If you enjoy fun, chances are you enjoy a good party. The current events market is estimated to be at a value of $565 Billion just in terms of conferences, exhibitions, music festivals and corporate events worldwide, making it a big business for companies within this industry.
Nevertheless, it is easy to forget that a great fiesta requires a lot of planning and preparation. Inviting all the guests, organising a venue, ensuring a plentiful amount of food and alcohol! All of this can be enough to make you scream “SCREW THIS! I’ll just drink by myself!”.
Fear not, we have compiled a list of useful, unique and interesting startups to help your next party go off with a bang.
Let’s start with what some may consider a key component to any successful party, alcohol. Estimated to be worth roughly $475 billion in the US alone, alcohol is undeniably a popular companion for many celebrations. The sale of alcohol is nothing new, however many startups are looking to change the way we buy and receive this mind altering liquid that we love so much. One of these startups is the L.A.-based alcohol-delivery company Saucey. This fresh startup brings your desired beverages right to your doorstep. You can choose from a wide selection of booze using their App or website and as an additional service they now offer professional bartenders (with at least 3 hours notice) so you can focus less on serving and more on socializing. Saucey undeniably has a lot of competition such as Drizly, Thirstie and Swill, along with Amazon, who are also focusing on beer and wine delivery in a growing number of cities. However the CEO Chris Vaughn believes there is a lot of opportunity in this colossal market and considering they have successfully raised a total of $10.4 million, Chris clearly isn’t the only one who sees potential here.
With the alcohol dealt with, now we can focus on filling empty bellies. Feast it is a London startup which provides users with a huge selection of vendors with a specific focus on “Street food” style catering. The company was founded to streamline the process of booking street food vendors for parties and social events. Simply search their large database to see who is available. You can also narrow down your search by selecting your budget, cuisine or dietary requirements. The young startup has currently raised $440,000 in seed funding, and while it is primarily based in the South of England, the company has expressed a desire to expand overseas in the long term.
Organising an event in it’s entirety can be an overwhelming, especially when you consider every minor detail that needs to be considered. Eventerprise aims to make the process far easier by connecting business suppliers with clients around the world. Through interactive profiles, event suppliers can showcase their unique offerings, key strengths and reviews, enabling event hosts to send requests to potential suppliers across different categories and geographical locations.
One of the key selling points of this idea is its ability to provide clear and informative feedback. There is no platform such as Tripadvisor with which you can trust ratings, reviews and pricing. So while you can vet suppliers for an engagement dinner or a honeymoon trip, previously it was difficult to vet the person or team actually running your wedding. Eventerprise fills this gap in the market by connecting the right suppliers with clients to ensure fantastic events.
EventerQuote/RFP now automates the request for proposals or quotes. So you can send one request form which will then be distributed to multiple suppliers within minutes, substantially cutting down on time and effort that was previously spent on unverified internet searches. The Drift live chat application has also been integrated to improve service. Drift’s artificial intelligence component has allowed Eventerprise to successfully integrate their knowledge base into live chat so that users can now access relevant support 24/7.
“These new additions and upgrades has given us a truly world class product and reflect our ongoing obsession to be the digital superhighway to the entire global events industry”, stated Götz Thümecke, Co-Founder of Eventerprise. “By constantly improving the connections between hosts and suppliers we are making sure suppliers can grow their businesses effortlessly whilst hosts can create better all round event experiences without all the insecurity and time wastage”.
Making sure your event can easily be found is essential if you actually want people to turn up. For many events a simple address or popular location should be fine. However, if you are looking to put an interesting and creative spin on things why not try What 3 Words.
This UK based startup is changing the way we look at postcodes / zipcodes with an interesting angle. Instead of the standard string of letters and/or numbers, it’s created three-word sequences that can be more easily memorised and shared. The three-word location pinpointing service has assigned trios of words to the 57 trillion or so 3 meter x 3 meter squares around the globe.
Due to it’s unique method, What 3 Words can arguably be more accurate than postcodes or zipcodes because it does not vary depending on country. The creative startup also allows you to choose the words for your location for a small fee. So the next time you invite friends to a party, why not try out a three word location to pinpoint the spot. Just a friendly suggestion from successor.rashers.suitable.
Goodie bags may not be at every event, however when we do receive one of these goodie bags, they very rarely seem to contain “goodies”. Instead there’s often a catalog of leaflets and a few throw away gifts like a cup or a pen. One company is taking a new approach to this old tradition. Instead of physical goods, Virtual Event Bags send guests virtual goodie bags. The US based startup provides much more creativity when designing these bundles and aims to deliver a more effective method of reaching guests. The content is brandable, relevant and can also come with cool offers. And if you want to add an extra special touch you can also use Cinebop to create an animated invitation to send out to guests.
Thanks to Facebook and other social media sites, planning a simple party or event has never been easier. However, if you really want to make a lasting impression it takes a lot more to go above and beyond. These Startups should help to guarantee your celebration or party will be one to remember (even if your memory of it is a little blurry).
