It’s not very often that a hotel General Manager will call us, but here I was, phone in hand. We were around a week away from hosting a conference for a couple of hundred people at the hotel in France. Everything was running smoothly and right on track. Then came the words: “The roof of the ballroom has collapsed.” This wasn’t an everyday call.
It was one of those moments where you could panic, or you could act. We never panic, but we had a lot to do...
Fortunately, the hotel bedrooms were unscathed and the building was safe, so the hotel could still host the guests. But we still needed an alternative location for the conference itself. Together with the hotel, we sprang into action to source a Plan B location, and within two (admittedly stressful) days we had found and secured a suitable and iconic alternative venue and transportation between the two sites. That was the easy part. There were other significant knock-on effects of losing the ballroom...
Reconfiguring the event
We look after all aspects of event planning, and that includes stage and set design. The stage set for this conference had been built to the height of the ballroom, and the new conference venue had a lower ceiling. To add to the challenge, the AV equipment and stage set were being shipped from the UK to France. (Because this event was pre-Brexit, it was easier and more cost effective to transport the set.) However, as it was so close to the event, the AV equipment and stage set were already packed in the articulated lorry, ready for transit. If it were to ship in that state, we wouldn’t be able to fit it into the new venue. So our team in the UK had to remove most of the equipment, cut down the size of the stage set so that it fit in the new building, and then pack it all up onto the truck again to be shipped in time for the event.
When the set arrived at the new venue, we were relieved to confirm that our venue measurements had been correct, and that the team had done an excellent job of retrofitting. It all worked together seamlessly.
We are a company that thrive on problem solving, and this was one of the toughest. Behind the scenes a lot of work was done to redirect all of the equipment, catering, and staff to the new venue. We reworked our plans significantly. But to the guests, you wouldn’t have known the drama that had proceeded. It was one of the hairier moments we’ve ever encountered, but what could have been a cancelled event proceeded smoothly in the end, much to the relief of our clients.
We’re proud to know that, no matter what, we step up and rise to the challenge.
Viva Esprit will pull all the stops to ensure the show goes on. If you’re in need of a proactive event team of problem solvers, get in touch.
