"Look! Around the corner!
It’s a bank! It’s a Co-Working Space!
It’s S17 by Saradar Bank!
Wait! What?
That’s right S17 has created quite a buzz around it since its launch on January 31, 2019.
For the launch, we had Pierre Rabbat as our TV guest host reviewing our digital services offering, while nutrition health coach Dania Jounblat shared healthy smoothie and juice recipes. Artists Nour Nimri and Bernard Najm performed live musical covers, and photographer Sayde Jabra captured the essence of S17 with its multi-level layout and welcoming atmosphere.
This begins to give you an idea of how versatile S17 really is."
Now - bank doing meeting places is nothing new. Umpqua bank - with the help of Leopold Ketel did a great campaign around that (see here!) and this is back in 2003.
Now Umpqua was actually a bank in the American West coast, where clients are totally not stuffy. But Saradar is aiming S17 at a much younger clientele. In their own works they named it so, "because 17 is the age when young people start thinking about real ways to make their aspirations a reality".
The ad for the place is filled with anyone who is anyone in that age category (start up partners, MBA students, graphic designer, you name the hipster, he/she is there) - watch ad here.
Naturally I am not the target audience, so my opinion does not matter. Still, to be honest, it is so studded with cliched stereotypes about what being hipster means today.