What do when you need a corporate celebration that truly has the ‘wow factor’? You call Bien Venue, of course! When one of our clients in the aviation sector wanted to celebrate a recent success, our own Kimberley Money was on hand to create a one-off weekend spectacular, planning everything down to the last detail.
A corporate celebration and retreat all in one!
The brief was no small order! Our client wanted a location to rival that of their last summer party, which was held at Windsor Castle. Meanwhile, the entertainment had to compete with the fantastic event they’d recently attended in Vienna. Last, but certainly not least, they requested a venue that would provide an exclusive getaway for their CEO and executives, where they could relax completely.
After doing plenty of research, Kimberley found the perfect place to fulfil all expectations; Wilderness Reserve; a stunning 5,000-acre private Suffolk countryside estate complete with luxury cottages, renovated farmhouses and sympathetically converted barns and a grand Georgian manor house at its centre. Hired exclusively for the weekend, this was both the picturesque idyll and party palace that a celebration on this level required.
“Everything from the venue / activity / entertainment / photobooth, etc, was brilliant, some great finds!! A fantastic job all round and an extremely successful event that our staff are still talking about!” Client
Arriving at Wilderness Reserve
“I had arranged everything so that the 46 attendees didn’t know where they were going!” says Kimberley. “They were picked up on a VIP coach, which drove them through the gates and down a serpentine drive, over an ornamental bridge and past Suffolk sheep and up to the main house.”
This perfect setting was a welcome surprise for guests, who were greeted by helpful staff and immediately treated to a barbeque in the beautiful walled garden of the main house. After stomachs were full and welcome drinks finished, it was time to explore the estate! Guests were split into teams and sent on a treasure hunt, cracking cryptic clues around the house and surrounds. True to form for British summertime, the heavens opened, but we at Bien Venue are always prepared and had golf umbrellas on hand.
Behind the scenes
While the guests were running around having fun, our team were all-hands-on-deck in the basement of the main house transforming it from a cinema and games room into a circus big top and casino!
“Kim had a vision of what a dingy basement with snooker table/football table and gym would look like dressed as a circus tent and asked me to trust her – she certainly didn’t disappoint!” client
The team spent the day moving big furniture and art pieces to be replaced with life size circus animal props, two full sized casino tables, fantastic drapery, and – perhaps most importantly for a party – a pop up fully stocked and staffed bar! But this was all yet to come, the evening meal would set the scene for a truly ‘wow’ celebration.
A feast for all the senses!
After retiring to their luxury accommodation to get their glad-rags on, guests were welcomed back to the main house by a fire-breather and stilt-walker from the circus troop who would provide the evening’s entertainment. This was all on the firepit-lit patio where a predinner prosecco and deluxe elderflower fizz reception was held. Happily, the weather had dried up by then!
A ringmaster and two supporting actresses sang beautifully during a delicious three-course silver service dinner in the beautiful orangery, which was dressed to give a hint towards the circus wonderland that was about to unfold before them downstairs in the basement after the meal.
An exclusive evening to remember!
Needless to say, our clients were suitably ‘wowed’ by the basement’s transformation! There were plenty of bespoke touches too, the casino tables were staffed by professional croupiers and guests betted with special made ‘money’, which had the CEO’s face on it! They played and danced the night away, also enjoying the bespoke photobooth where they could take some fun snaps to remember their special evening!
Fantastic feedback
By all accounts, this corporate celebration was a huge success! We love to have feedback from each every one of our clients, but for an event on this scale, and being trusted with such a large budget, it was especially gratifying to see guests respond so positively, both on the day itself and afterwards.
“The feedback has been amazing, and several staff members have mentioned your professionalism on the day, being on hand but not “too in your face”. Secondly, it was great to have you there for the support and to make sure everything was all in place for the evening – how that basement looked in the evening totally exceeded my expectations and I was so happy with it.
I will definitely be in touch next year when we have a new event to organise.” Client
In addition to the benefits of event management and attention to detail, we at Bien Venue were also able to broker an overall saving of 32% due to our established relationships with high-quality suppliers!
Have a big corporate celebration coming up? Want a creative touch and expert management on the day? Give our experts a call on 01625 877776, email us on info@bvevents.co.uk or fill in the contact us form below. We look forward to ‘wowing’ you, too!