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The last minute Christmas party is often the best

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 00:00:00 +0100

It’s early December and you've realised that no-one has arranged this year’s Christmas Party. All eyes fall on you, but panic not. Even though Christmas is just around the corner, there is still time! Whether it’s a work function, something for a club or group of friends, you can still pull off a great night out.

Budget and venue

Some people might want a cheap and cheerful few drinks and perhaps a buffet. Others might be a fan of a full-on sit down meal in a private function venue. You will never please everyone so try and strike the right balance between what people would like to do. Remember though, the more extravagant, the more expensive.

Bars and restaurants are all desperate for a slice of the Christmas party market, so there’ll be no shortage of availability, even if you have to look around for the date you want or even be slightly flexible on dates. You may even pick up a great deal.

When are you having it?

Try and work out when the most people will be available. But don’t forget, it’s getting late in the day; so you might need to be driven by what’s available rather than by what date.

Many companies, particularly those who have a busy Christmas period, opt to have their Christmas party in January. This can be particularly effective for brightening up those long January days!

Who is invited?

The people make the party, so decide early in the planning process and make sure everyone knows what’s happening.

Try something different?

Depending on numbers, you might like to give something different a try. A group visit to a comedy club for example, or perhaps go karting? It might be something that appeals to people, so ask around.

Don’t Panic

There are plenty of options out there and as a rule, most people will be happy with whatever you arrange. Just enjoy yourself!

Do you favour the ‘last minute.com’ approach to parties, or do you plan your party to perfection early doors?

Let us know your preferred approach and if it works for you?

For information on parties and celebrations at Stoneleigh Park, contact Stoneleigh Events on 0844 847 6685.

Is it possible to host the perfect event?

Mon, 07 Nov 2011 00:00:00 +0100

Hosting an event can be a major headache and this led us to conduct some in depth research to uncover what criteria make a business exhibition, show or seminar a success. From boredom thresholds to quality of food served, we left no stone unturned.

Of the 1,000 event-goers surveyed we found some interesting answers:

34 per cent are willing to travel for over two hours to attend an event
for the event itself, it’s a case of quality over quantity as the boredom threshold is between 1-2 hours with only nine per cent wanting to be at an event for over five hours.
As a nation we attend seven events each year on average and we fork out around £85 for each one including entry ticket, food and purchases
a third of event-goers are willing to pay up to £25 to attend an event whilst a surprising one in 10 of us will pay over £100 for the pleasure

the standard of food served at events was a major beef, with around a third (33 per cent) complaining about its quality

This, and the fact that around 12,000 events are planned to be held in the UK in 2012, clearly highlights that there is still a lucrative market for businesses willing to invest in events. Therefore, the emphasis on getting it right has never been so important.

Our research highlights, therefore, that the following variables need particular consideration when planning the perfect event.

Quality of food
Boredom thresholds
Value for money
Helpfulness of staff
Travel times
On site organisation

In an economic climate where budgets are being scrutinised more than ever, this insight is designed to help businesses who want to inject a high level of quality into their current events programme or
even to tap into a new sector.

Tailoring is a key element in hosting high quality events. Knowing your audience and what makes them tick is crucial.

Therefore, if an organisation can create the optimum experience for their particular segment and take into account the above factors they have a very good chance of hosting the perfect event.

Welcome to Stoneleigh Park's new-look web site!

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 00:00:00 +0100

Targeted at event organisers, businesses and individuals alike, our new web site aims to provide up to date information on Stoneleigh Park and what’s happening on-site.

We want to provide useful, real time information to aid your decision on where to hold your event, make it easy for people to come and see us and keep you up to date with the latest news, tips and thinking.

You will see we have recently conducted a survey into what makes ‘the perfect event’ with some interesting findings, and we will be polling more opinions on other event-related subjects in the future.

If you would like to know who we’ve worked with in the past and what they thought, take a look at our [customer testimonials] page.

We sincerely hope you will find our new web site full of useful, interesting and informative content.

...And if there is anything we’ve missed that you would like to see on our site, just let us know.

The team at Stoneleigh Park