Successful Meetings - September 2007 - (Page 58)

Gaming Meetings For most people, waiting in line to get into the posh nightspots of Las Vegas, Atlantic City, or the Bahamas can be a drag. That’s assuming they can even get in; not everyone is a celebrity or high roller, after all. Luckily, with some effort, meeting professionals can help circumvent this cumbrance. From complete buyouts to club membership, here is how to provide your “VIPs” A-list access to some of the more popular clubs of the moment. played. The bar was busy, and plenty of people mingled through the night. At a glance, one would think it was business as usual, a happening Friday or Saturday, and not a regular night of the workweek. There are certainly advantages for hosting a party during off-peak nights, says Mendez. “If you book on a weekday, it is easier for a meeting planner to secure the date and get a better rate.” Next year, Bobit Business Media’s International LCT Show festivities will take place at the massive rumjungle at Mandalay Bay. While the clubs are hopping, the nightlife boom has also been a boon to the meetings market, says industry insider Robert Urichuk, vice president of corporate events and sales for Pure Management Group, the company behind Pure Nightclub, the Pussycat Dolls Lounge, and Venus Pool Club at Caesars List How planners can get their people through the doors of the hottest clubs and lounges By Jeanie Casison-Tansiri On the INVITE ONLY Getting the party started is as simple as booking a place. When Michelle Mendez wants to make an impression on the limousine operators attending the annual International LCT Show in Las Vegas, the director of events and operations for Bobit Business Media in Torrance, CA, plans a total takeover. This isn’t just Moon Club at the Palms Studio 54 at the MGM Grand about throwing a party; it’s about mixing business with pleasure in equal measure. “Nightlife is important. The number-one goal is to network, so the exhibitors take current and potential customers out to dinner, but they also like to put together networking opportunities. We always buy out the whole place for our events, so the door is under our control,” says Mendez, whose company produces the International LCT Show along with other automotive trade conferences. “Our event for the limo industry is really about VIP status. These people are used to the glitz and glam, so they really like the club atmosphere. They know what the good life is, and they like to live it.” For the last two years, TAO Nightclub at The Venetian Resort Hotel Casino has been the destination of choice for the International LCT attendees, who reveled in the Asianinspired decadence that regularly attracts the likes of Paris Hilton, Usher, Gwen Stefani, and other celebrities. During the private party, a DJ mimegasite.com Palace; Tangerine Lounge & Nightclub at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino, and Aura Nightclub at Atlantis Paradise Island, Bahamas. “Over the past five years, the nightclub scene for corporate events has heated up. Corporate clients are no longer doing sit-down dinners at rounds of 10 and attempting to transform hotel meeting or ballroom space into nightclub environments to do cocktail receptions that cost $50,000 to $100,000 alone in decor, sound, and lighting to replicate the feel and look,” says Urichuk. “Nightclubs can now offer much of that without the extra cost for lighting, sound, and atmosphere.” Part of the appeal of a complete buyout is that the night doesn’t necessarily have to end when the official party is over. More often than not, club managers are open to the idea of allowing guests to stay during prime hours. “When doing a complete buyout, you should ask the staff to let your attendees stay for free, and not have to pay a cover,” says SEPTEMBER 2007 SUCCESSFUL MEETINGS 58 http://mimegasite.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Successful Meetings - September 2007

Successful Meetings - September 2007 Contents Editor's Note Research Calendar Suppliers Planner Spotlight Websites of the Month Management Matters Meetings Law Personal Success Pre-Event Tools of the Trade The Social Revolution Long Beach Insert State of the Art A Better Banquet The Seven Wonders of the Gaming World On the List Places & Spaces Caribbean Trinidad & Tobago Insert Monaco Greater Los Angeles Hilton Head/Myrtle Beach Gurus Nevada Planners Guide 2007 This Just In Las Vegas The Big Picture The Benefits of Being Small Let's Get Together Let Us Entertain You This Just in Reno Tahoe Perfect Complements Hotel Stats & Contact Info Hawaii Incentive Handbook 2007

Successful Meetings - September 2007

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