Four-day Boutique Summit Experience
The Brief →
Create a 4-day series of events - give it a Corporate Summit feel, including a couple of must-haves and fun activities, nothing too OTT but timeless - and keep it personal, intimate and unforgettable.
Cool - no problem…
I find a Summit or Retreat experience is highly underrated in what it can do for a group - may it be for corporate creatives, C-suite board meetings, reunions, milestone celebrations - there is magic in spending time together mixed with unforgettable activities or entertainment. The most important point is to determine the objective or purpose of the gathering - there has to be a unifying theme.
Summit or Retreat Theme
A summit is best known for gathering heads of state, or key position/protocol holders into one room for information sharing, discussions etc etc. But I quite liked this concept of gathering your closest and dearest friends - all scattered around the world - for a big occasion. The reality is you’ll only invite those who’ve made a big impact on your life or continue to invest in you in some shape or form. There is a bit of science behind hosting a group over an extended period - and there has to be a clear intention for the gathering.
As for meeting a corporate group - either needing to solve, plan or project - you’ll mine different perspectives in a curated setting vs the stock standard. The result will also curate intense loyalty to be in an environment that has capacity to hold new ideas or complex conversations.
TAKE OVER THE ENTIRE Venue
The venue or estate sets the tone and will dictate how the group would show up daily - and if this is curated well with the summit events planner, it needs little extras or decor to make it memorable. But to host a think tank or birthday retreat on a private estate that has breakaway rooms, a variety of venue spaces, meeting rooms, or chill zones will create comfort - the ‘home away from home” feeling.
The bonus to keeping everyone in one spot is the impact of logistical costs on the overarching budget - leaving more to invest in activities
Retreat Program, ACTIVITIES AND ENGAGEMENT
Recently hosting the B40 Summit in Franschhoek, we focussed on 5-star local pop-up experiences. Too many points were in our favour not to; situated in wine country, hosting world-renowned hospitality venues and chefs, uncharted views, and rich local heritage entertainment. It created an effortless program and gave the audience an ‘unattainable’ like experience - because you won’t be able to have this sequence of events off the shelf ever again. And I always like that approach. Give them something true to your authentic style but make it unforgettable.
THE Summit Itinerary IS THE HEARTBEAT
A good program keeps the momentum and a bit of the conversation going. Four consecutive days in a ‘remote’ location can be quite intimate (and intimidating) for a gathering of diverse individuals - but this is where your schedule, people, and all the other pillars carry the momentum. With a good flow of gatherings, activity, celebration, and rest - it gave everyone the freedom to move and be as they needed.
For the B40 Summit, we started with the Guest journey profile - this helps us to see the human capacity of the sequenced activities, layer the wow moments and stay focussed on the objective of gathering. It’s really important to consider downtime; you have a variety of people and everyone has their own rhythm so to create a nice balance and resting or even “lull” or slower pockets is never a bad thing.
DRESS THE SPACE
Hosting from one central hub, estate or villa has multiple pros to it, but it still needs a bit of TLC per activity to keep things interesting and fresh. It boosts a bit of energy if the same room is totally transformed day to day or moment to moment - there’s this WOW factor that comes along with it. If it’s a reunion or international leadership gathering, your guests also travelled from all corners of the world - so make it worth their investment, another form of chivalrous hospitality - to not be short-sighted at this point of the conversation opportunity.
There is a science and real consideration that goes into hosting a diverse group over consecutive days, and Corporate Summits or Retreats curated for select decision-makers have serious potential. Creating a themed retreat for friends and family can take a bit of pressure off of hosting responsibilities - most often you’re the key that keeps it all together, no pressure!
It’s not only for corporates or think-tanks but great to use for milestone celebrations or big reunions, and I’m all in to help you curate those experiences - see me as your personalised Summit or Retreat Planner!
