Corporate holiday parties expected to make a full comeback | Hartford Business Journal

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November 24, 2014

Corporate holiday parties expected to make a full comeback

Photos | Contributed The Society Room in downtown Hartford will serve as one of the go-to venues for company holiday parties this December. The Society Room and other Greater Hartford venues are reporting an uptick in holiday party reservations and spending.
Photos | HBJ File
By Sheena Butler-Young

Greater Hartford venues known for hosting the city's corporate holiday parties are anticipating a busier than average holiday season this year.

Key players — The Society Room of Hartford, Marquee Events and Catering and Hartford Marriot Downtown — are experiencing markedly higher numbers of inquiries and reservations for their venue spaces from larger corporations as well as smaller, local businesses.

Jane DiMartin, corporate sales manager at The Society Room, said her venue is receiving more inquiries than ever before. In fact, DiMartin and her marketing team have had to come up with unique alternatives to offer corporations after their weekend dates were booked up so quickly.

“We launched our 'Holiday Lunches' and 'Corporate Brunches' campaign to entice companies to think outside of the box,” said DiMartin.

The campaign offers smaller, low-key meals that businesses can host for their employees on weekdays.

According to DiMartin, several major Fortune 500 companies in the downtown Hartford area have already jumped on the deal.

Marla Psillas, executive director of Marquee Events and Catering, located on 960 Main St. in Hartford, said the venue is seeing an increase in interest compared to last year and is booking, on average, more than one corporate party per day.

Psillas said the scale of such bookings range from luncheons for groups of around 50 people to cocktail receptions for groups of 400 people.

Similarly, Hartford Marriot Downtown has seen significant interest in all of its venue spaces within the hotel as well as other spaces in the downtown area that are also owned by its parent company, Waterford Hotel Group.

Due to the corporate clientele in Hartford, Hartford Marriot Downtown typically finds that businesses want to book its venues for weekdays, however, this year there has been an uptick in weekend bookings, said Brien Fox, Waterford Hotel Group's vice president of sales and marketing. In fact, the month of December is completely sold out for weekend functions, Fox said.

“We always try to work with companies — in terms of what they're looking for,” said Fox. “A lot of companies are looking for smaller, unique venues rather than traditional venues or big parties that take up the whole ballroom.”

Fox said interest in larger, grandiose spaces seemed to die down around 2008 and 2009 when businesses were feeling the effects of the recession.

Whether they are spending on unique or traditional spaces, however, it seems corporations are adamant about not doing away with their annual holiday parties.

In fact, according to DiMartin, companies are spending more money on their parties this year than ever before and are even opting for enhancements, including upgraded drinks and menus.

A new and popular addition offered by The Society Room is the virtual photo booth, which allows party attendees to take creative photos and upload them instantly to social media. It's a marketing strategy that aims to give The Society Room an advantage over nearby venues.

“People always want creative entertainment and interactive social media entertainment is becoming very popular,” said DiMartin.

Sandy Dimitratos, general manager of Maneeley's in South Windsor, said her venue is on target to see at least the same number of reservations as last year.

In addition to offering private parties for a price of $30-$50 per person, Maneeley's hosts a large, holiday party for its employees every year and offers small companies the option to join in on the festivities.

“Businesses that want to offer their employees some holiday cheer find it much easier to let the venue plan the event — supplying the DJ and coordinating all of the details,” said Dimitratos.

For a flat rate of $54.95 per person, companies can treat their employees to a sit down meal, live DJ, and open bar on Dec. 19 from 6:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. According to Dimitratos, the big party has already confirmed three local hairdressers, a business consulting firm and a construction company.

“In past years, we usually have a sold out night,” said Dimitratos. “Last year was the first year we had a small decline but this year we are expecting 400 attendees.”

Regarding the interest in private holiday parties, Dimitratos said many regulars have already confirmed that they will be returning to Maneeley's. The most recurring request, she said, is that menus and pricing remain the same.

Psillas shared similar sentiments regarding the return of Marquee's usual clientele this year.

“We have booked all our weekend dates in December and [we are] finding companies are still willing to book after the holidays for a Saturday,” said Psillas.

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