Coopr Academy 2025, week 3: From a thought to a creative idea

They say, “Third time’s a charm!” In our third session of the Coopr Academy, we hoped luck would be on our side, sparking inspiration for our first ideas for the brief. Our goal was clear: to walk out the door with a solid first draft of a creative idea!

With this motivation, we took our seats once again in the presentation room, accompanied by delicious snacks and drinks, eager for another insightful session.

This week’s topic focused on understanding the concept of a creative idea, exploring different ways to brainstorm effectively, and presenting our ideas. Guillaume Furminger, Executive Creative Director at Brand Potential, and Mischa Hokke, PR Consultant at Coopr, kicked off the session with a thought-provoking question: “What does creativity mean to you, and do you consider yourself creative?”

This question sparked engaging discussions and led to our first inspiring takeaway: “Creativity isn’t a task.”

First, we explored the difference between a thought and an idea—something I had never considered before. Using a brilliant cooking metaphor, we learned that a thought is an unstructured, spontaneous act of thinking without a clear action behind it—like raw ingredients. An idea, on the other hand, is structured and developed, with a defined purpose and direction—like combining ingredients into a dish. Then comes the creativity aspect—the non-obvious, inspiring perspective that transforms an idea into something captivating. This final touch creates a unique experience that deeply engages the audience, making them feel truly invested.

After diving into the theoretical part of the session, we explored ten key pieces of advice from our lecturers on how to develop a creative idea. Among them, my favorites were breaking the rules intelligently, being exciting, and being radical. These stood out to me because, in my opinion, they are often the most challenging to achieve—but also the most rewarding.

As always, after the session, we enjoyed a warm and delicious dinner, giving us the chance to bond further with our teammates and get to know our lecturers on a more personal level. Energized by the meal, we even began discussing our initial ideas inspired by the first session, eager and excited to continue into the next one!

The second session kicked off with an incredible six-minute brand film for Johnnie Walker whiskey, featuring Robert Carlyle as he recounted the story of how a Scottish farmer transformed his product into the world-famous brand it is today. This video perfectly illustrated how a simple yet creative idea can lead to remarkable success, making it the ideal example of what we had discussed earlier.

Beyond the compelling storytelling, a fascinating fact about this brand film was that it was shot in a single continuous take—and it took Robert Carlyle 40 attempts to get it right! This was a powerful reminder that nothing is impossible, but as Guillaume mentioned before, great ideas take time, effort, and persistence.

The highlight of this week was undoubtedly when we split into our groups and dove into an exciting discussion about our initial ideas for the brief. At first, it was intimidating—we felt the pressure to say the right things or come up with a fully formed idea. However, the previous session had taught us to be open and confident in sharing our thoughts, even if they seemed extreme or unlikely at first.

This short but impactful brainstorming session helped us grow more comfortable as teammates and gain a deeper understanding of the brief. Most importantly, it marked the official start of our pitch ideas, leaving us more excited than ever to continue!

As the session came to a close, we had the opportunity to ask questions and receive final advice from our lecturers. The enthusiasm in the room was undeniable—anyone who walked in could have felt the energy with pitch day now just a few sessions away!

Defne (Coopr academy participant 2025)