Beyond the main stage: the activations that stole Coachella 2025

It’s officially that time of year when our social feeds are inundated with the mothership of all international music festivals, Coachella. Parth Depala, social and influencer manager, The PHA Group, picks the best of the bunch.

Let’s be honest, Coachella hasn’t been about the music for a long time. Sure, performances from Gaga, Charli XCX and Post Malone absolutely killed it this year, but how many people saw any of that on their feeds? It’s transformed from a music festival to a three-day content marathon where brands and influencers descend upon the Palm Springs desert to flood our social feeds with GRWMs, branded villas, pop-up activations and perfectly staged photo dumps. And as someone who is chronically online, it’s fascinating to watch.

Over the years, we’ve seen Coachella grow into the world’s biggest marketing playground. But not every brand activation lands. Some still rock up with zero cultural relevance. The smart ones, though, they build for social, for the feed, for the moment. And this year, a few stepped up!

Here’s five brands that got it right at Coachella 2025: 

LOFT’s summer rebrand moment

LOFT choosing Coachella to kick off its rebrand was a curveball — and it worked. Traditionally known as a go-to fashion brand for older millennials and boomer audiences, LOFT used the festival to reposition itself for a younger demographic. Its Summer of LOFT Tour featured product giveaways, DJ sets, and custom styling stations, including a denim bar.

Over a thousand influencers and celebs (Emma Roberts included) dropped in, creating made-for-social moments all weekend. It felt fresh, strategic and most importantly, content-led.

Rhode x 818 – besties that collab

Kendall Jenner’s 818 Tequila and Hailey Bieber’s Rhode skincare teamed up for a Photo Booth experience, and it just made sense. Best friends both speaking directly to their Coachella core audience. 

The experience included 818 bottles and Rhode lip bundles, an ingenious way to generate a bucket-load of UGC content. It’s the kind of natural brand alignment brands dream of, and it paid off.

One/Size by Patrick Starrr

Beauty creator Patrick Starrr, famously, wasn’t invited to Coachella by any brands, so he brought his own. One/Size set up camp in Kendall Jenner’s 818 Outpost and proved its value. Influencers raved about the heatproof, desert-proof makeup, showing off sweat-resistant glam on TikTok and Instagram. 

It was reactive and a timely reminder that sometimes, you don’t need a headline slot — just a product and presence that speaks for itself.

Pinterest’s Collage Clubhouse

Pinterest deservedly stole the activation crown this year. It took influencers and attendees on a nostalgic journey, stepping into an immersive space inspired by festival trends to promote its Collage feature. 

Guests created their own dreamy mood boards inspired by festival trends, which were then brought to life by stylists and make-up artists. The result? A plethora of user-generated pins for the platform and content across TikTok and Instagram. It was relevant, creative, and designed for social-first storytelling.

White Fox’s Villa Content Haven

Would it be Coachella weekend without a villa takeover? White Fox did what they do best: flew out global influencers, put them in a luxury villa, and let them loose with poolside GRWMs, villa tours, and endless outfit changes. And while it was slick, an evolved strategy could be bringing along loyal community members too. The content was great, but Coachella’s shifting, and brands that tap into more authentic and community-led engagement will see great success.

For brands, festivals like Coachella are the ultimate way for social domination. You’ve got cultural relevance, an audience already primed to engage with beauty, fashion and lifestyle content, and creators actively looking for brand partners to help tell their festival stories.

It’s high-impact, and if you get it right, you’ll own the feed for a weekend. But can you imagine trying this at Glastonbury? I’m not sure we’re ready for that just yet.