Nearly 1,500 event and meeting professionals came for inspiration and education at BizBash Live: Los Angeles, held July 19 at the California Market Center. The 11th edition of the show featured speakers such as celebrity event designer Sharon Sacks and Variety’s Dea Lawrence, as well as a morning workshop series and an exhibit hall filled with new products, services, entertainment, and teambuilding ideas. Here’s a look at the colorful, useful, and unusual offerings that caught our eye.
Furniture rental company FWR Rental Haus’s colorful Mission chairs provide a festive option for summer events. The lightweight chairs come in 18 different colors, including black, blue, bronze, green, grey, orange, pink, white, and yellow. The Las Vegas-based rental company can also provide tables, lighting solutions, rugs, walls, sofas, decorative pieces, and more; many products can be customized. FWR ships nationwide, and prices are available upon request.
Orange County, California-based company Balloonzilla creates custom balloon art for events, including balloon arches, bouquets, structures, walls, and more. The company’s designers work with planners to create designs and installations for each event, such as the larger-than-life balloon canopy and step-and-repeat that greeted guests at the BizBash show’s event registration area (pictured). The company also offers do-it-yourself kits and helium tanks for rent. Balloonzilla regularly plans events in Orange County and Los Angeles county and can travel nationwide for larger events; prices vary depending on the design and the event’s location.
SuperCool Creamery specializes in frozen desserts, cocktails, and treats prepared on the spot—with an entertaining twist. A team of “Taste Technicians” uses liquid nitrogen to make flash-frozen ice cream right in front of guests. When the nitrogen is poured over ice cream or cocktail products, evaporation causes a crowd-pleasing cloud of smoke. Ice cream comes in more than 40 different flavors, and a variety of custom cocktails are also available. The company can cater events throughout the Los Angeles area. At BizBash Live, SuperCool Creamery was part of AFR Event Furnishings' booth. The furniture and accessories company rents items for special events in major cities across the United States.
Las Vegas-based entertainment design and production company Champagne Creative Group specializes in surprise-and-delight event moments featuring costumed staff. A summery, Instagram-friendly option for events is the bicycle buffet, which provides a roaming food and beverage station for events. Models’ attire can be customized based on an event’s color and theme; pricing for the bicycle buffet starts at $1,800 for two hours in California (prices may vary for events in other locations). Other creative serving options include the Strolling Carousel Buffet, the Champagne and Dessert Diva Dress, Living Topiary Greeters, LED Robot Greeters, and more options incorporating models. Logo branding is available for an extra fee on all items.
Think beyond the photo booth with Selfiebooth.com’s Boomerang Array: 11 DSLR cameras that fire simultaneously, capturing the scene from 11 separate angles to produce an animated GIF. When the images are played in succession, the resulting GIF appears to fly back and forth around the subject. Images can then be shared via text message, email, or social media; the center camera in the array also produces a high-resolution print with a custom branded overlay. SelfieBooth.com's products can be custom-wrapped with full-color logos, hashtags, and other graphics, and the company has graphic designers on call to help with designs. Pricing depends on the length and location of the event, and the company provides custom photo activations for events around the country.
Calabasas, California-based Wax Creation makes colorful wax models of hands that serve as interactive party decor or favors. Guests dip their hands into the liquid wax to create an impression, which dries in a few minutes. Wax Creation also offers a candle-coloring activity for holiday events, where guests can dip and color their own custom candles. The company services events throughout California and Nevada; it also recently launched an east coast branch that serves Florida. For events in the Los Angeles area, Wax Creation charges $595 for two hours of activity, which includes unlimited hands, delivery and pick-up, and two attendants.
Blueprint Studios showcased a variety of furniture and tabletop rentals at the event, including its customizable acrylic table runner, which is translucent to give the table more dimension. Acrylic runners can be cut to a range of lengths and widths and can display graphics to tie into an event’s theme or branding; custom placemats and accent pieces can also be created at the company’s printing studio. The runner was displayed on Blueprint’s Blaco King table, and topped with natural stone containers holding Flame Calla Lilies, Orange Pincushion Protea, and Liriope. Prices are available upon request; the San Francisco-based company rents nationwide.
For an unusual event or trade show activity, CXC Simulations provides professional, full-motion racing and flight simulators. Guests can experience the racetrack as if they were actually on it, with a low-mass motion system, high-quality audio and video, and panoramic screens. The racing simulators have software that will allow corporate logos or other graphics to appear on the tracks. The Los Angeles-based company can rent or sell simulators worldwide, and an on-site technician makes sure the event runs smoothly. Pricing is available upon request.
San Marcos, California-based Folklore Vintage Rentals provides furniture, props, accessories, and more for events in the Southern California area. The company offers stylish rentals for events; for the BizBash show, it created a Havana nights-inspired booth that included a white and brass dining table and white leather Spanish-style chairs from its Equipage line. The company also showcased its Marigold Yellow Danish-Inspired Mid-Century Sofa, its Teal Velvet Mid-Century Sofa, and an eclectic, colorful assortment of pillows, rugs, side tables, tabletop items, and more. Folklore can also provide full-scale event design; prices are available upon request. For the BizBash event, Folklore teamed up with Bloom Babes, who created a floral centerpiece that also tied into the Havana theme. The Carlsbad, California-based design company creates eye-catching installations for weddings and corporate events.
Another customizable option for event favors comes from Los Angeles restaurant and French patisserie Bottega Louie. The restaurant’s gourmet market provides elegantly packaged gift boxes that include assorted macarons, caramels, fine chocolate cocoa, cappuccino dragées, and more; personalized note cards and ribbon options are available. Gift boxes start at $35, and can be shipped nationwide.
Drawing Booth specializes in live digital art for events. The company works with a team of artists who can walk around events asking if guests would like their portrait drawn. The realistic portraits, which are created on iPads, take about three to four minutes to draw and then can be emailed to the subject immediately. Artists also print the image using a special printing belt, providing another instant favor for event guests that won’t disrupt their evening. Drawing Booth can also provide branded backgrounds for the portraits, incorporating company logos or other custom images. The company has been expanding its offerings to include marketing activations, product launches, and in-house digital art for corporations. Drawing Booth has offices in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and London, but is available for events worldwide.
Leatherology provides customizable wallets, travel tags, key chains, accessories, and gifts. The Dallas-based company offers more than 300 products for corporate gifting that come in an array of colors and can be personalized with company logos. Leatherology also recently launched a line of gifts for weddings, which features complimentary monogramming for initials, wedding dates, and more. The company uses a hand-deboss technique to create a distinct, long-lasting monogram; customers can choose their own fonts, deboss types, motifs, logos, and more. Hand-drawn designs or signatures are also available on select items. Volume discount pricing is available, and the company ships across the United States, Canada, the UK, and Australia. In the future, the company hopes to offer live monogramming at events.
Eventuosity is a cloud-based comprehensive event-management software. The system, which is also available as a mobile app, allows planners to create events from a template or from scratch, as well as add collaborators, schedule reminders, assign activities to various team members, track budgets, and more. The company, which was founded by marketing professional Justin Panzer and his brother and mother, offers monthly subscriptions starting at $99 or annual subscriptions starting at $1,149. Eventuosity is available nationwide.
New York-based Treat House ships its customized marshmallow and crispy-rice treats nationwide, creating a tasty favor for corporate and social events. The dessert shop can customize treats with company logos, colors, and images; it also has lines of wedding, baby shower, and bar and bar mitzvah treats. The desserts are offered in packs starting at one for $2.50 through 24 for $58; custom logos cost $1 more per treat. Custom belly bands, gift boxes, and ribbons are also available, as are gluten-free, dairy-free, and kosher options.
Pinatas.com can provide custom piñatas modeled after just about anything, including company logos, C.E.O.s or other V.I.P.s, brides and grooms, emojis, and even President Donald Trump. (Pictured at the company’s BizBash booth are Michael Jackson from the Thriller video, Marilyn Monroe, and BizBash C.E.O. David Adler.) Custom piñatas start at $69.50 for a 24-inch piñata, and $99.50 for a 40-inch piñata. The company also provides mini piñatas that can serve as party favors, as well as piñata centerpieces. The El Paso, Texas-based company ships nationwide.
