What's Floating Around Cloud 9? 9 December 2013

Welcome to another week and we are delighted to announce we are finally in our new offices......so please take note of our new details including our new telephone number....

Cloud 9 Event Management Ltd 

Rosewood House 

84a Main Road 

Radcliffe on Trent 

 Nottingham 

NG12 2BQ 

 United Kingdom 

 T. +44 (0) 115 9333811 

It took a little longer to get here than we had hoped and we are still surrounded by packing boxes, trying to decipher some of the new technology including telephone systems and smart tv's - but thankfully we can work our new kettle and we have never had a problem unwrapping the biscuits so anyone visiting between now and Christmas is sure of a warm if somewhat chaotic welcome! 

Additionally being so close to Christmas, we're also stuffing all of our visitors with Mince Pies and as we don't have a Fortnum & Mason or branch of Harrods nearby, we've been busy stocking up thanks to our local Co-op.

Judging by the way they have been enjoyed, we think the Co-op variety is being well received although if we had a local Aldi or Lidl, we might have shopped there instead given the recent Which? reports.

The bargain-basement supermarkets Aldi and Lidl have felled the posh-nosh royal warrant holder Fortnum & Mason in a taste test of that most traditional of Christmas foods, the mince pie. The low-price competitors, whose stock has been rising since the credit crunch hit, delivered the latest blow to their upmarket rivals by coming first and joint second in an annual competition run by the consumer group Which?

Aldi's specially selected luxury mince pies – the cheapest tested at £1.69 for a pack of six – beat the likes of Selfridges and Fortnum's, whose £12.95 traditional mince pies came last out of entries put forward by a dozen retailers. Lidl's £1.79 Snowy Lodge luxury mince pies and Marks & Spencer's handcrafted ultimate all-butter mince pies, at £4 for four, came joint second.

Judges tasted each pie warm and rated appearance, aroma, texture and taste. Aldi's was "lush, spicy and juicy while the rich golden pastry is thin, crisp and light", but Fortnum's "flat-tasting, soft and crumbly" pastry got a thumbs down.

Aldi and Lidl have been attracting more affluent customers with luxury foods such as lobster tails and Serrano ham. Tony Baines, Aldi's UK managing director of buying, said: "Everybody likes to treat themselves at Christmas, and by doubling the size of our Christmas range we have ensured that our customers can do just that without either breaking the bank or compromising on quality."

Fortnums, based in Piccadilly, London, kept a predictably stiff upper lip. "Our traditional mince pies are a delicious product and we're very proud of them. Our customers agree and we are trading significantly higher than last year, " it said.

So, that's it for this week, we'll get back to our unpacking and join us next week for our final blog of 2013...enjoy!