Launching an event management company focused on high-end fêtes for the luxury, retail, and fashion industries in the midst of a recession might seem like a questionable decision. But Candice Chan and Alison Slight, who opened Candice&Alison Luxury Event Management in September, say the firm’s name says more about their approach than their clients’ budgets. “We are focused on luxury, but it’s not that we only work with luxury brands. We take our luxury know-how and will help you apply it to your brand,” Chan says.
“We can work with any budget,” adds Slight. “It’s more about the appreciation and the detail and the aesthetic than it is dollars and cents.”
The pair met as students at Ryerson University’s School of Fashion. Chan went on to a career in the retail industry, spending five years as brand manager for retail chain RK, and Slight took her talents to Dubai, where she worked with clients like Christian Dior and Louis Vuitton as general manger of event planning firm Platinum.
"People work with us because we bring chic design to all the events we do,” Chan says. “We do a full 360 design for clients that incorporates every aspect of the event. We do it as if we’re designing a collection. We create a story board with our colours, our inspiration, and how it fits in with current trends and styles.”
The firm handles all other aspects of the planning process, including managing talent, designing invites, handling PR, and keeping a close eye on the local event calendar so they can suggest suitable dates to clients.
Since launching with a circus-themed after-party for designer Lucian Matis during LG Fashion Week, the pair has worked with Penicullus Belum, Basch by Brandon, Nikki Beach, and St. Joseph Media. In May, Candice&Alison collaborated with model Coco Rocha to create Strut for a Cure, a fashion-focused fund-raiser for the Coast to Coast Against Cancer Foundation. The duo also helped Mini Canada launch its new Beachcomber vehicle at the Canadian International Auto Show in February.
“We were inspired by the car so we designed a retro tailgate beach party,” Chan says. They had fashion designer Farley Chatto create custom Mini bikinis, worked with hair and makeup artists to give the models retro looks, brought in a local industrial designer to create miniature boom boxes, and invited five bloggers to promote and cover the event.
Jason Huang, Mini’s operations manager, says the concept hadn’t been determined when the company issued an RFP. “We wanted to create some sort of launch event that would separate us from the crowd,” he said. “They created the environment to represent the theme and present the vehicle in the way we wanted it presented.”