The Ultimate Masterclass Festival
The brief.
The business events scene is a busy space; one which, in the North-east of Scotland, has traditionally been dominated by our client, Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce. However, to build on this position and appeal to new audiences, the Chamber wanted to set an even higher standard, in terms of scale, reach and quality of its events.
With an agreement from the Chamber to ‘speculate to accumulate’ the True North events team worked with the Chamber’s in-house events specialists to build something impactful and different. To help reset perceptions about Chambers being ‘stuffy’, this new series was to be delivered under a fresh brand, which True North’s content studio was tasked with designing.
The aim was to attract the biggest names to the city, providing audiences with personal and professional learning and development opportunities (as well as enjoyment!) and bringing thousands of people to Union Street on midweek evenings as part of the Chamber’s efforts to repopulate Union Street.
Crucially, with the costs involved in securing such high profile speakers, the series had to deliver profit to help fund the work the Chamber, a not-for-profit, does on behalf of the local business community.
Our solution.
From that brief, The Ultimate Masterclass Festival (UMF) was born; a series of high-impact arena events which bring some of the most famous names in the UK to Aberdeen.
The series aims to do two things: to inspire new thinking in the local business community, and to drive major midweek footfall to Union Street's hospitality and arts venues.
We provide end-to-end support for the series, which will feature television stars Louis Theroux and James Corden in 2025, including
- Brand creation
- Artist negotiation
- Website creation
- PR & Comms
- Digital marketing
- Event management
- Event hosting
- Videography
The result.
Since launching in 2023, the series has been an enormous success with Elizabeth Day, Steven Bartlett, Gary Neville, Davina McCall, Louis Theroux, James Corden among some of the acts so far. UMF has sold almost 10,000 tickets date, city centre restaurants and bars have seen increased footfall and attendees have taken away a new perspective on the Chamber of Commerce.
Over 8,000 people have attended the UMF events since launching the series in 2023.
Organised and executed 10 high-profile, sold-out events based in Aberdeen city centre.
The UMF series has already delivered more than £300,000 of income for the Chamber.
What the client said.
"The Ultimate Masterclass Festival (UMF) has been a game-changer for Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce (AGCC), elevating our events programme into a whole new stratosphere.
"A few years ago, it would have been unthinkable for the Chamber to book and fill a 1,400-capacity venue for an event; now we are doing it multiple times each year, thanks to the exceptionally talented team at True North.
"One of the Chamber's key missions is to create the connections which grow our local economy. We are now able to do this at scale thanks to Ryan, Cody and Andy, who work seamlessly with our in-house events team."
Russell Borthwick, Chief Executive, AGCC
Build your event with True North.
We offer end-to-end support for events of all sizes, from business roundtables to sold-out arena shows.
Event management
We offer unrivalled support to manage all aspects of your event, from booking speakers and organising logistics, through to managing AV, timings and event and delivery.
Event marketing
Events are all about bums on seats. As a full-service agency, we also provide comprehensive marketing support to ensure your event is visible to the right audience.
Content creation
True North's content studio provides full design support to ensure your event looks world class. Our content team can also capture video content to amplify your impact.
Event hosting
True North is also home to some a number of seasoned speakers, broadcasters and professional event hosts who can step up and deliver your event, whatever the occasion.
Let's chat.
If you are planning an event, then we would love to hear from you. Input your details and we'll get back in touch to discuss your project further.