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Red Frog Events Keeps it Creative

By Tricia Despres

Not many writers can claim to have done an interview while on a swing. Yet at Chicago’s very own Red Frog Events, it all feels somewhat normal. Because in order to truly understand the huge success of the 6-year-old event production company and the personalities of the employees who have worked long and hard to make it that way, one must walk through the doors of the 320 West Ohio St. offices to see it.

Designed by the same company that created the interior of Google’s offices, the three floors of workspaces known as Camp Red Frog are a maze of creativity, with each corner leading to another opportunity to look at life and work a bit differently. From red picnic tables to s’more stations and zip lines, rip sticks and three-wheel bikes that find their way throughout each floor and conference tables made out of Legos, these office spaces are as creative as the employees that fill their strategically placed indoor tree houses.

For those who naysay that work could get done in such a playground, the far-from-traditional environment has worked. It has inspired employees who call this place home-away-from-home to come up with brilliant ideas that have launched some of the most innovative events of recent years. From the Warrior Dash to the Firefly Music Festival and the American Beer Classic, Red Frog Events continues to impress the industry with newfound ideas and trends.

“Since Day One, I knew I wanted fun, innovation and creativity at the heart of everything Red Frog does,” explains company founder Joe Reynolds, who started the event production business with a mere $5,000 investment. He now shares ownership with his brother-in-law, Ryan Kunkel. “I wanted a unique work environment to spark creativity and to let employees feel like they were at home. We’ve found that having a fun-filled environment boosts productivity and allows our employees who are working long hours to take a quick break and refresh their mind by playing a quick game of foosball or taking a spin on our office tricycles.”

Thanks in part to this casual philosophy, Red Frog Events has experienced rapid revenue growth over the last four years, with $300,000 in 2008 to revenues of $60 million projected for 2013. The success has undoubtedly helped them attract some of the brightest creative talent in the country. “Our offices were created in order to fuel innovation, fun and creativity on a daily basis,” explains Matthew Robinson, known as the chairman of cheesiness at Red Frog Events. “The culture and environment directly reflect the fun and unique nature of our events and the vision of how we want to work together as a company.”

THE LAY OF THE LAND

Like Robinson’s clever choice, every employee creates his or her own job title. Each also has a specific spot in the frog evolutionary chart. The 80 full-time employees are known as frogs, and the whopping 125 interns are called tadpoles, all of whom are clustered into various pods around the office and hop to each other’s lily pads to discuss ideas. Yes, even at the germinating tadpole phase, no idea goes unheard.

“Our tadpoles are vital to our success and truly fit into our culture,” says Robinson, who also has responsibilities as brand ambassador, event director and video production manager for the company, building on a nine-year career in event production that included a previous position as sales and operations manager for The Ivy Room in River North. “While we are very selective as to whom we hire, our classes of interns have been the people that have most helped us establish our well-known, branded events. We truly believe in empowering young people as much as possible and engaging them within every aspect of this company. They thrive on this engagement. When they know that their company really values them, they will go to battle for it.”

Of course, once they have attracted the tadpoles, Robinson and Reynolds have also found ways to keep them. Red Frog Events has long been known for the unheard of perks they give their full-time employees. This includes a $100 allowance to customize one’s office space and a fully paid onemonth trip to the destination of their choice every five years. The one rule: the destination of choice cannot include anywhere within North America or Australia, which most frogs spend time in during various events throughout the year. Rather, time in Africa or Thailand is to be spent pushing the employees out of their comfort zone- and the resulting effect it has on their creativity once they get back to the office is part of the payoff.

THE WARRIORS OF EVENTS

As the tadpoles and frogs unite and spend each day collaborating to come up with the next new trend and the next new event, they have also been known to create a competition for ideas. “We basically call it the Shark Tank, and it’s set up exactly like the television show,” says Robinson, laughing. But the idea is no laughing matter- it’s a strategy that has really worked, says Reynolds, pointing to some examples in Red Frog’s portfolio.

“The first event we hosted was the Great Urban Race in 2007, which was inspired by an episode of The Amazing Race,” he recalls. “With the success of the Great Urban Race, we were able to launch the Warrior Dash in 2009, which jumpstarted our company and quickly became the world’s largest obstacle race series.” Part of the company’s success has been in creating events they personally would want to attend. “My vision and inspiration for Red Frog Events was to create unique events I would want to sign up for and be a part of myself. I’ve always been a runner, and many of our events are variations of races with a twist for those who are tired of just running on pavement. Our events have been very successful because they create an experience participants will never forget,” says Reynolds.

Since its inception, the obstacle race and mud run known as Warrior Dash has grown to welcome more than 1.5 million participants. “The Warrior Dash was an idea that literally took the country by storm back in 2009, and it has exploded thanks to the fact that it went viral,” says Robinson of the quickhitting post-race videos that were shared via email or linked to on massive scales. “We refer to it as the ‘fear of missing out.’ Social media has helped immensely in terms of the success of our events. When you post a picture covered in mud after a long race, people want to know where you are. Heck, it’s how I found out about the company myself.”

While the sort of success that the company has enjoyed via the Warrior Dash could make most CEOs sit back on their laurels, it has actually encouraged Red Frog Events to continue its search for the next big thing. A couple of years ago, that thing may have been discovered.

“Firefly Music Festival became the East Coast’s premier music fest right away in its first year because we had a heavy focus on bringing in quality musical acts, but also on the additional attractions that create a well-rounded weekend for our guests,” says Reynolds of the event that has included headliners such as The Killers, Jack White and The Black Keys. “Guests have shown they love Firefly. We doubled in attendance from year one to year two, which is not something many festivals can say.”

Robinson agrees. “Firefly is by far our biggest undertaking to date,” he says. “The music industry is one that can be hard to break into and there are usually great barriers at every entry point. Yet operationally, it went very well. Not without a hitch, of course, but very well. Like all of our events, we always look for opportunities to create occasions that fit into our wheelhouse. We consider the calculated risk and put much time into research and do our best to discover the next big trend.”

Ensuring that event participants are well taken care of on-site also serves as a goal to everyone at Red Frog Events, even the tadpoles in the office answering phone calls on a two-ring rule. “We want to treat every participant with the utmost of care,” says Robinson.

TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS

While fun and games can get you far, company executives agree that fiscal responsibility at all their events is also vital. Often, this means partnering with various event sponsors like MillerCoors, Monster Energy and even the Army National Guard for the Warrior Dash. “Sponsors are a key part of all of our events. They not only have the unique ability to lend further credibility to the events in general, but really can improve upon the experience that participants have while participating in an event,” says Robinson. “We’re fortunate to be working with some incredible sponsors and partners that really fit with the style of each specific event. Of course, there’s a financial aspect to many of these relationships as well, but it’s so much more important that a potential sponsor add something unique and valuable or enhance an event in some way.”

Red Frog Events executives also point to constant collaboration with various Chicago-area companies with similar goals. “We routinely bounce ideas off one another,” says Robinson. “Not only is Chicago a wonderful place to set up shop because it is centrally located, but there is a cool startup environment here that encourages us to continue to grow.”

Seemingly, one might imagine that an office without many visible boundaries would somehow come off the rails at some point. Not so far for this company. In fact, the executives say that the future holds much to look forward to. “I guess our biggest challenge has been holding onto that startup culture here,” remarks Robinson. “We’ve found that the key is to continue listening to our employees. In 2013, we began to take a bit more of a hierarchal approach because of their feedback. We asked how we could improve, and they were very open to telling us.”

Another rule of thumb is to continue with brand development. “We look forward to continuing to expand our portfolio in the coming years via different events and experiences,” says Robinson. “Possibly creating events that don’t just include running, beer and music. A healthy company is always trying to grow and come up with new ideas. It’s really what contributes to the best work culture.”

Concludes Reynolds, “This is just the beginning for Red Frog Events, and we’re thrilled to continue to bring new and exciting events to the masses.”

Bring The “Fun House” To Your Office:
Like what Red Frog Events is doing? Getting creative at your office isn’t difficult, says Matthew Robinson- as long as you have the right atmosphere. Here are his four simple tips for amping up the energy in your office space.

Start small and inexpensive. A gong you ring every time someone makes a sale or comes up with a new idea is a great way to celebrate success and make it fun.

Get comfortable. Decorate your office in a way that makes you feel most productive and creative. Beanbag chairs? Leather couches? Either works, but make sure it fits your work style.

Let the games begin! Not only do games give you an opportunity to recharge before starting a new project, they also build bonds among co-workers. Think active games like Pictionary or charades or get a custom-made Monopoly board that is branded for your company.

Get out of the office! Whether it’s a field trip to the Starbucks down the street or a long weekend vacation, sometimes a change of scenery is all you need to spark creativity.

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