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2016 NOV E M BER 23CEI .ASIA

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The five sensesA jungle party with bongo drums, fire twirlers, gorillas and lions. A haunted house where guests walk through a mini-cemetery with black cats, old books and dead roses to a marquee covered in cobwebs and spiders. These are examples of the lengths Melbourne-based event stylist The Design Depot goes to make its clients’ corporate celebrations stand out.

“We make venues look incredibly visually appealing by creating holistic solutions that touch on all the five senses,” says senior stylist Steffanie D’Alberto. “At last year’s Spring Racing Carnival, we styled a corporate tent that included a very distinct spring scent that had been atomised throughout the venue. We collaborated with chefs to create food bar installations where guests could have a different dining experience instead of the usual stand-up cocktail party food. We also had sensors at different points on the stairs that made different sounds—all these little touch points around which guests interacted with and then layering them all together to create a really unique experience.”

One-day island escapeThe Philippines has the longest Christmas season in the world. Just about every business, government office and organisation will throw a party, and the competition over who puts on the best event is fierce. Enter Air Juan, a small airline offering the ultimate party experience for small groups.

Using a pair of Cessna seaplanes, it can take up to 24 guests from a dock on Manila Bay to the beach resort of Puerto Galera. Normally a four-hour odyssey by ferry and car, the half-hour joy flight passes over Taal Volcano—home to an incredible island within a lake within an island—before landing on shimmering seas surrounded by lush green mountains edged with sugar-white beaches.

“Last year we had a tech start-up leave the harbour at 7am, arrive at Puerto Galera at 7.30am, then go straight onto a boat for island hopping, swimming

End-of-year celebrations are the most anticipated events on the corporate calendar. Here are top trending ideas for planning parties that will go down in the annals of history By Ian Lloyd neubauer

and snorkelling,” says chief marketing officer Tina DiCicco. “Then they had a long, lazy lunch by the pool at Infinity Resort before flying back to Manila.” Seaplane fly-and-dine packages are also available in Auckland and Sydney.

Sharing a mealSince primeval times, food has been linked to cooperation. Sharing food from large platters makes people think about fairness, authority and greed. In Bali, the Four Seasons Resort at Jimbaran Bay harnesses the team building benefits of sharing platters via the ‘megibung’—a six-course meal conceived 300 years ago by the King of Karangasem when he decreed his soldiers must sit together and eat from the same tray to promote unity.

“At the megibung, guests sit cross-legged on mats around a low table,” explains Ririn Sidabutar, associate director of catering and conferences at the hotel. “A very big dish like roasted spring chicken, corn fritters with sambal, fish grilled in banana leaves or pork satay is placed in the middle of the table. Each guest then serves themselves and their friends. We can do it for groups of up to 100 people, and it’s always good to incorporate a traditional Balinese dance performance with it.”

High-tech gamingBack in Australia—where parties are also cultural institutions—a small catering company is using gaming technology to invigorate group celebrations. “Rather than just lay on food and drink, we offer our clients a more engaging experience by creating an activity around the celebration,” says Graham Ette of Etiquette Catering, F&B contractor at the Moore Park Golf Club, a 100-year-old heritage venue 10 minutes from Sydney’s CBD.

“We’ve got this thing called Flightscope, a 3D golf simulator with a radar connected to a big screen on the range. People have a hit and it shows exactly where the ball went and how far, which creates a buzz to see who can get the best shot. Then we bring

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Come together The ancient Balinese practice of shared meals at Four Seasons Jimbaran Bay

everyone back to the clubhouse for a big paella and drinks at a sangria bar. We did two big Flightscope events last year, for ANZ bank and Moet Hennessy.”

Corporate chefLet’s talk a bit more about food, because, well... food is at the centre of just about any celebration—regardless of culture or religion. But again, instead of just dishing it out, why not have your client’s guests cook a festive meal together in a competitive team environment? It’s an interesting proposition the folks at Corporate Challenge—the largest team building and training provider in Australia and New Zealand with experience working in Singapore and Papua New Guinea—have spun into a popular event product called Corporate Chef.

“Guests are split into groups of five or 10 people and are given a mystery box of ingredients themed to the celebration, like lobster or turkey,” says conference and events manager Rachael Ziccone. “Everyone gets involved and contributes in different ways and we have a few professional chefs helping out. Afterwards, they all share the meal together with music and wine. They also make an extra dish that gets judged by a panel of chefs like they do on reality TV cook-off shows.”

Invite the familyBehind many of the employees your client wants to reward with a memorable end-of-year party is a loving and supporting spouse and family. Inviting the whole clan to join the celebrations is a great way to

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Make it memorable From office to island by seaplane (below left); bespoke music experiences (below right); DIY banquets (bottom right)

Typical shared parties see guests from various companies in a specific industry like film production or banking meet at a cocktail reception before breaking off into company tables for a sit-down meal. Afterwards, they regroup on the dance floor and at the bar to socialise and network.

Music to their ears“Every company needs to have a party to thank their staff at the end of the year, and they all need music,” says Mark Olsen of Pinnacle Entertainment, a Sydney-based booking agent and musician who counts Coca-Cola, Google, Ernst & Young and BMW among his clients. The key to Olsen’s success is supplying not one music style, but bespoke entertainment solutions. For corporate parties, he plays the drums with seven-piece lounge band Martini Club. For law firms, he brings along a string quartet to create classical music in legal chambers.

At a recent event in Saigon, Olsen deejayed with pianist Van-Anh Nguyen to create a classical-electronic hybrid sound. He’s also staging ‘silent disco’-themed events where guests wear wireless headphones and choose to listen to different styles of music played live at events.

“We’re also working with a company called Song Divas who do musical team building,” Olsen says. “We provide a live band and guests write a song about the company and jam it live on stage with us.”

acknowledge and appreciate that support. But before your client goes down this altruistic path, be wary of the fact that it’s going to cost a premium because you’ll have to plan and cater for two or more utterly different demographic groups—each of which require different kinds of food, drinks, entertainment and even furniture.

Picture a petting zoo or bouncing castle. Now picture a sangria station, or a live band playing. Now imagine bringing these elements together seamlessly under one roof and you’ll get a glimpse of the challenge that awaits. “Inviting spouses increases your chances of getting attendees,” says Julien Yung Mameaux of The Experience Company, a premium travel and events company in Hong Kong. “But of course costs are higher and you also need to pay attention to all your guests’ needs. Who is invited must be made very clear, and taken care of well ahead of time.”

Shared party nightsSmall company, big party. That’s the concept behind ‘Shared Christmas Party Night.’ Produced by event companies like Venue Search London and Australia’s IF Events, the perennially popular events cater to small and medium-sized companies that want to offer their employees a professionally produced end-of-year celebration in a quality venue, but can’t afford to do so on their own.

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injected a fun vibe by having festive snacks available in the run up to the holiday period, and using photo booths and roving entertainment like magicians at the office party.

“It’s about knowing what will really get your team to unwind and enjoy,” says Olinto Oliveira, director, business development and events, MCI Macau.

Low-budget options Laura Hennessy, marketing manager at Meltwater’s Sydney office, says a ‘Secret Santa’ option—where each member of staff pulls a colleague’s name out of a hat and buys them a cheap and cheerful present, without disclosing their identity—always creates a good vibe in the office.

“It’s a bit of fun and the low-budget nature often means that the buyer needs to be more creative,” she says. “Everyone opens presents together and it brings staff who may not work together much closer.”

The company has also had ‘three-minute massage angels’ in its Sydney office, with everyone able to pop over to a common area for a few minutes to have a quick massage.

Competitive spiritHennessy also suggests a festive dessert baking competition. “This will only work if there are enough people who

enjoy baking,” she says. “Any activity needs to fit with the demographic of the office.”

For cost-effective decorations, Yvonne Fitzgerald, business development manager at BI Worldwide’s Sydney office, suggests streamers and simple decorations. “Another way to spice up employees’ desks can be as simple as placing a mini Christmas tree or a mini Santa hat,” she says. Fitzgerald also suggests an office pot-luck lunch.

At Prudential Corporation Asia, Sean Rach, chief marketing officer, says the company has turned the end-of-year office party into a family-friendly children’s celebration.

“Starting around 4pm, parents bring their children to the office and we have a bit of fun with arts and crafts, such as making decorations,” he says. “We also have performers, such as magicians or balloon artists and Cha-Ching cartoons. And if the children (and parents) have been good, a visit by St. Nick to close things out.” n

Party without leaving the desk DIY decorations and more for injecting a festive spirit By Kim Benjamin

T o get staff into the festive mood last year, agency MCI Korea made a slide show featuring e-Christmas cards and photos of memorable moments from throughout the

year. “This created a good mood and required little budget,” says the agency’s manager, Kimberly Kim.

For MCI’s Macau office, getting staff together for a ‘DIY decoration afternoon’ worked wonders from both a bonding point of view and to give individual members a sense of ownership. The office has also

Festive vibeTry creative cupcake baking to spice up office parties