The Fragrance Foundation’s 37th annual Fifi Awards returned with a new venue and format last night. Although not particularly visible to the average guest’s eye, the event was smaller this year, and received the kind of budget-trimming treatments many planners in today’s economic climate are tasked with finding.
“People aren’t spending the money right now, and we as an industry are reflective of that,” said Fragrance Foundation president Rochelle Bloom, noting that this year’s attendance was down 25 percent. “If I were to match my guest list from last year, everyone is still here, just not in as big of a way. So we scaled back, too. We understand that we need to send a message saying, ‘We get it.’”
In doing so, the Fifis moved from the Seventh Regiment Armory to the smaller 69th Regiment Armory and combined what was previously a two-part party into one continuous evening. Produced by Karen Dalzell of Dalzell Productions, the event brought back the lounge concept it debuted in 2007 and repeated last year—using more casual seating areas instead of formal dining tables—but rather than separate the award and dinner portions of the evening as in the past, Dalzell opted to combine the two, so guests watched the awards from their lounge areas.
“Why did we do that? Budgets,” said Dalzell. “This format fit better with the [smaller] venue, and it fit better with the budget. Yes, the economy has affected our budget in a completely dramatic way, but we’re forging ahead and meeting all of our financial objectives—which are to stay within budget so that we can bring in the amount of money the foundation needs to continue on.”
Combining the two portions also solved another problem—feeding 750 guests. "We got a few complaints last year that the guests were hungry during the awards," said Bloom. "So we said, why don't we have people sit in their lounges and we'll offer food so they're not starving? That way, they can relax and watch the show." Red carpet arrivals by the likes of honorees Marc Jacobs and Paris Hilton kicked off at 6 p.m., and the surprisingly punctual award presentation followed, running just a few minutes behind at 7 p.m. During the hourlong show, guests munched on buffet-style appetizers such as tangy edamame and crispy cauliflower from Great Performances.
Other budget-minded tactics Dalzell employed included working with Great Performances to create non-wasteful menus (hence the buffets of small bites), and forgoing a headliner like John Legend, who graced the Fifi stage in 2007. "Performers require extensive backline," said Dalzell. "They’re willing to perform for free, but their bands can’t. Unless we can literally do it for free, it doesn’t make sense." Added Bloom, "When we got John Legend, who's extraordinary, no one listened to him. This is a meet-and-greet event, no one can get enough of each other. We can't get much better than John. If our audience doesn't respond to him, they won't respond to anybody."
Similar to last year, industry top dogs—among them Coty, International Flavors and Fragrances (I.F.F.), and Givaudan—sponsored the party's five customizable "deluxe lounges," with room for 25 guests and a private bar. (I.F.F. opted for tufted couches; Fragrance Resources chose long banks of charcoal leather couches.) There were also 16 "luxury" and 16 "leisure" lounges, which held roughly 10 people each and, depending on their location in the room, cost between $25,000 and $44,000. Beyond that, single-ticket holders—mostly press and editors from magazines such as GQ and Elle who didn't want to shell out for an entire lounge—paid between $1,500 and $2,000 and were seated at communal tables lining the back of the massive space.
As with most industry functions, the event became a veritable schmooze fest following the awards, when the likes of Dustin Hoffman, Queen Latifah, and Mary J. Blige networked with fragrance industry executives.
