# Bazaar Bizarro Participants pick an ordinary or unusual everyday item, invent an unexpected function for it, and deliver a brief sixty-second sales pitch to their group. Listeners respond as interested buyers before the room reflects on the persuasive techniques used. **Time:** 18 minutes. Source suggests 10 to 20 minutes; 18 minutes accommodates object selection, individual planning, full presentations in subgroups of up to 6 people, and a concise debrief. **People:** 4 to 24. Individual selection, independent planning, presentations in small groups of 4 to 6 (or whole room if 8 or fewer), followed by whole-room debrief ## Choose this exercise **Purpose:** Practice quick improvisation and descriptive speaking by framing an everyday physical object as a novel product. **Use it when:** Use at the start of a workshop on communication, storytelling, or ideation to get participants speaking aloud and looking at physical items in unexpected ways. **Skip it when:** Skip during analytical decision meetings, technical reviews, or when participants need to focus immediately on solemn or high-stakes business topics. ## Materials and tools - One large box or basket containing assorted unusual everyday objects (at least 5 to 10 more items than the total participant count, such as oversized paperclips, bath stoppers, odd keychains, corks, plastic animals, cookie cutters, or jar lids) - Optional scratch paper and pens for speakers who want to jot quick notes - One digital or physical countdown timer ## Before participants arrive 1. Place the object collection box in a central, easily accessible spot in the room. 2. Arrange small clusters of chairs (4 to 6 per cluster) so participants can present to an attentive small audience without excessive room noise. ## Say this to open Welcome. In front of us is a collection of everyday oddities. Our task is to take an ordinary item, reimagine it as an extraordinary product with an entirely new function, and pitch it to your group in sixty seconds. You will pick an item, spend three minutes creating its new identity, and then take turns pitching. ## How to run it ### 1. Select an object (2 minutes) Invite participants to step up to the box and choose one object that catches their eye. Ask them to return to their seats once they have an item. If someone prefers not to handle random objects, offer clean spare desk items or let them choose a personal item like a pen or keychain. ### 2. Invent the pitch (3 minutes) Give participants three quiet minutes to inspect their object. Ask them to invent a brand-new name, an unexpected purpose, and two reasons someone must buy it today. For example, an oversized metal binder clip could become an emergency ergonomic bookstand and hair accessory. Scratch paper is available for those who want quick notes. ### 3. Deliver sales pitches (9 minutes) Form groups of 4 to 6 people. Each person takes up to 60 seconds to present their product to their small group using description, demonstration, or storytelling. Group members act as curious customers and may ask one quick question if time remains. Keep the overall room clock moving by announcing 60-second intervals so groups know when to switch speakers. ### 4. Debrief persuasion techniques (4 minutes) Bring the whole room together. Call on 3 or 4 volunteers to share what creative framing caught their attention and why. Discuss how framing ordinary features creates perceived value. ## Debrief questions - Which product feature or pitch strategy made an ordinary item suddenly sound useful? - How did you decide what angle to take when inspecting the item's physical shape? - Where else in your work do you need to help people see familiar things from a fresh angle? **Finished output:** Each participant completes a one-minute oral pitch reframing a physical object. ## Remote Ask participants to spend 2 minutes leaving their desk to grab one unusual, non-valuable household object (such as a kitchen gadget, tool, or odd toy). Run 3 minutes of solo ideation. Move participants into video breakout rooms of 4 to 5 people for 6 minutes to deliver their 60-second pitches on camera. Return to the main session for whole-room debrief. ## Hybrid Remote attendees bring an object from their remote workspace, while in-person participants pick from the room's box. Group in-person participants with each other in physical circles, and place remote attendees together in video breakout rooms, running the timing simultaneously. ## Access and participation choices - Participants may pitch a familiar personal object from their pocket or bag instead of taking one from the box. - Participants who prefer not to speak aloud may write a two-sentence catalog product listing on a card and hand it to a partner to read aloud, or simply act as a buyer asking questions. ## If the session gets stuck **A participant gets stuck trying to be funny or theatrical.** Remind the group that the pitch can be completely practical, serious, or absurd. Suggest focusing simply on what problem the shape solves. **Small groups run over their individual speaking times and run out of time for the last person.** Sound a chime or call out time every 60 seconds from the center of the room to keep group rotations synchronized. ## Sources and adaptation Observed in the online activity library published by Participatory Methods (2025). Original author is uncredited. The core mechanic of choosing unusual items from a box, inspecting features, and giving a one-minute sales pitch is preserved from Participatory Methods. UWT structured the presentation phase into concurrent small subgroups of 4 to 6 rather than consecutive whole-room turns to make the activity work within 18 minutes for groups up to 24, and added specific access choices for non-speakers. [Participatory Methods](https://participatorymethods.com/activities/bazaar-bizarro/) [Participatory Methods](https://participatorymethods.com/activities/bazaar) [Participatory Methods](https://participatorymethods.com/activities/bazaar-bizarro/#) Current run sheet: https://unitedwetransform.com/exercises/bazaar-bizarro/