This week's roundup includes curtains made out of shoelaces in Palm Springs, a photo op in a giant gift box in New York, suspended neon Slinkys in Chicago, and an immersive H&M experience in Indio, California.
The first weekend of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival took place April 15 to 17 in Indio, California. For H&M's seventh year as an official festival sponsor, the brand staged its "Reborn" activation to resemble a colorful desert landscape where guests interacted with immersive video seats and created content for social sharing.
Jewelry brand Tiffany & Co. hosted a panel discussion, "Modern Love: The Rules of Engagement," on April 15 at the Academy Mansion in New York. The event featured a giant gift box photo op for panel guests, which included Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt star Ellie Kemper.
The official card of the Golden State Warriors, American Express hosted a live stream of the April 7 Warriors and San Antonio Spurs game in an Imax theatre in Newark, California. In partnership with Bay Area food truck market Off the Grid, the American Express Fan Van—which will be at Off the Grid locations and the Oracle Arena at home games—served as a miniature basketball court for fans, and also offered merchandise and giveaways.
The ninth annual Unicef Hope Gala took place April 9 at the Geraghty in Chicago. The evening had a childlike theme, with decor from Kehoe Designs that included a canopy of suspended neon Slinkys.
For the first weekend of Coachella, Caravents produced PopSugar's weekend-long event programming at the Avalon Palm Springs. In the DSW suite, guests could customize shoes with metallic studs and colorful shoelaces, which hung on a rack nearby in a color-blocked fashion. A curtain, also made of shoelaces, covered the suite's window.
Bonnaroo and Outside Lands producer Superfly hosted its first Cocktail Magic event March 19 at Weylin B. Seymour's in New York. The event's logo was a colorful king, inspired by the king that appears on playing cards. The figure, which was shaking a cocktail and holding a martini, appeared as a giant statue and in signage.
Nonprofit organization Global Inheritance helped keep the festival grounds free from cans and bottles by setting up a recycling store that offered attendees the chance to exchange them for Coachella merchandise and experiences.
To promote its new Artesano bread, Sara Lee hosted a grilled-cheese-theme snow day in Kiwanis Park in Tempe, Arizona, on April 1. The family-friendly event, which marked the start of the unofficial National Grilled Cheese Month, featured a branded ski chalet where chef Justin Beckett cooked grilled cheese sandwiches for guests.
Looking for catering inspiration? Riviera Caterers built a 24-foot-long, 8-foot-high pretzel wall for the launch of the catering and event program at New York’s WTC860—Riviera at the World Trade event space in December 2015. The interactive wall held 600 pretzels of different flavors, including garlic parsley, cheddar, cinnamon, salted, and plain, along with dipping sauces. The setup is customizable and can be converted for a variety of displays such as a salad or bagel bar.
Scoozi Events hosted a media and industry dinner at its Upper West Side space on March 28, in which the caterer served dishes with ingredients usually found in trash. Guests noshed on compost tempura, which consisted of carrot peelings; scallion butts; and beet, fennel, and celery tops.
