Call us patient zero of the events industry, if you will. We have endured and seen it all like so many others in events. There was no pivoting for us. The one thing we specialise in, is bringing people together and the only thing you cannot do in a pandemic is…well you know.

But now that we are open (as a Melbournian I cross my fingers and feel sick even writing that), we are on the ground and bear witness to how the public, employees, organisations, suppliers and people in general are interacting at events. What they are looking for and the little tricks you can do to make people feel safe, how you can practice social distancing and include staff that are still working remotely – without it being the bane of our existence.

We are creatures of habit, and it shows. Once organisations do commit to bringing their workforce back together, celebrating their employee’s incredible flexibility and adjusting their work life balance over the last 2+ years (whether that be a conference or a re-connection celebration aka burger and a beer in The Yard) everyone has been piling into our venue with smiles, laughs and purpose. It has been so heart-warming watching organisations who have had the balls to re-connect in person, fill out and celebrate in our venue and reward themselves with a newly re-engaged workforce.

The industry’s growth, confidence and coming back sits with you. Don’t wait. Being back F2F and reconnecting is working. The sound of organisations and their teams outside our office everyday is bringing back so much joy for me in an industry I am very devoted to.

There are suppliers standing by our side ready and waiting to roll their sleeves back up and execute whatever your brief may be and to get you started, here are my 5 top tips to get the ball rolling:

1. Fill out and use the space you’ve hired – We are so fortunate that space is our bread and butter. So, don’t line plenary chairs up in a theatre style ever again. Space them out, put in tub chairs, coffee tables and cocktail rounds to give people the ease of social distancing in a new format
2. Remember those traffic light discos and dating events? Well, these days those wristbands have VERY different meanings to social distancing comfort levels, and I am here for it
   • RED – Too soon
   • ORANGE – Let’s elbow bump
   • GREEN – Hug it out bro

3. Check In lines – Put out more *Fuc*In% QR codes for guests to check in so they don’t have to wait for Fred Infront of them try to remember how to open their camera
4. Bring back the lunch box I say. Caterers and food trucks are taking guests PRE ORDERED meals, so you don’t have to wait for the 8th tray of sandwiches to come around, only to realise it’s the same one you turned down last time the waiter came past.
5. Book an event