With the Fourth of July weekend coming up and summer party season in full swing, luxury-wedding business summit Engage!16 offered up lots of creative ideas for tropical-theme parties and outdoor events.
Held from June 12 to 15 at the Breakers Palm Beach, Engage!16 The Breakers brought together wedding and event professionals for a three-day conference, which was produced by Rebecca Grinnals and Kathryn Arce of Celebration, Florida-based Engaging Concepts.
Inspired by the resort setting, Grinnals and Arce collaborated with longtime partners Gifts for the Good Life to create a chic oasis. As part of the event’s overall branding, the Roseto, Pennsylvania-based design team reconstructed the iconic symbols of Palm Beach—pineapples, palms, waves, and the sun—into Matisse-like paper cut-outs that were incorporated throughout the decor, gifting, signage, fabrics, dance floors, menus, agendas, and more. The designs were also carried over into watercolor patterns.
Since this was the third Engage! summit hosted by the Breakers Palm Beach, Heather Arak-Kanosfky, chief creative officer for Gifts for the Good Life, explained that "attendees' expectations were high and it was important to reinvent and raise the bar in all aspects."
To that end, organizers introduced several new elements this year, including a pop-up "boutiquerie." "In an effort to shake things up and elongate the welcome touchpoint, [Engaging Concepts and Gifts for the Good Life] decided to create a luxury experience around the welcome gifts," said Arak-Kanosfky. Guests could shop and connect with other attendees while creating their own personalized swag bags.
The design’s ombre palette featured sunset-inspired colors from blush to pink grapefruit to coral with touches of metallic gold. Arak-Kanosfky explained that attendees “love to dress ‘in palette’ so it is important that we introduce the color themes early via the app and mailers.”
The 300-plus crowd attended daily speaker and panel sessions with industry experts—such as keynote speaker author Gretchen Rubin and wedding planner Mindy Weiss—along with networking activities and parties.
[Disclosure: BizBash C.E.O. and founder David Adler was also a speaker at the conference.]
