Welcome to the Court at Alegría – an evening to most definitely remember.

THE VENUE
One venue meets the criteria of the evening - a new venue hotspot centrally located in the downtown core, and not too far from the BIG TOP.

LUCID
Nestled in downtown Toronto, Lucid is the city’s newest and hottest club. Modeled on Manchester’s own Lucid club, the space unfurls over four floors and includes a 20-metre high atrium, nine bars, plus the latest in sound, lighting and display technology.

THE EVENING
Minutes after the last notes of Alegría have sounded, the Court of Alegría comes alive…

THE ENTRY
Guests arriving at the Celebration discover an extravagant Court at play teeming with things to see, hear, eat and do. Without a King, Alegría’s world has become a festival of wicked delights.

TO SEE
Alegría’s Court is a feast for the eyes. Models dot areas of the venue, draped in the mix of Baroque and Moulin Rouge. Each is dressed in an original ‘look’ including high wig and white pancake makeup, bustier and fishnet stockings. Male models are similarly decked with stylish hair and body-hugging but also revealing outfits. Each has a look all their own, and branded with airbrushed Alegría tatoos As the evening progresses, some of the costumes begin to slip, offering a peek here and there. At one point, an artist begins painting a complete nude, reclining in the public space. Joining the fray is a wandering prophet, a wild-eyed writer who walks the room shouting poetry that becomes increasingly bawdy as the night stretches into early morning. Every Court includes its choice of jesters, and Alegría’s is not different. This room’s jesters may include towering stilt-walkers who stomp throughout the room in a colourful display of height.

TO HEAR
The evening is jolted by Matt C on hand to lord over the Court with European-inspired rave music. Toronto’s house community has been heavily influenced by the talents of this musical pioneer, who has attracted a significant following over more than a decade of work.

TO EAT
The food is equally interesting prepared with a 17th century twist and may include specialties and favorites of the era such as meats & sweets, fritters, nuts, cheeses and fresh fruits displayed and served up in an unusual manner. Prepared by Herbs Catering. Servers elevate the look and feel of Alegría’s Court. They wear a functional edition of the style that coats the room’s models – high hair, sexy dress and pancake makeup identify the look of servers throughout the room.

TO DO
Attendees become participants in the evening with the inclusion of caricature artists, who create custom illustrations and personalized tattoos with a distinct baroque twist.

The ExpoWorld Canada Tradeshows & Exhibitions Directory and the ExpoWorld Canada Exhibition Industry Statistical Report 2005 have recently been released and have uncovered a number of key trends in Canada’s exhibition and event industry. Though the ExpoWorld Canada Directory focuses mainly on the 3300 major business and consumer events taking place across the country in 2005, the research allows for extraction of trends which affect the events industry as a whole.

The trend affecting the entire industry is one that has been affecting the marketing industry as a whole: tangible financial constraints and less tangible time allotment issues. Increasingly, both consumers and businesses are forced to evaluate event participation based on very tight valuation metrics. The question of the day is: “what will my return on investment be for participating in the event.” Businesses ask this question directly when booking a sponsorship or booth presence. Consumers subconsciously make a similar valuation call when purchasing a ticket for an event. Even the business visitor to a tradeshow where attendance is free is confronted with the dilemma: “What will the return be on my precious time invested in attending the function? What will I get out of spending a day at this event.”

This macro trend of cost containment and time allotment has contributed to the growth of the festivals and events segment in general, especially in less traditional, non metropolitan downtown-core areas and even outdoors. While larger trade and consumer show participation remains stable, there is a definite rise in the number of fairs, festivals and other large-scale consumer events taking place year-round. These events are leaving the traditional convention centres and exhibit halls and moving into less traditional venues and even spilling out onto the streets. The reason for this shift is because the costs of participation are lower for both the visitors as well as for the sponsors/vendors. The event planner is able to bring down costs to visitors and attendees significantly because they benefit from the added flexibility enjoyed by working within a venue framework which has low costs and is for the most part new, hungry for business and willing to accommodate. Moreover, the event planner’s skills are fully challenged, utilized and their creative senses are amply stimulated since they are dealing with an environment that requires much more imagination and experience to prepare and control. Many of the surroundings need to be improvised, created and outright tested prior to opening of the event. Forward looking event planners, look at the non-traditional venue as a challenge, as a new frontier to conquer and as an opportunity to build and demonstrate their professionalism in a new manner, even as a way to make a name for themselves.

The movement towards the non-traditional event venue is also more logical from a sheer sociological point of view. Consumers already tend to congregate in the streets, at shopping centres, in community centres and in less formal environments in general. With the time constraints that consumers already have on their time, they have become fickle and are almost asking that the events “come to them”. Truly the events are “coming to them” as opposed to the consumer “having to go to the event.” Approximately 30% of all the events registered in the ExpoWorld Canada database (40% of all registered consumer events) are a fair, festival or outdoor consumer event. It is estimated that in 2005, these events will attract approximately 29,000,000 visitors from coast-to-coast (almost the entire population of the country). Over 97,000 exhibitors/vendors/concession providers will showcase their products and services at these events. These events will account for over 51,000,000 square feet of exhibit/vendor space and over 2,400,000 square feet of conference space. Moreover, these events will account for over 119,000 total hotel room bookings and over 621,000 hotel room night bookings.

This lucrative trend has not gone unnoticed by non-traditional venues. In fact, it has perked the interest and start-up of many new venues and created a rush towards conversion of many forms of underutilized space into “event space”. Following is a list of non-traditional event settings where ExpoWorld Canada has noticed an increase in the number of medium to large size events taking place:

• Community Centres and YMCAs
• Legion Halls and Rotary Clubs
• Shopping Centres
• Outdoor Venues (Streets, Waterfronts, Parks, Fields and other Outdoor Grounds)
• Sports Facilities (Hockey and Curling arenas, fitness clubs)
• Smaller Hotel Venues, Inns and Resorts
• School Gymnasiums, Religious and Retreat Centres

In conclusion, it is difficult to predict how entrenched these trends will become but it is certain that the “events industry” is moving towards more natural settings where consumers tend to naturally aggregate and where costs can be contained. It is a key trend to which every supplier, venue and event planner in the industry needs to adapt. The emphasis in the future is on reaching the visitor / consumer in their “natural habitat” and using creativity to contain costs and providing the visitor and vendor with increasing value in return for their event participation. The entire statistical report is available at www.ExpoWorldCanada.com/Statistics.aspx.

As an event planner, odds are that you’ve created a special niche for your company and along with that, a great reputation with quality clients. You’ve reached a significant plateau, positioning your company where you want it to be. However, recognize this: your clients are becoming tougher, leaner and more effective at juggling several balls on their own. This means that they expect a great deal more from their planners than they would have five years ago. This increase in client expectations signifies a new era in event planning. You must understand your clients’ business in more than a cursory manner: their corporate philosophy, their mission, their specific event business objectives. In essence, your involvement will be evaluated in terms of measurable results.

No matter what your niche is in this diverse industry, it should become your company mandate (if it isn’t already) to become a student of the business and greater community in which you play a part. Your deeper understanding of your clients and environment will position you as a true business partner.

As much as you are scoping out tradeshows, periodicals and catalogues for the newest and greatest event innovations, consider what’s happening at a deeper level in the markets you serve. What is troubling CEO’s, GM’s and Presidents most? Inevitably, what troubles them ends up filtering down to you! Issues like employee morale, increased productivity, international relations, increased competition for the dollar, mergers and restructuring, leadership planning, etc. are just a few of the concerns that underlie your clients’ work every single day. There are some steps you can take to start positioning your company as more than ‘just a supplier’, but also a business partner:

• Take an active role in one of your area’s central business associations such as the Chamber of Commerce. An active role means chairing a committee that deals with vital business issues or even running for a Board participation.
• If you have an educational facility (college or university) in your area that offers business, marketing or events planning education, become involved as an instructor, a speaker, a committee volunteer or advisor.
• Contribute some of your volunteer time to not for profit organizations that will connect you to business leaders. There is volunteer work that you do to give back and there is volunteer work that you do for strategic reasons; this is the latter.
• Contribute an article in your local business magazine or newspaper’s Business Section that addresses business concerns. Also subscribe to the major business periodicals in your local community and greater community (provincial and national).
• If it fits your character and your interests, consider some political affiliations/boards.

The goal of these actions is not just to meet the ‘right people’ and to discover event opportunities; that will occur by default. By pursuing these actions, you are a) elevating your profile in the community as a significant contributor and business player, b) becoming a reliable authority in areas of business and c) are working alongside forerunning businesses, gaining insights you might not otherwise realize. These actions position you and, more importantly, equip you to meet your clients’ deepening expectations.

In our next article, we will talk about ideas on how you can relate to other pillars in your external environment (suppliers, partners, community at large) in order to continue this positioning. And finally, in our third article, we’ll get down to business – your business of events planning – and talk about how you can approach client relationships and events to reflect your role as a much valued business partner.

Event Planners: welcome to the next generation.