All Posts Filed Under ‘Parties’

Just wanted to share some of the extraordinary photos of Bar and Bat Mitzvahs produced by Robin Crevelt of In Any Event . We have the pleasure of seeing Robin at least a dozen times a year – she is truly a Mitzvah Maven! While holding many events with us over the years, she loves the Land and Sea combination, offering her clients the best of both worlds with a Cocktail Cruise aboard either the Dandeana or RegentSea and then a full blown Simcha in the FantaSea Yacht Club. Robin started her own event planning company nearly 20 years ago but continues to stay up to date, beyond current and even lunches with her mitzvah kids because they think she’s so cool.  She takes special care of her clients, works for them like no other and always maintains the utmost professional stance while enjoying the evening that she scripts from start to finish. Whether hauling in her collection of amazing hand crafted centerpieces or lining up dancers on the floor, inspecting the dessert station for tastiness or taking care of all the “older young adults” Robin enjoys every aspect of the party planning world.  In any event, Robin gets high marks with FantaSea Yachts and keeps us on our toes !

When you’re getting ready to plan an event, whether it’s your wedding, company holiday party, charity event or an anniversary party, there are key things you need to know to prepare and protect yourself when negotiating with your venue, caterer and/or vendors. Here at FantaSea Yachts & Yacht Club we have helped hundreds of brides, event planners, party planners and first time coordinators plan the best, most cost effective events. Here are some useful tips I’ve learned about the negotiating table!

1. Be Prepared. The three most important things about negotiation are preparation, preparation, preparation.  Learn as much as possible. The internet and magazines are a great resource to see what the competition is doing and what’s popular. I recommend creating a file with photos and articles that you have collected. This will help communicate your vision when working with your florist, caterer and other vendors as well as narrow down your choices.
2. Know What You Need. Now that you have a sense of style and vision, the next step is to zero in on your needs.
   1. What is your date?
   2. What is the time of your event? Afternoon, Evening, Lunch or dinner?
   3. How many guests? You don’t need an exact count, but a good ‘guestimate’ (example 25-50 or 150-175)
   4. What is your budget?  Many times my clients say, “I don’t have a budget, I’m just investigating right now.” The truth is, everyone has a comfort range. Is it between $3,000 -  $5,000? $8,000 – $10,000? $15,000 – $20,000?
   5. Do you want a buffet, a plated meal or appetizers?
   6. What kind of bar do you want? A cash bar or hosted bar?
   7. Know What’s Most Important To You.  If you have followed steps one through three you have a good idea of what you want.  Now you need to figure out what’s most important. Is it price? Date? Special décor? A combination of everything? You need to narrow down what’s most important in order to negotiate the best deal.
   8. Be Flexible with Your Date & Time. If budget is most important, then your ability to be flexible is key to negotiating the best price.  Just like a hotel or airline, most catering prices are based on supply and demand. If you’re planning your company’s holiday party, you’ll get more bang for your buck if you’re willing to have a week day evening or weekend daytime event than if you try for a prime Saturday night. By choosing off-times & off-season, you can negotiate 30% – 40% off a prime time, allowing you more money to throw a great party!
   9. Utilize The Venues Resources. Here at FantaSea Yachts & Yacht Club we are a full service event company. We will help you plan your event from invitation wording to liaising with vendors. Because we do so many parties and events, we can make money saving recommendations for anything you need. We are your event planners so you don’t have to spend money on outsourcing one. We want you to make use of our expertise!
   10. Understand the difference between bargaining & negotiating. Bargaining is a quid pro quo affair – it’s this for that, tit for tat. Negotiating is about psychology and building trusting relationships – it is really a mutual education.

So, When you are ready to plan your next event I’ll be here waiting for you on the other side of the of the negotiating table. I promise, by following the six steps outlined above, we will both leave the conference room with a smile!

On the record setting hottest day in Los Angeles, where better to be than sunny Marina del Rey, sipping champagne and enjoying hors d’oeuvres, while watching the sunset with MTV’s Jersey Shore’s Snooki?  Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi was onboard our luxury yacht  DANDEANA, dressed Hampton-chic in a sleek black dress and fabulous hat, as the spokesperson for the  Frownies “Beautiful Eyes” Launch.  Standing all of 4’9”(with heels!), she was super sweet, taking pictures with everyone on board and even sharing her “sombrero” with me.

Also onboard for the festivities were “The Spin Crowd” Jonathan Cheban, “Danity Kane’s” Aubrey O’Day, “Bachelor Pads” Kiptyn and Tenley (how cute are they!), “American Idol’s” Paige Miles and Chikezie Eze, and Jon Lee Brody starring in the upcoming “Hurricane Kid”