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By Ian Zelaya
April 27, 2017
1. ‘VOGUE’S DIRECTOR OF SPECIAL EVENTS GIVES PLANNING TIPS AHEAD OF MET GALA: Eaddy Kiernan, Vogue‘s director of special events, is the event-planning mastermind of the annual Met Gala, which takes place on Monday. Kiernan recently gave tips on hosting a Met Gala-worthy event. Vogue: “So what exactly does Kiernan recommend? ‘Dim the lighting, but not so much that people can’t see each other. I like lots of candlelight, and think fresh flowers are really important. Even making sure that you have flowers in your powder room can make a big difference.’ Kiernan, for her own part, favors a good garden rose. But she doesn’t necessarily believe that a professional arrangement is required. In fact, for the early risers, Kiernan highly recommends the Dutch Flower Line in New York’s flower district for fresh and affordable blooms. Choosing seasonal flowers, Kiernan also says, is a budget-friendly way to shop. But as wonderful as candlelight and flowers often are, they’re not the only important details when it comes to planning a party. ‘Passing bite-size, and healthy, appetizers in the beginning is great—no one likes tapping their watch waiting for dinner to be served,’ Kiernan says. ‘And if a guest is sitting on your couch, make sure that he or she has somewhere to put his or her drink.’ ‘A welcome cocktail is also always helpful,’ Kiernan continues, ‘especially if it’s a larger celebration. That way, people don’t feel like they have to wait on line for the bar.'” http://bit.ly/2q9E7R9
2. LVMH TO LAUNCH PLATFORM FOR EXPERIENCES: French luxury conglomerate LVMH will launch Clos19, a new e-commerce platform for its Hennessy and Moët brands, which will sell experiences. Business of Fashion: “Clos19 will sell luxury wine and spirits from brands like Moët & Chandon, Krug, Veuve Clicquot, Dom Pérignon, Château d’Yquem, Hennessy, Glenmorangie, Ardbeg and Belvedere, alongside editorial content and services like 24-hour delivery. But critically, the platform will also sell experiences, from tastings, to intimate dinner parties hosted at private homes, to what the company calls ‘exceptional experiences’ like luxury travel experiences to Antarctica — each augmented with Moët Hennessy’s wine and spirits. ‘The whole concept behind Clos19 is around sharing and championing the art of hosting,’ Watine Arnault, told BoF. ‘It gives more immediate and sophisticated access not only to our exceptional products, but also provides the services, accessories and experiences that enable our audience to become the perfect hosts. There is an experience for every type of budget from the tastings to the exceptional ones which are much more aspirational.’ Experiences will start at £180 (about $230). LVHM has experience staging events like its annual Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic, but Clos19 is working with third-party partners, such as a boutique travel agency called Blue Marble Private, a luxury travel company based in London, to fulfill certain elements of the experiential offering. The move comes as luxury consumers are shifting their spending away from traditional products towards experiences.”http://bit.ly/2oKyAzq
3. INSIDE LOS ANGELES’S TRENDY PAN AM DINING EXPERIENCE: The Pan Am Experience—a dining venue inspired by the iconic 20th-century airline—has been open since 2014 but popularity continues to soar. Now, its founders are considering bringing the experience to other cities. Adweek: “From the outside, it certainly doesn’t look very exclusive. The restaurant is located in a beige brick warehouse behind razor wire in the industrial wastelands of the city’s Pacoima neighborhood. Yet once a week, a fortunate few assemble there to travel back in time. The complex at 13240 Weidner St. is home to Air Hollywood (more on that in a minute), and inside its warehouse sits a fully reconstructed forward section of a Pan American 747 wide-body jet. The first-class interior section (roughly Row 9 and forward) functions most days as a movie backdrop. But on Saturdays, Air Hollywood’s management turns into a restaurant that recreates the experience of flying Pan Am 50 years ago—the six-course meals, the caviar and vodka, the statuesque flight attendants in short skirts, everything. The price is $300 a head, and there’s a waiting list to get in. ‘We haven’t advertised once, and now we’re sold out until July,’ says Air Hollywood founder Talaat Captan. ‘It’s just a unique experience.’ … The question is: Will all that effort be enough for an eccentric restaurant concept like this to play in Las Vegas? Captan and Toth envision one of two scenarios: Either building another 747 interior similar to the one they have now inside an existing structure—say, a casino hotel—or, better still, actually bringing an entire 747 to a parking spot near the strip and using the plane as the restaurant. A pipe dream? They’ve actually purchased the airplane already.” http://bit.ly/2p4g5IB