FRESH FACE
New Caterers Offer Sustainable Food, Hands-On Service
Michael Steifman and Kaegan Welch Photo: Vincent Dilio for BizBash
Throughout their careers, Michael Steifman and Kaegan Welch experienced different sides of the catering business. After graduating from the French Culinary Institute, Steifman was the kitchen, operations, and beverage manager for Olivier Cheng Catering and Events . Meanwhile Welch, who also trained at F.C.I., worked as a chef for his own private dining company and at restaurants in Austin, Texas; Portland, Oregon; and New York, including Bouchon Bakery, before joining Olivier Cheng, too. In spite of their different skill sets, the men shared a distaste for the amount of waste generated at events. Looking for a way to be socially responsible and gain more creative and personal freedom, the two formed full-service catering company Stuart & Welch in January.
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Max Mara , Stella McCartney , Bank of Montreal , Practical Law Company
THE SCOUT
50 Budget-Friendly Ideas for Holiday Parties: Food, Gifts, Decor, and More
MoMA's pop-up centerpiece Photo: Courtesy of MoMA Design Store
1-3. Skip cupcakes for a fresh, high-quality sheet cake. Bleeding Heart Bakery in Chicago makes spice cake with apples, brown sugar frosting, and streusel; a half-sheet for $130 feeds 45. Mäni’s Bakery in Los Angeles makes an organic carrot-raisin cake, which costs $160 for a half-sheet and serves 65. Miami’s Yummy Cakes and More can make its chocolate explosion cake, with a half-sheet (enough for 65 guests) starting at $65.Cool Shooter shot mold , available for $12.95 each. Broadway Party Rentals in New York, which rents for $30 and up. Or, to dress up a plain bin and keep things cool, Classic Party Rentals provides the 6 Velon chilling wrap (prices vary).
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Corporate Holiday Parties , iStar Financial , Paul Wilmot Communications , The Economist
THE SCOUT
Cort's New Line of Glowing LED Furniture
Cort's Luna Lighting collection Photo: Courtesy of Cort Event Furnishings
Cort Event Furnishings recently launched a new line of LED furniture called the Luna Lighting collection. Rental items include bars, bar-height tables, and pedestals that are lit from within by battery-operated LEDs that last up to eight hours. The lights come in eight colors (red, white, blue, green, yellow, orange, pink, and purple), and can be programmed to illuminate the pieces in a solid hue, or fade or flash from color to color. Brushed stainless steel tabletops and frames give the collection a polished look and help make the pieces sturdier. The modular design of the collection offers flexibility as well. The bar can be configured in circular, serpentine, or perpendicular shapes. Pedestals can be turned into tables with round or rectangular tabletops, and can also be connected to create glowing columns. The pieces are available throughout the U.S. and the company will deliver to Canada, depending on the size of the order. Prices range from $56 to $600. —Lisa Cericola
THE SCOUT
6 New Products Spotted at the BizBash New York Expo
Cloth Connection's new overlay Photo: BizBash
More than 200 exhibitors displayed a range of products and services for events at the BizBash Expo at the Javits Center on Wednesday. Here are some new items that caught our attention on the bustling trade show floor.Cloth Connection just released a line of overlays called the Artistic Braided collection. The sparkly linens are available in an array of colors, including gold, silver, black, copper, red, turquoise, and purple. The linens are available throughout the U.S. and pricing varies, as the overlays are created to order.
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Bizbash New York Expo
THE SCOUT
New Company Offers Affordable Video for Events or Web Sites
Video stills from Your Story Everywhere projects Photo: Your Story Everywhere
Recently launched video production company Your Story Everywhere specializes in affordable minute-long films for Web sites, whether viral marketing campaigns or informative documentary-style pieces. The Columbus, Ohio-based company can also handle longer projects like tribute videos or footage for award shows, which are available on DVD. For short films, typically the time from shoot to finished video is approximately 14 days. The company sends clients periodic updates as a film is being edited so they can follow the video's progress and request changes. Unlike other video production companies, prices for projects are deteremined by the length of the video. A fully produced and edited 60-second video is $1,000, a 90-second video is $2,000, and a 120-second piece is $3,000. Longer videos are priced on request. Travel costs and a la carte options like high-definition cameras and motion graphics are additional. —Lisa Cericola
INFLUENCES
National Design Week Explores the Handmade and High Tech
Stefan Sagmeister's "Good" is part of the "Design USA" exhibit. Photo: Stefan Sagmeister
The Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum kicks off National Design Week on Sunday, honoring the innovative work of firms and individuals in fields including architecture, interior design, communication design, fashion, and landscape design. While this year's recipients are celebrated with a gala on October 22, the exhibit "Design USA: Contemporary Innovation" will display the work of more than 75 past award winners, with work from figures such as Tom Ford to products from Tupperware. Exploring the past 10 years of award winners, the show places an emphasis on the renewed interest in craft, new materials, and technological influences on design.MORE >>
THE SCOUT
A Photo Booth That Can Capture the Whole Party
The Boothomatic mobile photography unit Photo: Courtesy of Boothomatic
Photo booths are fun, but usually they stay in one place at the party. Now Brooklyn-based Boothomatic rents a mobile photography unit. The slender six-foot-tall module is crafted out of whitewashed or natural bamboo, and can be easily wheeled around so guests can pose, dance, or jump in front of a desired spot; a handheld wireless trigger activates the camera. Portraits can be viewed immediately on a high resolution LCD screen at the back of the booth. The unit takes high-quality images, in black-and-white or color, and has a light source built in. Images are supplied to the host on a Web gallery after the event.—Mark Mavrigian
THE SCOUT
Budget-Friendly Invitation Makeovers
Kira Evans Design's 2008 and 2009 invitations for an ERA Real Estate event Photos: Courtesy of Kira Evans Design
ERA Real Estate's Leadership Team Awards The Parsippany, New Jersey-based company holds an annual dinner for its employees. Last year, Los Angeles-based Kira Evans Design created an Art Deco-inspired invitation with heavy silver foils and an embossed logo.2009: ERA scaled back and went with a rain-forest theme, which allowed Evans to use nature photography to create an invitation for one-third of the price. Four-color printing also reduced production costs, but still resulted in a high-impact look.
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Invitations
THE SCOUT
A New, Attention-Getting Format for Meetings and Presentations
"The Morning Show With Scott Bloom" Photo: Scott Janelli
Looking for a way to spice up a conference presentation or sales meeting? "The Morning Show With Scott Bloom" is a new talk show-style format for business meetings. Hosted by Scott Bloom , a Los Angeles-based M.C. and moderator with 15 years of experience, the program is customized to fit each client's needs. Bloom can host a scripted question-and-answer session with a C.E.O. or presenter or act as a moderator or an M.C., moving speakers from topic to topic. Bloom can also provide introductions and banter to warm up an audience, then turn over the stage to the presenter. Because staging and audiovisual needs are minimal, "The Morning Show" can take place in venues ranging from hotel ballrooms to large conference rooms. A riser and two stools are ideal, but some companies may opt for more elaborate settings with pipe and drape and branded graphics. Planners can provide their own backdrop or have Bloom's team source items for an additional fee. Pricing starts at $13,500, which includes a customized program as well as Bloom's hosting duties. Travel costs are additional. —Lisa Cericola
READERS' FORUM
What's the Weirdest Request You've Heard From a Guest?
Jack Morton Worldwide's Sarah Shulman
“For a corporate event, one of the big shots wanted to know what hotels in Chicago would let him bring a skunk, because he wouldn’t go anywhere without his pet. Someone in our office was able to find a bed-and-breakfast that agreed to make arrangements for him.”Katherine Parris, Events by Parris , Toronto Sarah Shulman, director of program management, Jack Morton Worldwide , New York Amanda M. Burks, manager of corporate relations and special events, Dayton Art Institute, Dayton, Ohio
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