What's Floating Around Cloud 9? 30 May 2016

Welcome to another week and as it was the #CHSAWARDS16 in Manchester last week which were brilliantly hosted by Andy Johnson, this week we have handed over our blog to him!

Martin Gaisford as Hercule Poirot.
Picture:artdecoproductions

The Mysterious case of Poirot, the fire drill and

 the locked car park

It was a night that would have taxed the “little gray cells” of Agatha Christie’s most famous detective.

It started inauspiciously enough.

I got to the Manchester Mercure Piccadilly Hotel at around 5pm to rehearse, as I was hosting the CHS Awards 2016.

It started to get a little bit Belgian just before dinner was due to be served. There we were in all our DJ and posh frock finery (I went for the DJ as opposed to the frock on this occasion) and the fire alarm went off.

Nobody moved a muscle. There was no announcement. Eventually after a good 15 minutes we were told to make our way out. So we ambled into the foyer. We hung around a bit. Someone said it was a false alarm so we made our way back in to sit down. Only to be ushered out straight away saying we had to vacate the building.

So we shuffled out to Portland Street and stood outside in the drizzle for another ten minutes. People then started to drift off down the car park ramp and we were eventually re-united with other guests at the side of the hotel – complete now – with two fire engines. Again, no official word, no practiced drill, just a few harassed members of staff in fluorescent vests looking totally flummoxed.

The nearest we came to actual danger was when two girls nearly got ran over by a bus trying to take a selfie with a fireman in the background.Eventually we drifted back inside and got back to our tables at 9pm, when I was supposed to be doing my thing as MC.

Then the Poirot thing happened. Martin Gaisford had come up to Manchester as a guest of the indomitable Paula Kelsey, a true force of nature and boss of the events company Cloud 9.

A trained actor, Martin was roped in at the last minute to do the Voice of God bit, announcing the nominations.

It was only when we were chatting afterwards that I found out that not only does he run a very successful murder mystery productions company, who have performed for Stella McCartney’s hen party celebrations and at Richard Branson’s Lake Como residence, but he is also the UK’s No 1 Hercule Poirot lookalike.

Even he was at a loss to solve the mystery of why the fire alarm went off and how inept the hotel were in carrying out a half-decent fire drill.

Nevertheless, the evening was a great success. Showcasing the fantastic venues and events in the UK.

Cast your eye over a few of the winners, including, The Coniston Hotel & Spa, Horizon Leeds, The Grand Hotel York, Ardencote Manor, Thorpe Park Manor and Solent Forts, and you can see what a vibrant sector it is.

So well done to all of them, Paula and the team at Cloud 9, and the CHS Group UK.

The drama wasn’t over though.

I’d parked next door in the Piccadilly Plaza, Because of the delays, I got back in the teeming rain to discover the car park was locked.

Hercule couldn’t solve this problem, so I rang NCP’s emergency number and within 15 minutes, they had sent a man with a van to get me in and get me home. Great customer service,  so thanks NCP!

Even Agatha Christie would have struggled to make this one up!

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What's Floating Around Cloud 9? 23 May 2016

Welcome to another week and we do hope that everyone is continuing to smile! This week is all about the CHS Awards which take place on Wednesday in Manchester at the Mercure Piccadilly Hotel on Portland Street.

Launched in 2015 to celebrate aspects of venues, the Awards have very quickly been embraced by the industry and the 2016 entries were pretty spectacular in each of the 19 very carefully chosen categories.

With almost 70 leading agents judging the awards, the entrants knew that this was a great opportunity to get their venue on the radar of some incredibly well know and respected names and we look forward to celebrating their success.

So why is it that Awards are so popular? Well, as we run lots of them here at Cloud 9, we know that Awards matter and even with all of the advances in social media, instant feedback and independent reviews, getting everyone together to discover the winners can be an exciting and exhilarating experience.

Recognition for a job well done is always important and being a finalist, a nominee or making the shortlist for any awards event can be the first steps of a great PR story. The opportunity to show off to your clients, your colleagues and your employees is a great way of validating the work you are doing with your organisation.

Winning takes the story to a whole new level and makes your promotional abilities boundless, so we certainly will enjoy the coverage that the CHS Awards will generate over the coming weeks.

For now though we would like to wish all of the finalists at this years CHS Awards all success and a great evening!

 In other news this week we are gearing up for The Meetings Show which has moved to an earlier slot in June, rather than July. Last year our attendance was cut a little short by the tube strike as we had to leave early so we are hoping for no drama this year.

The Meetings Show is designed with productivity at the forefront of everything we do. In today's world, it is difficult to take even just a day away from the office, but working within an industry that demands face-to-face interaction, The Meetings Show offers an opportunity to source, learn and network with those that will make a real difference to your business. 

There will be more than 600 of the finest destinations, hotels, venues, DMCs and technology providers at the Show and we are aiming to leave inspired and energised - although probably with sore feet from all of that waling around - as we will have been on a journey across the UK and around the world at the UK’s largest gathering of meeting suppliers.

 Additionally there are over 80 free-to-attend educational sessions delivered by the most creative thinkers in the industry and a whole range of destination showcases which will allow us to grow our knowledge and choices for clients.

There are also a number of great parties planned around the Show taking place across some of London’s most exclusive venues, and as Paula, Janet & Charlotte will all be attending, we'll be experiencing the delights of the Montcalm with Moulden Marketing, St James' Court with Hotel Republic, The Radio Bar at the ME London with GTAssociates  and the Kensington Roof Gardens with SANA Hotels.Who said it was all hard work?

Have a great week and we look forward to seeing you in Manchester! 






 
 

  

What's Floating Around Cloud 9? 16 May 2016

Welcome to another week and if you didn't know, today is the start of National Smile Month. Now, we like to think we are pretty smiley people here at Cloud 9 Towers anyway, but this month we have vowed to go that extra mile and smile all the time.

It can be pretty tough to keep upbeat and on form when you have a million deadlines, you are inundated with emails and phone calls, and the events you are planning are increasingly close with a thousand and one details to tie up. However, to celebrate National Smile Month, this week's blog is dedicated to making you smile and keeping you positive. It might be a bit off topic from our usual content, but hey, a happy smiling person is far more productive so think of this as your official Cloud 9 therapy - all for free, a bit like our venue finding service (ahem!).

So first up is to smile at everyone you see. It costs nothing, its so easy to do and if it comes from the heart and is a genuine smile, its unlikely anyone will think you have lost the plot or you are being creepy. Make eye contact with people and smile, smile at them with sincerity and its very likely you will get one back. Even smiling when you are on the phone can have a positive impact on your tone and even if its a difficult call, then smiling can make all of the difference to the outcome of the call.

Next, tell a really bad joke or deliver a terrible pun. Some people are naturally funny and some are not we know, but nearly everyone has at least one joke that they know off by heart. Even if you don't, then spend five minutes at lunch online and find one that makes you smile. Odds are if it makes you smile, you will make someone else smile, and if you simply don't have time to search, then how about this one from the late, great Ronnie Corbett "We've just heard that in the English Channel, a ship carrying red paint has collided with a ship carrying purple paint. It is believed that both crews have been marooned." Well, it made us smile!

Third is to give someone a compliment. Everyone has at least one good quality, maybe its physical, maybe its something they are wearing or maybe its that you admire their quick wit or ability to tell jokes (see above!) but there is nothing wrong with letting people know that you think they look or are great. Make someone proud! Again sincerity counts here!

Number four on our list is very simple. It's food. Maybe treat your colleagues, neighbours or friends to lunch, homemade cakes or simple tasty treats. You don't need to break the bank or go over the top to do this, and even if you have a die hard dieter in your circle, chop up some carrot sticks and show you care.

Our fifth suggestion is to offer your help or your time. In today's busy world its very easy to get so wrapped up in our work loads, schedules, families and commitments that we often forget others around us are maybe not coping as well as we are. So offer to write that report, help a colleague meet a deadline, water a friends plants whilst they are away or simply offer to shout one of your pals a coffee and the chance for a catch up. A little can go a long way.

At six is the idea to do something to help someone you don't know. Yes, it is fairly unfortunate that our society as it is, means that if you offer to carry an old ladies shopping bags for her, she'll probably think you are going to do a runner with her dinner, but there are lots of small acts that all add up. Hold doors open for people, give up your seat, be nice to waiting staff and shop assistants. Give to charity and find a worthy project that means something to you and make a point to find out more about it.

Seven is to send a card, gift or flowers to someone special in your life for no other reason than to show that they are special. Constant communication with emails and text messages are great and at birthdays and Christmas you get them a card and present already yes? How great would you feel if out of the blue you received a little reminder of why you are special, so pass that feeling on!

When we are constantly bombarded with images of super slim, super rich, super lifestyle celebrities living glamorous lives in fabulous houses all around the world, number eight is maybe a bit tricky for some, but be grateful. For your own life, health, and happiness and the people around you. The saying that there are people a lot worse off than you is over used but is incredibly true, so what ever your problems, be happy with your self. Also do remember that even the rich and famous still need the loo, and have to put their pants on one leg at a time.

Finally, to ensure a smiling and successful month ahead, if you planning and event, looking for a venue or incentive, then the happy, smiley team here at Cloud 9 is on hand to help. Whoops - maybe not off topic after all! 

Have a great week everyone and don't forget to smile.

What's Floating Around Cloud 9? 9 May 2016

Welcome to another week and how fantastic that the sun is shining! Here at Cloud 9 Towers we are continuing the countdown to the CHS Awards and we're delighted that tickets are selling out fast - we have well over 200 guests confirmed so far so its looking like we are set a great evening.

Additionally, thanks to our friends at Grovesnor Casino's, the event is about to get even better as all of the guests attending the Awards have the opportunity to attend a fantastic after party from midnight onwards at their nearby Manchester venue - after the entertainment, gaming tables and bacon butties post ceremony of course!

In other news this week, one of the most unusual invitations we've had recently is to attend a performance of Der Freischütz and a Midsummer Night's Dream with live narration from 1623's Ben Spiller.

Nothing unusual about that you might think, but the setting is not some drafty old concert hall, instead it's a big, purple, portable and inflatable venue where where every show is different. Adaptable, mobile, stirring, evocative and as yet undiscovered, solve the mystery of what lies inside the Cabinet of Curiosity for yourself. Intrigue awaits you...

As part of this year’s Derby Book Festival and the Grand Tour 2016, Sinfonia Viva will present Felix Mendelssohn’s interpretation of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Der Freischützby Carl Maria von Weber. Both considered master classes in storytelling bravado, these tales are at once worlds apart and yet universally linked.

Mendelssohn was the great composer of The Grand Tour era, having gone on The Grand Tour of Europe during his lifetime. A Midsummer Night’s Dream is among his best loved works and is itself a journey into the beautiful dreamlike world of Shakespeare’s classic play. This performance will not only feature extracts from Mendelsohn’s score, but will also allow you to experience the story through live narration from 1623's Ben Spiller.   

Weber’s Der Freischütz is based on the German folk tale of the same name and is considered a monumental moment in German storytelling and music. Telling a tale of love, dark magic and feudal rivalry, it is an epic story that takes you on an incredible journey to 17th century Eastern Europe.

Drawing on our human need for musical imagination Sinfonia Viva reinterpret these two classic tales through narration and chamber music. Vivid, powerful and expertly adapted, this performance is not to be missed. 

Sinfonia Viva are well worth remembering as if you would like to add a touch of class, intrigue and mystery to one of your forthcoming events, then as a performing organisation they can provide music in many styles and with many different combinations of instruments from 55 down to a trio. 

From formal concerts to chamber music to background music for events, they can cover it all and love to work on imagining, developing and delivering special, bespoke projects ideal for clients looking for something a little different..so give them a try.

This event is part of the Grand Tour and Derby Book Festival and the Grand Tour is certainly on our radar as we have been looking at events to coincide with some of the exhibitions for clients.

From casino's to concerts to CHS, its another busy week ahead, so have a good one everyone!

What's Floating Around Cloud 9? 2 May 2016

Welcome to another week and its a short one so we hope everyone enjoyed the Bank Holiday - despite the chilly UK weather. Whilst most of us are looking ahead to some sunny Spring weather (fingers crossed), all of this snow and blustery showers makes us think of winter, and if you think Winter, you think Christmas.

Don't worry, we are not going to start telling you how many shopping days or sleeps there are until the big day, but we thought it might be an idea to nudge anyone who hasn't started thinking ahead about researching the annual Christmas do.

Arranging the Christmas party can be a stressful task for businesses and usually its left in the hands of a poor PA who quite frankly has better things to do and upping the ante eavch year only adds to the pressure - however fret not as help is at hand! 

Not only can we find you the perfect location for your annual shin-dig, we can also create bespoke and budget friendly themed internal events in the comfort of your own office or place of business, and we're happy to deliver you a hundred and one ideas allowing you the choice of a celebration that suits you.

The office Christmas party is a tradition looked forward to by many (but not all we know!) but it does offer a great chance to get your staff together and to thank them for their hard work over the year and so whilst you might be currently looking forward to your Summer Holidays, here at Cloud 9 Towers we are thinking mulled wine and mince pies, tinsel and turkey and more baubles than you can shake, well a Christmas Tree at! 

So, whether you want an exclusive and themed extravaganza, a table at an inspiring shared party where you can mix and mingle with other groups, you fancy taking the team on a jaunt or you simply want to dress and decorate your own office, then we have it covered and you can relax knowing that we're jolly all year round and happy to help.

If you want to sort the perfect Christmas party for you, then it's always best to book early and we suggest that the next couple of months is the ideal time to look ahead so that you can guarantee the pick of venues, locations and themes to suit you.

In other news this week, we announced the CHS Awards Nominations last week at CHS in Leeds so we would like to once again to congratulate all of our lovely finalists and we look forward to welcoming you to the Awards and Gala Dinner in Manchester on Wednesday 25 May at the Manchester Mercure Picadilly Hotel. 

Have a great week and just in case you did want to know, there are only 237 days to Christmas!