Most of us have been in a post-5 p.m. happy hour over Zoom with our remote teams and—let’s face it—bored. It’s as if you could hear “womp womp” in the effort to team build, but for Kevin Hubschmann, he refers to those snoozy moments as his “aha” moment.
Kevin HubschmannPhoto: Courtesy of Laugh.Events
Fittingly, to appeal to the corporate teams that are otherwise known for buttoned up, collared shirts; not-so-exciting team-building activities; and dealing with SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS (Software, Platform, and Infrastructure as a Service) all day, Hubschmann founded a company that he said offers LaaS—Laughter as a Service—and called it Laugh.Events (pronounced “Laugh Dot Events”).
The first show was in May 2019—and we know what you’re thinking, perfect timing for virtual events, right? But Laugh.Events was not originally intended to function as an online stage. However, following an initial string of 10 comedy shows pre-COVID with “no amateurs, an all-star lineup of comedians, and 200-plus people in the room,” Hubschmann knew a successful business model was on the horizon. Not long later, the country was pandemic-stricken and “tighter than Santana’s guitar string” he quipped, which is when he really knew that people “were desperate to laugh.”
But by May 2020, Laugh.Events was entering an over-saturated market of virtual comedy shows, “so we needed to differentiate ourselves,” Hubschmann said. Why not improve his own shows at the same time? So, “we started to survey attendees ahead of the event and made the shows one-part stand-up comedy and one-part interactive experience where we incorporated fun facts about attendees to maximize engagement”—all with “the best comedians in NYC.”
Following two years of hosting hundreds of virtual comedy shows tailored to corporate groups, Laugh.Events started hosting IRL experiences, including improv workshops and educational keynotes on the science of laughter.Photo: Courtesy of Laugh.Events
Hubschmann noted how entering corporate environments presented some unique changes, such as the lack of hecklers that notoriously rattle the pros’ bits in favor of “employees that needed to be on their best behavior for the show and could not heckle or be disruptive or else they would have to face their HR department for ruining a company-sponsored event.”
Hubschmann recalled one improv workshop where "magic happened" and "the individuals were having what I could only describe as 'adult recess full of make believe.'"Photo: Courtesy of Laugh.Events
“But corporate Zooms were still brutal for some comics,” Hubschmann noted, “so we decided to run a tight ship. We would only pair a comedian if they fit the demographic of the audience that requested a Laugh.Events show.” Hubschmann attributed the wide-ranging demographic he sees in his customers to the large Rolodex of comedians he has. “We have 12 different segments and 50-plus different comedians,” he said.
In June 2021, “once it was deemed safe to throw an in-person show, we went for it.” Hubschmann rebranded the original public show from May of 2019 to “Laugh.Events NSFW” (Not Safe For Work). All proceeds benefited The Cute Syndrome Foundation—which funds research for the rare disorder SCN8A—and the lineup was “stacked,” Hubschmann said, with the likes of famed comedians Jessica Kirson, Jared Freid, Ian Lara, Harrison Greenbaum, Stavros Halkias, and Ronny Chieng.
And in 2022, to keep corporate groups engaged, there’s also now IRL Laughs (IRLL), which brings curated comedy shows from Zoom to, well, real life. Groups can also incorporate add-ons like improv workshops and educational keynotes on the science of laughter.
Today, Hubschmann is hosting up to 30 corporate events in a week during peak season. He also prioritizes data and pre- and post-event surveys to ensure Laugh.Events is staying relevant for groups.Photo: Courtesy of Laugh.Events
When asked about the most memorable corporate event to date, Hubschmann said there’s been more than 400 Laugh.Events corporate events, but recalled an off-site comedic experience he put on for a previous employer of his—event marketing platform Splash—as a standout.
“At first, I had my concerns—this group was very shy and few of them had even met or seen each other in two years,” he said. But following a NSFW comedy show held in Splash’s offices and an improv workshop for professional development specifically designed for its support and engineering teams, “magic happened,” Hubschmann explained.
He continued: “The individuals were having what I could only describe as ‘adult recess full of make-believe.’ Laughter filled the room and for the first time in our company’s history, it wasn’t because of stand-up comedians—it was because of the employees themselves. We were facilitating silliness and play, and the laughter that filled the room created a connection that would last well beyond the session. The best part: No one was trying to make a funny joke or ‘be funny,’ they were just being themselves and what followed was a ton of laughter.”
Today, Hubschmann is hosting up to 30 corporate events in a week during peak season. Event offerings now span Laughing and Bonding, which incorporates a pre-event survey and results in a personalized comedy show; Sit Back and Laugh, like a traditional comedy show made clean for corporate environments; and Improv Workshops where participants will explore the skills that help improvisers succeed and learn how that translates to skills in the workplace.
Looking into 2023 and beyond, Hubschmann teased the launch of Laugh Breaks, “which are short 15-minute comedy shows so companies can stop ‘carving out’ moments to laugh during the workday and [instead] start ‘carving in.’” Comedy buffs can also look forward to DEI-focused events “featuring comedians with unique backgrounds and perspectives,” as well as season passes to Laugh.Events’ NSFW events for those looking to become a “Very Important Laugher.”
In 2023, comedy buffs can look forward to the launch of season passes for Laugh.Events' NSFW comedy shows where, upon purchase, customers become a "Very Important Laugher."Photo: Courtesy of Laugh.Events
Learn more in this rapid-fire Q&A with Hubschmann:
What would you consider Laugh.Events’ greatest success to be thus far?
Making virtual corporate comedy events wildly entertaining.
What about the greatest challenge?
Making virtual corporate comedy events wildly entertaining.
What advice would you give the version of yourself just launching Laugh.Events?
Good or bad, every event is a learning opportunity.
What about to fellow business owners?
“‘Think different,’ (said) Steve Jobs, (said) Kevin Hubschmann.”
