The Mandarin Oriental Washington, D.C. named Alexander Schnoeller director of food and beverage in mid-September. Schnoeller has been at the Mandarin Oriental since April 2005, where he most recently served as assistant director of food and beverage.
The Fairmont Washington, D.C. promoted Noelle Hughes to group sales manager in mid-September. Hughes has been working in the group sales department of the hotel for seven months, before which she planned meetings at the Association for Financial Professionals in Bethesda. She replaces former group sales manager Sean McDonough, whose hiring we covered in June.
In late August, Hilton Hotels Corporation named Larry Luteran senior vice president of group sales and industry relations. He now oversees group bookings for Hilton Sales Worldwide in the United States and is based in Gaithersburg, Maryland.
The "Dare to Dream" gala Photo: Gregory David Photography
The Dyslexic Dreams Foundation held its first benefit Monday night at the Mandarin Oriental, in partnership with the Merritt Dyslexia Education Center in Eldersburg, Maryland. To make an impression with what she plans to be an annual event, foundation founder and president Jami Schwartz wanted the “Dare to Dream" gala to stand out from the lineup of standard benefits.
“The people we hired for the event were all asked to think outside of the box,” said Schwartz. So the Mandarin offered five-spice-marinated duck with smoked kumara hash and tangerine-cardamom creme brulée for the gala's 250 guests, instead of the typical beef and crabcake entrées. To keep with the exotic theme, En Masse created inverted arrangements where yellow, orange, and white orchids and calla lilies hung from six-foot-tall bamboo armatures at the center of each table.
Models at the Calvin Klein launch Photo: Courtesy of Overcat Communications
FROM TORONTO When Coty Canada began planning Tuesday's media launch for the new Calvin Klein fragrance Secret Obsession, the company wanted to create a sense of mystery and suspense for guests. “Since the name of the product is Secret Obsession, we wanted to invite all of the media members and really not reveal where they were going," said Aliki Mahshy, director of public relations and education for Coty Canada. So the company arranged for private cars to pick up guests and drive them to a location that remained "undisclosed," Mahshy said.
Guests were dropped at the shipping entrance to a downtown building and taken through a subterranean tunnel of sorts to enter the event space, the the bank vault in the basement of the Suites at 1 King West. (The building, now a hotel, once housed the head office of the Dominion Bank of Canada.) “This location was so indicative of Secret Obsession. When we found this it was extremely intriguing to us. There’s a lot of caged elements and the idea or concept of unlocking something. It was really very fitting for this particular brand," Mahshy said.
Meeting Professionals International (MPI) announced yesterday the host cities for four of its upcoming conferences. The 24,000-member group’s largest annual gathering, the World Education Conference, will head to Orlando, Florida, from July 23 to 26, 2011; to St. Louis from July 28 to 31, 2012; and to Las Vegas from July 20 to 23, 2013. (The 2009 and 2010 incarnations are set take place July 11 to 14 in Salt Lake City and July 24 to 27 in Vancouver, British Columbia, respectively.)
MPI also holds an annual MeetDifferent conference, which focuses on innovative meeting design, alternative learning strategies, and new technology. The 2009 event is planned for February 7 to 10 in Atlanta, and the organization also announced yesterday that the 2010 conference will take place in Cancun, Mexico, February 20 to 23. —Claire Hoffman
FDCC president Robin Kay Photo: Courtesy of the Fashion Design Council of Canada
FROM TORONTO The Fashion Design Council of Canada (FDCC), which launched L'Oréal Fashion Week eight years ago, is set to present the spring 2009 collections from October 20 through 25 in the tents at Nathan Phillips Square. This season's shows, being held over six days, will be Toronto's biggest presentation yet.
"It’s growing in every way—in awareness and attendance, in designers and sponsorship," said FDCC president Robin Kay, who noted that more than 35 sponsors have signed on to support Fashion Week, during which more than 70 designers will showcase their work in 38 shows on two runways (a first for L'Oréal Fashion Week). We asked Kay how the event has evolved and how she envisions its future.
You have implemented some major changes within the past year. What's your goal?
To be a really great Fashion Week that designers want to come to and show at and sell product. Fashion Week is a calling card for the industry, for designers to sell clothes, for reporters and writers and photographers, and retailers and buyers. It’s a huge, huge industry that was absent in Canada…I came to realize it because I was a designer, and when I stopped and looked up and saw there was nothing happening in this country, I really thought a Fashion Week would be the best attention grabber. It’s been inspirational for the city. It’s wonderful to link art and commerce, to link sponsors with the event and to build our country’s fashion economy. That’s what’s exciting for me.
A ballroom at the new Hilton Baltimore Photo: Courtesy of Hilton Baltimore
Located approximately 40 miles from the district, the Hilton Baltimore held its grand opening last Thursday. With a construction bill of $300 million, the 883,000-square-foot property features 757 guest rooms and 60,000 square feet of event space, including two ballrooms named after well-known Baltimoreans. The 25,000-square-foot Francis Scott Key ballroom has intertwining glass ceiling panels and movable blocks that serve as podiums or small stages, while the 15,000-square-foot Billie Holiday ballroom features ceiling light fixtures that mimic constellations.
There are also 26 breakout rooms that can accommodate between 50 and 150 people, as well as an outdoor terrace for 75. Diamond Tavern, the property's restaurant, seats 220 inside and an an additional 95 on the outdoor patio. An on-site perk for convention-goers: A fully enclosed pedestrian walkway runs through the center of the Hilton to the Baltimore Convention Center.
The "Recycle Denim Maniacs" fashion show Photo: Dakota Fine
On Friday evening the House of Sweden played host to more than 300 guests for "Recycle Denim Maniacs," a fashion show featuring eco-friendly designs made with a reduced carbon footprint. The event was a collaboration between Sweden’s Nudie Jeans (a company committed to the organic manufacture of clothing) and human rights organization Amnesty International. The efforts culminated in a runway show, which capped off Thursday's seminar featuring some of Sweden’s ambassadors of fashion, sustainability, and corporate social responsibility.
“This event focuses on young Swedish artists and approaches fashion holistically, from the cultural, trade, and humane aspects of clothing,” said Mats Widbom, the Embassy of Sweden's cultural counselor.
Thermador's cooking contest-style press event Photo: Jessica Torossian for BizBash
FROM NEW YORK With the ongoing popularity of Food Network cooking shows and reality TV series Top Chef, more and more chefs are coming out of the kitchen and into the spotlight—especially at events. Yesterday, Thermador played up this trend by presenting three New York culinary personalities in a cooking show-style format as a vehicle to promote its latest cooktops. Dubbed the Thermador Chefs Challenge, the event at the Altman Building involved two sessions—one in the afternoon and another in the evening—for more than 300 journalists and interior designers.
Hosted by chef and restaurateur Tom Colicchio, the challenge pitted chefs Michael Psilakis (of Anthos) and Alex Guarnaschelli (of Butter) against each other in a 15-minute cook-off involving chocolate. Although no winner was declared and the focus was more on the new technology than the chefs's performances, guests were able to sample the dishes and see the appliances in action. The event was overseen by Thermador PR manager Marni Hale and marketing agency the Rogers Group.
Treats from Hello Cupcake. Photo: Courtesy of Hello Cupcake
Washington's cupcake options just keep growing. Hello Cupcake, a new cupcake-centric bakery, recently opened in Dupont Circle, offering a rotating menu of baked goods. Owner and executive chef Penny Karas makes at least 14 cake flavors a day and several different frostings, from buttercream to Swiss meringue. Flavors include You Tart (lemon cake with lemon cream cheese frosting), Maya Favorite (cinnamon-chocolate cake with chile-chocolate ganache), and Vanilla Gorilla (banana cake with vanilla cream cheese frosting). The shop, designed by Karas’s husband, architect Bill Bonstra, offers indoor and outdoor seating and baking classes for groups of as many as 12. Karas also takes custom orders and can provide cupcakes for events; delivery is in the works and expected to be available by the holidays. —Lisa Cericola
A customizable note card from She She Impressions. Photo: Courtesy of She She Impressions
FROM TORONTO She She Impressions is a Toronto-based company that sells a variety of stamp designs, note cards, and a selection of coloured inks through its online store. The company, launched earlier this year by longtime friends Martha Digby Boyle and Leslie White, designs personalized name and address stamps and has just begun offering a new product called My Logo Stamp, which is suitable for corporate clients. With a black and white copy of a logo—in either a jpeg or pdf format—the company can create a custom self-inking stamp to be used as a seal on envelopes or featured on one of its 15 note card designs. The front of each card has a circular cut-out to accommodate the stamped design. The stamps, which can be shipped throughout North America, retail for $49.99 and will last for as many as 10,000 impressions. —Susan O'Neill
