The Islington-based company prides itself on delivering expertise, passion and innovation in show production, tour support, event management, brand activation, IT and temporary infrastructure for a host of event types, including music festivals and product launches, throughout territories such as Europe, the Middle East, China and Australia.

The business, which was founded in 2005, is headed up by three partners – Dan Howson, Tim Spears and Luke Carr – and was set up partly has a celebration of their specialisms, at a time when their skill sets were being subsumed in-house by brand communications agencies and promoters, and partly to offset the notorious reputation held by the events industry for poor work/life balance.

sevens7 (Luke Carr, Dan Howson, Tim Spears)

Carr says: “We wanted to create a company that operated in a different way. We’re passionate about what we do and we’re innovative, so we take those two principles and ensure they are a mandatory part of any response to a client brief.

We’re very specialist and it’s not difficult for clients to see the benefits of using our services.”

Although only a small outfit in terms of headcount, the team sets great store in its people, as well as its contact sheet of specialist freelancers, who can be called upon to offer additional expertise as and when required. In speaking to Carr, you get the sense that this is a business confident in its niche skills, one that is happy to write its own rulebook.

Carr continues: “We make our own opportunities and create in-house projects that we want to work on. For example, the campsite solution ‘The Village’ to provide sustainable and eco-friendly infrastructure and accommodation to festivals and other large events.”

sevens7 is also involved in creating Stepladder Worldwide, which is dedicated to making the creative industries more accessible to young people from any background and provides guidance and support for both the youth of today and businesses looking to engage with this generation.

Carr and his colleagues are keen to show young people that there’s no dark art involved in getting into the creative industries by defining a clear route that is beneficial to both parties involved

“Stepladder works for us because it creates and implements an environment for our entry-level staff to take responsibility from the beginning, not just to make tea and try and work out what’s going on. It provides a more structured support network to our new starters and to the young people wanting to access this particular sector of the creative industries.  We currently act as our own apprenticeship agents having been partnered with a local training provider. This is a simple and flexible solution that can be adopted by any business in our sector.”

Stepladder Worldwide has just picked up two awards at the inaugural Event Production Awards, for Events Innovation of the Year and Employee of the Year.

So what’s next for sevens7? “The next 1-5 years are looking good and there is a lot of exciting stuff coming up. Despite the recession, ticket buyers still want events that entertain them. We’re expecting that the trend for delivering more for less will continue,” says Carr, “but we’ve plenty of opportunities and new services to keep us busy.”

Examples of sevens7’s work include:

MTV EMA 2011, after show party, Belfast
Following on from recent years in Liverpool, Berlin & Madrid, Sevens7 gave its support for fourth time to the MTV EMA after show party, providing artist/band production and stage managers, ground transport manager and a VIP talent manager. In addition, the company also provided an event manager for the MTV UK after party.

St George’s Day 2012, Trafalgar Square, London
sevens7 are producing the 2012 St George’s Day event held in London’s Trafalgar Square on behalf of the Greater London Authority’s Events for London.

Nissan Sports Adventure, Freeride World Tour
sevens7 provided event management services to the Freeride World Tour, during Nissan’s sponsorship in 2007-2009,  delivering events across Europe, Russia, Canada and the US.

The Goodnight campaign will complete the experience of delegates in the city, providing them with recommendations for event spaces with panoramic views, restaurants and bars in which to wind down after a conference or host gala dinners, the best accommodation, as well as attractions from which to view the city’s skyline and sunsets as part of a social itinerary.

To be launched by Liverpool Convention Bureau at this year’s International Confex, the initiative is the first of its kind offered by a destination and will act as an extension of the renowned welcome provided by the city.

Together the innovative Delegate Welcome and Goodnight schemes will provide all delegates with exclusive discounts for Virgin Trains’ high-speed service from London to Liverpool with onboard welcome announcements, signage and flags at entry points into the city, and a free dedicated accommodation booking service.

Liverpool has long been regarded as the friendliest destination for delegates and buyers, a fact which is backed by numerous accolades including the city winning Condé Nast Traveller UK’s Friendliest Destination in 2010 and 2011, Group Leisure magazine’s Best UK City 2011, and Britain’s Best Nightlife Destination 2011 awarded by TripAdvisor.

Carol O’Reilly, Liverpool Convention Bureau manager, comments: “Delegates’ experiences outside of the main conference activity are just as important to our destination, so we are pleased to be launching a campaign that looks towards evening events and entertainment in our great city. The Delegate Goodnight concept not only reflects the warmth and friendliness of the people of Liverpool but also the combined quality of our venues, hotels, restaurants and attractions which can make an event or conference complete.”

The Delegate Goodnight will launch on stand at International Confex with a series of giveaways and tips on selecting venues in the city. A number of other special offers will also be available on stand during the show. All confirmed bookings made with Liverpool Convention Bureau will receive a complimentary four-star overnight stay in one of Liverpool’s leading city centre hotels. Bookings confirmed with ACC Liverpool directly will receive a free overnight stay in Liverpool along with tickets to the buyer’s chosen show at Echo Arena Liverpool.

Liverpool Convention Bureau and ACC Liverpool will be exhibiting at International Confex between 6 and 8 March on stand B920.

Chelsea Football Club will be giving away a series of fantastic prizes to conference and events buyers during International Confex this March.

The venue, which offers 21 flexible event spaces, 60 syndicate rooms, 281 hotel bedrooms and an exclusive music venue, will be giving away a Samsung Galaxy Tab, a case of Laurent Perrier Champagne, VIP hospitality for two, dinner for two in fine dining restaurant Marco, and an Antara spa day at The Chelsea Club. 

To be in with a chance of winning one of the prizes, buyers will need to visit Chelsea Football Club on stand B1720P to find out a special number related to the club. To submit their entry buyers will then need to sign up to the LinkedIn group, Chelsea FC Venue, and post the answer. Winners will be drawn at random from everyone who joins the LinkedIn group and posts the correct answer.

 Simon Hunter, Head of Venue and Brand at Chelsea FC, comments: “With so many facilities in our 12.5 acre site, LinkedIn is the easiest and quickest way for organisers and delegates to keep up to date with news, product launches, advice from our event organisers, and special offers at Stamford Bridge. The Chelsea FC Venue group includes comment from hospitality, meetings, restaurants, hotels and our new music venue Under the Bridge, making it ideal for anyone booking meetings, events and conferences”.

 International Confex runs from 6-8 March 2012 at ExCel London. Chelsea FC can be found on the London & Partners stand, B1720P.

Award-winning music download specialist fairsharemusic.com, has launched its new range of gift cards and egifts, aimed specifically at the corporate rewards and incentives market.

Via its newly created corporate incentives arm, fairsharemusic for Business, the company brings two new products to market – gift cards in any denomination and egift codes, which are delivered straight to the recipient via email.

The gift cards are issued without load value and are activated with the preselected fund once they have been received by the recipient, while the egift codes are delivered direct to the recipient via email for immediate online spend.

Recipients can browse and spend their reward on chart singles and albums and on a back catalogue of over 16 million tracks. Every time music is downloaded, half the profit goes to a charity of the consumer’s choice. Charity partners include the British Heart Foundation, Great Ormond Street, Cancer Research UK and the RSPCA.

Fairsharemusic’s co-founder Lee Cannon says: “Our expert team developed a range of products to satisfy the demand for music in the incentives arena. Following our launch into the consumer sector last year, we’ve identified an untapped market in the corporate sector, specifically organisations that realise the potential for great music promotions, but which also have a commitment to socially responsible corporate rewards.

“Businesses can use fairsharemusic.com gift cards and egifts to connect and engage with their target audience. Music has been proven, time and again, in some great campaigns to increase reach, brand awareness, loyalty and to drive sales, for on-pack consumer promotions, to add value to products, and to reward staff. Its application is endless.”

Fairsharemusic.com’s pricing is on a par with other stores and downloads integrate seamlessly into iTunes or Windows media libraries.

Look out for the April issue of Incentive and Motivation magazine for the full interview with Lee Cannon.

Staffordshire based Keele Conferences & Events has devised a new campaign based around customer and industry feedback that calls for a greater focus on delivering conferences and events with a strong personal approach. 

The Conference Characters campaign will be officially launched at this year’s International Confex where Keele Conferences & Events will be exhibiting for the first time, alongside destination partners Yarnfield Park, Britannia Stadium and Staffordshire & Stoke on Trent Conference Bureau (stand no B421).

 Sam Booth, Head of Keele Conferences & Events comments; “It is not enough to just focus on providing a good service – that should be a standard. We should be working to provide good service but with a unique delivery by strong characters.”

 She continued, “With the arrival of the Olympic Games, this year more than any other will be one where people expect unique events and with the spotlight firmly placed on how the industry performs, we have a great opportunity to show off what we can do.”

 Innovative service provision has always being a key USP of the Staffordshire based team and last year it launched ‘Keele Event Services’ which provides event support and management to associations as their annual conferences travel around the country.

 Also during the latter part of 2011, Keele Conferences embarked on a drive to encourage the industry to support the promotion of the educational benefit of meetings and events for generating knowledge and research, rather than solely their financial benefits. This received strong backing from the Britain for Events Campaign.

Love2reward has launched Flexepak a dedicated warehousing, storage, packing and fulfillment service.  Operating from some 200,000 sq ft of warehousing, cold storage and office space, Flexepak is located near the Port of Liverpool container base, and is offering a comprehensive package of services designed to meet the needs of businesses across the UK.

Commenting Martin Cooper, head of national accounts and marketing, “We are part of the Park Retail Group, which has been operating these services exclusively for its own use for some 30 years. We recognized the potential for such expertise in the wider marketplace, and have developed the services into a definitive product offering called Flexepak.”

Warehousing:  The warehousing facility is housed in units which range from 6,500 square foot to 55,000 square foot, including a caged high value area for expensive items. The Flexepak site is monitored by 24 hour on-site guards, a manned security gate and a newly commissioned CCTV system, with each modern warehouse unit manned by trained, experienced staff skilled in operating modern stock control software.

Storage:  Flexepak’s cold storage facility is a state-of-the-art temperature-controlled cold store which can accommodate up to 6,000 pallets. This modern facility contains three separate chambers which allow for product separation and individual chamber temperature variance from ambient to minus 26.  Each chamber has its own dock levelling system, enabling a quick turnaround, and a sophisticated mobile racking system gives us capacity to store more products in less space.

Packing:  Its infrastructure includes 36,750 square foot of production space and access to up to 500 skilled packing staff.   Services include hamper packing, gift pack manufacture, kit assembly, security packing, shrink banding and sleeving; overwrapping, Kimberling, glue dot & hot melt application, labelling, label design and printing.

Fulfilment:  The business is structured to handle fulfilment briefs from a one page document to packs containing several bespoke pieces.

High profile members of the UK events industry will meet with members of parliament at a closed-door dinner as part of the Britain for Events campaign on 2^nd February 2012.

 Attending the dinner will be 25 industry representatives, joined by five MPs, including Nick de Bois, Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Events. The MP’s expected to be present include Bob Blackman MP (Harrow East), Bob Stewart MP (Beckenham), Steve Brine MP (Winchester & Chandlers Ford) and Tom Greatrex MP (Rutherglen & Hamilton West). There will also be attendance from Lady Cobham (Visit England) and Lord Triesman, underlining the collective interest from both houses of parliament.

 The dinner will be co-chaired by Nick de Bois MP and Michael Hirst, Chair of the Business Visits & Events Partnership, with the intention of creating closer partnership between government and industry to increase the UK event industry’s international competitiveness.

 Other confirmed attendees include Fay Sharpe, Managing Director – Sales & Marketing, Zibrant; Leigh Jagger, Chief Executive Officer, Banks Sadler; Kevin Murphy, Chief Executive, ExCeL London; Jonny Sullens, Portfolio Director, Confex Group; Ben Goedegebuure, Director of Sales, SECC; and Jane Longhurst, Chief Executive, MIA.

Liverpool Convention Bureau is backing an initiative for all hotels in the city to offer free Wi-Fi for delegates in hotel bedrooms.

The scheme, initiated by leading hoteliers in Liverpool, aims to make the destination even more attractive to associations, conferences and residential events. It is targeting all hotels within Liverpool and the wider City Region.

Many hotels already offer complimentary Wi-Fi in public areas and nearly all have some form of paid for Wi-Fi service in guest bedrooms. But now the destination management agency for the city, along with business leaders, is supporting the drive to encourage all hotels and serviced apartments across the Liverpool City Region to make this a free service in all guest bedrooms.

The initiative, led by the Liverpool Hoteliers Association and supported by The Mersey Partnership’s Visitor Economy Committee (VEC), is the brainchild of Robert Nadler, Chief Executive of hotel group base2stay Limited and a member of the VEC.

Robert Nadler comments: “To drive business for the Visitor Economy, we need to be constantly thinking ahead, just as Liverpool has always done. Wi-Fi has gone from being an optional extra to an essential utility, especially for business travellers. The VEC is working closely with business leaders to encourage as many hotels as possible across the City Region to join the scheme, which will further illustrate that the city is one of the leading convention and tourist destinations in the UK”.

Carol O’Reilly, Liverpool Convention Bureau Manager, adds: “This is a hugely popular initiative and one which has our full support. Delegates more than ever rely on smartphones, tablet devices and laptops during conferences and meetings. We feel that the Liverpool City Region, with its diverse venues, attractions and hotel options, is well placed to become the first destination to offer fee Wi-Fi as standard in all guest bedrooms”.

The proposal aims to attract more mid-week corporate and conference clients as well as large scale conference and congress delegates. A total of 25 hotels across Liverpool City Region have already signed up to the initiative, including independent hotels and international hotel brands.

House of Fraser for Business has entered the e-gifts arena with the launch of its eagerly awaited e-gift card.  House of Fraser’s e-gift card has the same functionality as a plastic gift card, but is sent in PDF format via email so can be printed and spent in any one of our 61 stores nationwide, or online at www.houseoffraser.co.uk

 Commenting John Dove, House of Fraser Business Incentives Manager said, “The ability to deliver rewards and incentives via e-mail significantly cuts costs and administration for corporate customers who currently use conventional gift cards for staff and customer campaigns.  Businesses want to simplify all processes, and that includes staff and customer reward and recognition.  E-gift cards are flexible, quick, easy to administer and reward the recipient instantly.”

 In conclusion John added, “We expect substantial demand for our e-gift cards which can be loaded with any value from £5.  By using e-gift cards customers can avoid the significant post, pack and fulfilment costs associated with conventional gift cards, and the immediacy of the reward makes it all the more memorable.”

 House of Fraser is a leading multi-channel retailer offering a diverse range of brands and products for men, women and children, including fashion, beauty, technology and home.  House of Fraser for Business is a specialist provider of incentives and rewards, supplying gift cards, vouchers and e-gift card products to corporate users primarily across the UK and Republic of Ireland who use them for sales incentives, employee rewards, customer loyalty, promotions, flexible and voluntary benefits, Christmas rewards and insurance replacement.

 Barbados’ award winning ACCRA Beach Hotel and Spa has this week unveiled the results of its $1.5 million refurbishment. Encompassing the entire East Wing of the resort, the refurbishment incorporated the overhaul of all the guest rooms and suites with new furniture, soft furnishings, lighting and the installation of new plasma screen televisions. All plumbing and electrics to the East Wing have also been replaced, allowing for the inclusion of wireless internet access to the whole resort.

 This extensive refurbishment follows the revamp of the Penthouse Suites earlier this year, and the brand new pool deck which was completed in the summer of 2011.

 Actively targeting the UK meetings and incentive market, the team behind the four star Accra Beach Hotel & Spa have also confirmed plans to redevelop their meeting and events facilities later this year. The remodel will encompass all 6,500sq. ft. of their meeting and events space, which incorporates four large meeting and events venues and a dedicated boardroom.

 “Both the size and the locale of the Accra Beach Hotel & Spa make it an attractive option for meeting and event planners considering Barbados. The resort spans over 3.5 acres with 224 professionally appointed guest rooms and suites, 6,500 sq. ft. of dedicated meeting and events space, a spa and fitness centre and five restaurants and bars,” commented Jon Martineau, the resorts General Manager.

 “During 2012, we are very much committing to the UK meetings and incentive market, and our objective is to ensure that as Barbados continues to grow as a MICE destination for theUK, the Accra Beach Hotel & Spa continues to lead the way in terms of service and facilities on theIsland,” Martineau concluded.