NBCUniversal Breaks Down its Growth Strategy for BravoCon and Brand Partners -

Social media algorithms were buzzing this past weekend as one of the industry’s titans of superfan events, BravoCon, went down in Las Vegas. Beyond the tea that was spilled and the spicy moments that emerged at more than 100 panels, parties, reunions, game shows, photo ops and off-site celebrations, 22 brand partners—15 of which were new to BravoCon—were on full display at Caesars Forum, Nov. 14-16, to engage the fans (known as Bravoholics) and tap into the energy that only Bravo can generate.

“BravoCon is truly the ultimate fandom come to life, where people can step inside the Bravoverse and connect with their favorite Bravolebrities in real life,” says Sari Feinberg, svp-marketing and creative partnerships at NBCUniversal. “Brands really become part of culture… It’s a great example of how our IP transcends beyond the screen and helps build relationships for brands with fans based on the way they activate at BravoCon.”

This was the event’s second year in Vegas, and BravoCon continues to grow its brand partnerships from 2023, which had seen sponsor activations recognized as the No. 1 destination of the weekend, with fans coming back two times or more, according to Feinberg. BravoCon 2025 welcomed nine custom builds from brands, up 125 percent from 2023, and with Lexus coming on as a new sponsor, it was the first time BravoCon featured a car activation on-site. Carnival Cruise Line, Clorox, Hilton, T.J.Maxx, Wayfair and Wendy’s also joined as sponsors.

Plus, the Bravo Bazaar pop-up marketplace featured more than 30 Bravo talent-owned brands, ranging from beauty and home goods to cocktails and clothing: “Almost every partner that we have has a commerce-enabled experience so that attendees can shop what they’re seeing,” Feinberg says.

A standout experience came from returning presenting partner State Farm. The expanded State Farm Bravohood, a neighborhood-themed activation that’s become a BravoCon staple, leaned into “Southern Charm” with rooms inspired by the cast’s real homes. Fans could explore Craig Conover’s outdoor sewing studio, Madison LeCroy’s front porch swing and Patricia Altschul’s dining room tableau. Custom embroidered Charleston-inspired swag rounded out the “Good Neighbor” walkthrough.

New presenting partner T-Mobile sponsored 20 add-on Bravopalooza events that gave attendees the chance to mix and mingle with their favorite Bravolebs. It was a new tactic for this year to have one sponsor for all the exclusive happy hours, which Feinberg says allowed the space to be “set and ready to go for the whole weekend, and it didn’t have to be changed over for different sponsors at different time slots and with different people coming in and out.” The experience’s evolution was based on fan feedback.

“We conduct very extensive overall consumer studies for the Bravo-branded pieces, but then also for our partners, and what we found is that fans want to be connected to the talent and close to the Bravolebs,” she says. “Every single thing that we do for BravoCon is built with the fans at the center, based off of attendee feedback. Everything that we do for the brand is additive to the fan experience.”

Unilever arrived at BravoCon 2025 with three activations as a first-time partner and tied them to a larger retail campaign that featured its Dove, TRESemmé, Nexxus, SheaMoisture and Vaseline brands, alongside five Bravo stars. Brand partners typically ramp up their BravoCon appearances with promotional talent partnerships across social media, TV and marketing channels; after all, more than 150 Bravolebrities took part in the weekend.

“When [partners] work with us, they’re looking across all platforms and are able to do a media program that drives the reach. They’re able to partner with talent to drive buzz, and they have custom creative and/or experiential. We really bring it all together for them,” Feinberg says. “We also have made BravoCon a content engine. There’s what happens on the ground, of course, but all of that is also generating content for Peacock, for our socials, for brands’ socials, talent socials. It’s a big moment for all of the brands that are part of it.” Agencies: Creative Riff, production; Civic, p.r.