Team Saatchi wins brand positioning work for Sheffield ‘superclub’ brand Gatecrasher

Team Saatchi has been appointed by dance club giant Gatecrasher to develop a new brand positioning.

Gatecrasher, based in Sheffield, is one of the original UK clubbing “superbrands”, along with Ministry of Sound and Cream. However, like its rivals, it has suffered from falling attendances as the original clubbing generation has aged and there is a resurgence of interest by teenagers in guitar-based rock and pop.

The club now wants to adopt a broader music policy, moving away from the limits of the “trance” sound with which it is associated. Gatecrasher dropped its regular weekly night at its Sheffield home venue, Republic, last year.

However, it has launched regular nights in London and is seeking to take its brand to other cities. Gatecrasher also puts on large-venue events, including a 15,000 capacity party at Birmingham NEC last November. Gatecrasher began in Birmingham ten years ago and moved to Sheffield in 1997.

Team Saatchi previously handled a one-off creative assignment for Gatecrasher, when it created the campaign theme “It will always be with you” for the club’s millennium activity. The brand positioning work is expected to lead to a creative campaign later in the year.

Rival club brand Ministry of Sound, based in London, claims it is reviving plans for a flotation this year under new chief executive Mark Rodol. The club’s dance magazine was axed last year, but it is to launch a lifestyle magazine called Trash.