’s role and meaning from there.

 

During the event, Carolina Altschwager, partner and founder of Almabrands, highlighted the openness shown by the directors and agencies, their ability to truly listen to one another, and their courage to change:

 

“It took courage to defend principles and the value of what this industry does, and to open up to others in an association that will now be much, much bigger. This change will be truly virtuous for creative economies and for companies. And I hope it will have a domino effect that involves other sectors,” she said.

 

Carolina concluded that the successful cases of creativity in organizations are those that never stop listening to their audiences or innovating, continuously transforming themselves, including in the way they engage with their different stakeholders. “Creativity isn’t located in a single place or department. Today, creativity cuts across the entire organization.”