Where do you take advertisers if you want them to make a big purchase? To a department store, of course.
Paramount Global will take clients who attend its upfront Wednesday afternoon to an after-party in the structure on New York’s Madison Avenue that once housed the big Barney’s department store, one way to emphasize the shopping aspect of the event, in which big U.S. TV companies hope to sell the bulk of their commercial inventory for their next programming cycle.
As part of the affair, Paramount has dressed up four windows of the former shopping plaza. One, representing scripted entertainment, will show how consumers can engage with Paramount content in many ways, including at home, in bed, on the phone, in a living rooms, on a TV and on an airplane. A second will dramatize the company’s kids and family content, and feature a rotation of fan-favorite costumed characters at the start of the event.
A window devoted to news and sports — live programming — will tout CBS’ strength in connecting with audiences as a trusted news source and as a home to some of some of the industry’s top sports properties. A fourth window, devoted to reality programming, will feature a confessional booth. Attendees will have a chance to step inside for a photo opp.
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The party is the first to take place under the auspices of Paramount Global, which was formed from its predecessors, CBS Corp. and Viacom Inc. CBS had, prior to the pandemic, held a party at New York’s Plaza Hotel, complete with a floor of different food offerings and another where guests could take pictures with popular network personalities. Before that, CBS for a number of years held a party near Lincoln Center’s Damrosch Park.
