Inspiring you with thought provocations

KEYNOTES & PRESS

Pigalle is a thought leader and keynote speaker on the art and science of designing emotions and crafting unforgettable experiences. She is the creator of the Experience Design Building Block methods, underpinned by scientific explanations, based on 15 years as a producer and 12 years as an award-winning educator. She is also Jury Member for Conventa Best Events Awards, Council Member for the WXO, World Experience Organisation, and Board member for World Futures Awards.  

Pigalle is a leading expert on transformation strategy, emotion design, story and narrative, sensory design, creative thinking and innovation, for teams and organisations to thrive in fast moving, complex times. She is passionate to share her knowledge and insights through interactive keynotes, dynamic workshops, podcast interviews, articles for white papers, and media features.

She provides fresh perspectives, thought provocations and inspiration for attendees to come away with new ways of thinking, and empowered with practical methods how to design transformative experiences for their clients and customers.

Pigalle is passionate to share her expertise and insights on the art and science of designing meaningful connections, unforgettable experiences and long-term transformational impact.

She is an international keynote speaker, panellist, and workshop facilitator for events such as London Design Week, Affordable Art Fair, and an inspiration speaker for creative, PR and innovation agencies.

Pigalle is also an Associate Lecturer at Central Saint Martins, London College of Fashion, University of Westminster, GCU London, and international guest lecturer for universities and organisations such as Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany, Kaospilot, Aarhus, Denmark, and IESA Arts and Culture School, Paris, France.

2025 | KEYNOTE CALENDAR

01 May: The Future is Storyfeeling: The Art & Science of Moving From Brand Storytelling to Customer Storyfeeling - Headline keynote for WXO Summit, as part of the world’s first London Experience Week.

19 May: Flavours of Connections - Sensory activation and panel discussion on the art and science of sensory design, Exclusively Corporate, IMEX Frankfurt.

21 May: Play to Innovate: The Art & Science of Unlocking Creativity - Keynote for IMEX Frankfurt.

18 June: From Storytelling to Storyfeeling: How to Create Authentic Stories That Build Emotional Connections - Keynote for Communicating the Arts, Amsterdam.

11 November: 64th ICCA Congress, Porto, Portugal

KEYNOTES

PAST KEYNOTE HIGHLIGHTS

The Power of Experience: Discover the Art & Science of Transforming Your Audience Forever - Voted ‘Best Speaker’, Conventa Crossover, Ljubljana, Slovenia.

Storytelling: The Art & Science of Creating Unforgettable Memories - Plenary keynote alongside the President of BEA World Festival, Rome, Italy.

Play to Innovate: The Art & Science of Unlocking Learning - National media campaign launch on lifelong learning, with the President of Slovenia and Minister for Education, Ljubljana, Slovenia.

Turbocharge Science and Knowledge Sharing: Turn Medical Events Into Must-Attend Experiences - ICCA’s Future of Healthcare Meetings, Zurich, Switzerland.

The Art & Science of Designing Emotions - Les Journées de L'immersif, Lille, France.

PRESS

Drawing on a wealth of knowledge, Pigalle writes articles, provides quotes for publications such as Vogue, and is interviewed across print, broadcast and digital media. She also contributes thought leadership, insights and trend predictions for research reports and white papers, such as Vision 2030 - UK Science Festivals Network, British Science Association.

Please see below press highlights, podcast interviews and white paper articles.

KEYNOTE REVIEWS

  • “She dazzled the audience with her incredible personality and presentation. Pigalle opens new horizons for all event organisers to learn from her extensive knowledge. Working with her was incredibly inspiring."

    Gorazd Cad, Co-Founder of CONVENTA creativity and innovation conference, CEO Toleranca Marketing, Ljubljana, Slovenia.

    Keynote and voted ‘Best Speaker’ by attendess, for CONVENTA festival, Ljubljana, Slovenia.

  • "Pigalle brings art and science together to enrich guests with new insights to old dilemmas. She inspires them into producing better and more connecting events in such a clear way with passion and expertise."

    Hans Etman, CEO and senior moderator at Masters in Moderation.

    Plenary keynote alongside the President, for BEA World Festival, Rome, Italy.

  • "Pigalle has spoken several times for IMEX and each time was unique and tailored to the specific audience with the feedback always positive. She turns complex design concepts and neuroscience into clear actionable methods to increase success for well-designed experiences. She is a true professional and a delight to work with."

    Tahira Endean, MsC, CITP, CMP, CED, Head of Program, IMEX.

    Keynotes and workshop for IMEX Frankfurt, Germany.

  • “What an incredible 2nd day at the ICCA The Future of Healthcare Meetings where we have learnt to transform an event into an emotional experience. Thank you Pigalle Tavakkoli for your brilliant presentation and making your knowledge so accessible!”

    Edoardo Guglielmino , Business Development Manager at OIC Group, Brussels.

    Keynote and workshop at The Future of Healthcare Meetings, for ICCA in Zurich, Switzerland.

  • “I had such a great time learning with and from other congress passionate professionals! We were invited by Pigalle Tavakkoli to change perspectives, understand limits, open our minds to innovations, all that with lots of emotions and laughs.”

    Carine Fenot, Client Director Congresses & CSR representative at Kuoni Tumlare.

    Keynote and workshop at The Future of Healthcare Meetings, for ICCA in Zurich, Switzerland.

  • “Thank you for a very insightful, interesting, interactive keynote and workshop, which was inspiring and thought-provoking. The feedback has been extremely positive, it was just what we needed and rounded off the whole event.”

    Urška Bittner Pipan, Project Manager, Promotion and Information Unit, Slovenian Institute for Adult Education.

    Keynote and workshop alongside the President of Slovenia and Minister for Education, for the launch of a national media campaign to support lifelong learning in Slovenia.

  • “It was fantastic working with Pigalle. She has an amazing teaching ability and extremely easy to understand. What she delivers in her sessions can be easily applied, and the method she created to design how to make people feel, which then leads to behaviour change, really resonated well with the audience.“

    Dale Hudson, CED, SEPC, Creative Events Director, Enhance Events

    Keynote for MICE Expo, London, UK.