Christmas Parties – Are Themes a Thing of the Past?
Have extravagant Christmas party themes had their heyday?
The Christmas party is important to everyone, but the pressure to beat the previous year’s celebrations always hangs on the head of the event organiser. Last year however, I found a lot of clients were yearning for a simple, traditional Christmas theme. They were sick of the excessive and unnecessary theming added into packages or venues that are beautiful just as they are. They believed that the Christmas party is more about quality of food, wine, service and venue.
I took to our LOVES group on LinkedIn to see whether other events professionals had had the same experience.
“The more traditional offerings are more popular on the site, with the high-end venues deciding that less is more.”
Russell Bailey
Sales Manager at View
“I believe in letting the venue speak for itself, with additional lighting and added extras as the icing on the cake. Sometimes the simpler ideas are the best.”
Charlotte Edwards
Sales and Events Executive at The Royal College of Surgeons
“The theme is a “nice-to-have” — it may give a few minutes of wow at the beginning of the party, but clients want to ensure all the other boxes are ticked before they worry about things like table centres and what colour lighting they will have.”
Natalie Mainwaring
Events Creative Director at Ampersand
“Traditional events are a lot more popular. Themed events are not in high demand when where can i buy lorazepam online budgets are tight.”
Matthew Bruce
Business Development Executive at phr}
A traditional Christmas Party package wouldn’t work at our venue. We know that the animals are what make clients book our venue, and we couldn’t sell a package that didn’t include an animal theme.
Kate Gibson
Sales Manager – Events & Hospitality at ZSL London Zoo
Jessica’s Conclusion
To theme or not to theme, that is the question!
My colleagues and suppliers have definitely shown me that a theme can work fantastically in a large blank canvas space. If you’re rocking a warehouse or need to dress a venue that can host a large number of guests, a theme can be the star on your Christmas tree!
On the other hand, smaller, historical venues already have the atmosphere built in. Maybe it’s their size or perhaps it is more to do with the sense of history within. As soon as you walk in, you feel the inviting and festive sense of warmth, so why would you want to cover this with a theme?
I’m lucky enough to work with historic venues in the City and West End, and for us, keeping our Christmas parties classic is a must. With exceptional catering from Ampersand and Chester Boyd we place the emphasis on our fantastic food and drink and the magic of the venue itself.
