Although Victoria Day—the unofficial start to summer—is still a month away, guests attending yesterday's launch of the P.C. Lawn & Garden and Home lines had summer entertaining in mind. Loblaw Companies Ltd., which owns the President's Choice brand, unveiled its 2008 lines of outdoor furniture, barbecues, plants, and dinnerware during a noon-hour event for 80 guests at the Field House at the Church at Berkeley.
To showcase the new products, Liz Margles, the company's vice president of public relations and public affairs, worked with Sebastien Centner of Eatertainment Special Events & Catering to create the long-weekend theme for the fourth annual launch. (Previous events have been held at the Toronto Botanical Gardens and in the Niagara region.) "This year we are really going after more of an urban feel," Margles said at the event. "The church felt really nice because it's such a great urban space.""The long weekends are what everybody lives for in Canada, so it made sense to capture those concepts with each vignette," Margles said. Centner visited a Loblaw store to pull items for the displays. "I had 14 shopping carts and just filled them with everything I would need for entertaining," he said. For a Victoria Day display, Centner used a cabana to create a casual separate outdoor space for entertaining. A Father's Day display featured a glass-topped dark brown rattan dining table, suitable for a more formal dinner, and two vingettes paid tribute to Canada Day, one featuring Muskoka chairs and loungers and the other featuring the P.C. Cabana line of outdoor furniture, topped in red seat cushions.
Designer and stylist Arren Williams and Peter Cantley, vice president of P.C. Lawn & Garden, joined Centner in discussing outdoor living trends with guests, many of whom were gardening writers, style writers, and food writers. Eatertainment provided the staffing and catering but used only P.C. food products to create lunch for guests, who were encouraged to take away a selection of P.C. plants laid out in the courtyard.
To showcase the new products, Liz Margles, the company's vice president of public relations and public affairs, worked with Sebastien Centner of Eatertainment Special Events & Catering to create the long-weekend theme for the fourth annual launch. (Previous events have been held at the Toronto Botanical Gardens and in the Niagara region.) "This year we are really going after more of an urban feel," Margles said at the event. "The church felt really nice because it's such a great urban space.""The long weekends are what everybody lives for in Canada, so it made sense to capture those concepts with each vignette," Margles said. Centner visited a Loblaw store to pull items for the displays. "I had 14 shopping carts and just filled them with everything I would need for entertaining," he said. For a Victoria Day display, Centner used a cabana to create a casual separate outdoor space for entertaining. A Father's Day display featured a glass-topped dark brown rattan dining table, suitable for a more formal dinner, and two vingettes paid tribute to Canada Day, one featuring Muskoka chairs and loungers and the other featuring the P.C. Cabana line of outdoor furniture, topped in red seat cushions.
Designer and stylist Arren Williams and Peter Cantley, vice president of P.C. Lawn & Garden, joined Centner in discussing outdoor living trends with guests, many of whom were gardening writers, style writers, and food writers. Eatertainment provided the staffing and catering but used only P.C. food products to create lunch for guests, who were encouraged to take away a selection of P.C. plants laid out in the courtyard.
The 2008 P.C. Lawn & Garden and Home launch
Photo: BizBash
Eatertainment catered the noontime event, using only P.C. products to create lunch for the 80 guests.
Photo: BizBash
The Victoria Day display featured the P.C. Palm Beach line of outdoor furniture in retro green.
Photo: BizBash
The Canada Day display showcased the dark rattan love seat and side chairs from the P.C. Cabana line.
Photo: BizBash
For the Father's Day display, Sebastien Centner of Eatertainment created a more formal setting, dressing the glass-topped Cabana table with square dinnerware and acrylic wine glasses.
Photo: BizBash
A variety of P.C. flowers and plants were laid out for guests to take home at the conclusion of the event.
Photo: BizBash
