Category: Investments & Renovation

Broadway House continues investment programme with upgraded digital event technology

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Broadway House, as part of Make Venues, has announced upgrades in the business’ virtual conferencing, hybrid and digital event technology at the London venue.

The upgrades are focused predominantly on video conferencing, hybrid events, and the capture and broadcast, and have been designed to complement the growing number of businesses looking to return to live events, but also reach growing ‘out of the room’ audiences.

The investments include installations of fixed 4K commercial LFD display systems (up to 98”), PTZ cameras for both ‘display’ and ‘presenter views’, microphone arrays that will pick up sound throughout meeting rooms, digital signal processing, including Automatic Echo Cancellation, and ceiling speakers, all of which can be easily used by moderators and organisers through a simple ‘plug and play’ process. As well as permanent installations in larger rooms, there will also be mobile units offering similar technology that can be quickly moved between smaller rooms.

The new digital event technology will be available across the group’s venues, with more exciting investments on their way.

Find out more about the investment here.

Church House Westminster heads Stateside for IMEX America

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Seeking to build on its international business, Church House Westminster will be exhibiting at IMEX America from 10-12 October at Sands Expo and Convention Centre in Las Vegas

Exhibiting with London & Partners (B2416), visitors to IMEX – America’s worldwide exhibition for incentive travel, meetings and events – will have the opportunity to learn more about how Church House can provide the ideal backdrop for international events, with 19 flexible event spaces including its largest, and most impressive space, the Assembly Hall which has the capacity for up to 664 people.

One of London’s true hidden gems, the Grade II Listed building was designed by the renowned architect, Sir Herbert Baker. Hosting a wide variety of events from multi-day conferences to gala dinners and award ceremonies. Previous events include The International Somali Awards, Spectator Events, InfoComm International, international medical conferences and fashion shows.

Robin Parker, general manager of Church House Westminster commented: “Attending exhibitions is one of the most important parts of our business development strategy. IMEX America provides us with an excellent platform to promote ourselves overseas and we are looking forward to giving the American market a glimpse of our facilities as well as our first-class levels of customer service.”

For more information about Church House Westminster or to book you next event, please contact [email protected].

 

Cavendish Venues looks forward to a great year with WVC

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Westminster Venue Collection board member and director of sales at Cavendish Venues discusses a successful 2016 and looks ahead to the next 12 months as part of the consortium.

We at Cavendish Venues are proud to be a member of the Westminster Venue Collection with the Cavendish Conference Centre located in the Borough of Westminster.

As a board member of WVC, it has been exciting to take on the role of website chair throughout our recent rebrand to oversee not only the long-awaited rebranding of the collective’s name but the launch of the new website.

With a strong and diverse collection of 33 prestigious, unique and unusual venues in the London Borough of Westminster, the rebrand has allowed us to reinforce the nature of the group being, at its core, about venues. With this being a key focus for 2016, significant investment was made on a new website using a contemporary new colour palette and a slicker brand identity in line with a new vision for the WVC’s development.

As a board, we listened to our members and clients, took their valued feedback on board, and constructed a functionality that streamlines the user journey and allows only specific enquiries to be received per venue, saving venue members and event bookers’ time significantly.

The new website, launched at the #WVC2016Launch Showcase in December, also gives autonomy for member venues to promote themselves with a portal where they can edit imagery, criteria and special offers as frequently as they need to.

Significantly, the portal will also allow members to track the number of specific enquiries received via the WVC website, there booking status, the number of confirmations and ultimately confirmed revenue for return on investment.

2017 is set to be a fantastic year for the collection. Don’t forget to sign up to our monthly newsletter for event information, venue news and unmissable special offers and promotions!

Celebrations as our collection goes from strength to strength

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The last few months have been an extremely exciting time for the Westminster Venue collection (WVC). We have a new name new branding and a smarter, more intuitive website creating a strengthened platform for both our clients and our members.

Our showcase event, which took place at Central Hall Westminster on Monday, 12 December, provided a wonderful opportunity to meet and network with over 100 event professionals from across the UK and introduce them to our new look alongside our incredible selection of member venues and preferred suppliers.

We were delighted with the feedback that we received as significantly investing in the new identity and website has been quite a milestone for the collection.

This year has also seen some fantastic returns on investment highlighting both our integral position in the market and the high value our members receive from being part  of our great collection.

Jayna Patel, from One Great George Street, became a board member in 2016 and her venue has recorded a fantastic return on membership in the last 12 months with £25,000 of confirmed business coming directly from  the collection – covering the membership fee of £1,700 p/a almost 15 times over!.

Church House Westminster has also had a great year with the collection that is set to continue into 2017. Thanks to their membership, they are looking forward to a large event in June, which is worth approximately £20,000.

Elsewhere, Cavendish Venues and London Film Museum have also had a fantastic end to the year thanks to the collection. Cavendish Conference Centre has confirmed over £14,000 worth of revenue, generated from a single enquiry made via the collection’s stand at The Meetings Show in 2016, while London Film Museum has reported a £10,000 booking from the collection’s website.

It is fantastic to hear both our members and our clients getting such great success from the collection and that we provide an effective platform for fruitful business opportunities in the events community.

As a collection, we are greatly looking forward to 2017 and  hearing more successes from other members.

If you are interested in becoming a member venue with us, please click here or if you’re an event buyer looking for a venue in Westminster, you can quickly and easily enquire with any of our venues here.

We wish you a very happy and successful 2017.

Clare Arouche Westminster Venue Collection Chair

Welcome to Westminster Venue Collection

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On Monday, 12 December event professionals from across the UK gave a resounding thumbs up to the grand reveal of the Westminster Venue Collection’s new website and branding.

Formerly known as The Westminster Collection, the consortium hosted a suitably festive showcase at Central Hall Westminster that saw members come together to unveil the new identity. After being the first to witness the changes to the leading marketing consortium, event buyers were also treated to a

demonstration of the new website by chair, Clare Arouche, and board member, Rob Chambers.

In his address Rob explained the brand overhaul is the biggest shake-up since the consortium’s conception and is a responsive move to the changing behaviours of event buyers and the importance of providing time-saving intuitive venue finding tools.

Julia Belgrove, office manager at interactive design and user experience agency Allofus, shared her thoughts on the collection’s new website. She said: “I can’t think of another website where I can tailor my needs so precisely. The new Westminster Venue Collection’s website will save me time and I look forward to using it in the future”.

Sarah Gautier, head of studio at digital product design company Ostmodern, added: “For me, it is the ease of use and the ability to have so many great venues in one place that will make the Westminster Venue Collection’s new website such a great tool for event planners.”

The evening was also given a suitable festive touch with carols and music provided by member venue St Martin-in-the-Field’s resident choir St Martin’s Voices.

The pinnacle of the evening came in the form of a prize giving ceremony where 12 lucky event professionals got their hands on one of the collection’s ‘12 treats of Christmas’ including bespoke suits, designer shoes, dining experiences and a remote-control James Bond Car.

Jerina Brown, corporate secretary at CQC, the Care Quality Commission, was also named as the winner of the ‘Westminster Way’ grand prize which included two tickets to the London Transport Museum, lunch for two at One Great George Street, afternoon tea at Conrad London St James and dinner at the Lansdowne Club – everything needed for a perfect day out in iconic Westminster.

Chair of The Westminster Collection, Clare Arouche said: “As chair of the new Westminster Venue Collection board, I am absolutely thrilled to finally reveal the new brand to our members, industry peers and clients. Everything about the new look is designed to improve functionality, create smarter more intuitive searching and ultimately make researching, sourcing and booking a Westminster venue quicker, easier and more efficient for our clients. The showcase event was a fantastic success and the perfect opportunity to highlight our diverse collection of venues and for our members to make solid and lasting business connections. We were truly delighted with the initial response from event buyers.

Last chance to register for the launch of The Westminster Collection’s new identity

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There is just a few days left for event buyers to register for their place at leading venue consortium, The Westminster Collection’s glamourous launch event to unveil its re-brand including new name, website and identity.

In an innovative and exciting move for the collection, the new branding will be revealed at Central Hall Westminster on 12 December, and will create a more contemporary, engaging and intuitive event booking system that allows event professionals from around the world to access 34 unique Westminster venues at the click of a button.

The full new-look branding will be revealed exclusively to those in attendance at the launch event which will also give guests the chance to meet and network with the collection’s member venues as well as industry peers and key media.

Entertainment will be in abundance on the night with music provided by member venue St Martin-in-the-Field’s resident choir St Martin’s Voices and guests can get snap-happy with a photo booth provided by PhotoBooth Magic, a preferred supplier for the collection.

Following an introduction from The Westminster Collection’s chair Clare Arouche, Rob Chambers, collection board member and events manager at London Film Museum, will deliver an opening speech highlighting the key features of the new website, the thought-process behind the branding and plans for the collection’s future.

Those in attendance on the night will also have the chance to win one of ‘12 treats of Christmas’ as well as the ultimate ‘Westminster Way’ grand prize with everything needed for the perfect Westminster day out including two tickets to the London Transport Museum, lunch for two at One Great George Street, afternoon tea at Conrad London St James and dinner at the Lansdowne Club.

Chair of The Westminster Collection, Clare Arouche said: “We, as a collection, are thrilled to be able to reveal our re-brand and new website that offers event buyers and planners an even more efficient way of accessing a host of premium and diverse Westminster venues all in one place. A lot of work, research and development has taken place to ensure that the new website offers today’s time-poor planners all of the functionality they need to easily access, enquire and book prestigious venues in the heart of London. The news marks a dynamic time of change and development for the well-established collection.”

To pre-register for your place at The Westminster Collection’s exciting re-brand showcase contact Verity Lethbridge on [email protected] before Big Ben strikes midnight on Sunday, 11 December.

Places are strictly limited and The Westminster Collection reserve the right to qualify your event planning credentials in order to confirm your place.

New appointments at Church House Westminster

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Church House Westminster has welcomed three new members of staff to its event and marketing teams.

Nicole Regalario has joined the team as events coordinator, bringing with her a wealth of sales and events experience having previously worked at Richmond Hill Hotel and Warren House.

Church House has also strengthened its marketing team with Gemma Watts taking over the role as marketing executive. Gemma has joined the team from the Roehampton Club, having gained a degree in Marketing Management from Oxford Brookes University.

Hannah Draboczy has been appointed sales and marketing assistant. Having graduated from Sheffield University with a degree in Events Management Hannah previously worked at Centaur Media as an operations assistant.

General manager at Church House Westminster, Robin Parker said: “Nicole, Hannah and Gemma are welcome additions to our dedicated team and bring with them key skills and experience for their roles. I am looking forward to working with our three new recruits to ensure we achieve growth targets by raising our profile though strategic marketing initiatives and maintaining our reputation for providing clients with first class event support and delivery.”

Situated in the heart of London, Church House Westminster has AIM Gold accreditation and is one of the city’s most versatile event venues, accommodating between two and 664 guests. For more information call 0207 390 1590.

Don’t miss out on our grand reveal!

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It is an exciting time here at The Westminster Collection as we prepare for the grand reveal of our new identity and interactive website at a stunning showcase taking place on Monday, 12 December at Central Hall Westminster.

Starting at 6pm, the event offers you the chance to be one of the first  to see our new name and logo and have an exclusive live demo of our new website that’s been designed to make searching for a stunning venue in the heart of Westminster even easier.

You’ll also have the chance to meet representatives from our incredible collection of Westminster venues while enjoying entertainment from St Martin-in-the-Fields’ spectacular choir, St Martin’s Voices, as well as the chance to win some fabulous prizes such as a pair of Christian Louboutin shoes and afternoon tea at the Pump Rooms in Bath.

Pre-register to [email protected] now to get your hands on the hottest ticket in town.

Places are strictly limited and The Westminster Collection reserves the right to qualify your event planning credentials in order to confirm your place.

Refurbished Private Dining Rooms at The Lansdowne Club

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The Lansdowne Club is delighted to announce that its two newly refurbished private dining rooms are now available to book.

The Findlay Room for up to 18 guests provides the perfect setting for corporate or private gatherings with stunning Art Deco design.

For larger parties the Shelburne Room can seat up to up to 50 guests and benefits from its own private reception area with bar where arrival drinks can be served.

For more information or to make a booking please contact [email protected].

Central Hall Westminster announces record turnover

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Central Hall Westminster has announced a record turnover of over £7m for its 2015/16 financial year, ending August 2016.

Central Hall attributes much of this success to investments in a number of new technical installations at the venue and an increase in the number of enquiries from clients looking to hire the whole venue. These include PIXL, the largest partnership network of schools in England and Wales, and the BBC New Year’s Eve concert which has been held for the last three years at Central Hall. Following the success of this financial year, the venue is looking to expand its team.

Paul Southern, Managing Director at Central Hall, comments: “We are delighted to have experienced such a strong financial year. The team at Central Hall have been working hard to help drive new business opportunities and we have invested in a number of marketing campaigns and new technical installations to help develop our event offering over the past year and as a result, have seen some fantastic results.

“As well as seeing an increased interest from Chinese businesses, this year we have also expanded our concert offering at the venue and hope to grow this area of the business over the next year.”

As a not-for-profit organisation, Central Hall is committed to supporting a number of local charities. The venue has provided £1.2m for the Trustees to support international and local charities like the St. Vincent’s Family Project (SVFP). The SVFP aims to support young families living in Westminster and addresses the issues of parenting, child welfare and social exclusion by providing services for parents, carers and children.