Best Events Expo

Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending the Best Events Expo at the Sheraton Hotel in Midtown. The conference program was comprised of a series of professional presentations and an open floor of event vendors - overall the event was smaller and more low-key than the comparable BizBash Expo in October, but in my opinion the presentations were far better (more on those later). In addition, Best Events provided refreshments and lunch for all attendees, which was great for networking.

I enjoyed seeing some familiar vendors, as well as some new faces. Here are my favorites and some highlights from the event.

First up, Watson Adventures. While not, I learned, named for the great sidekick to Sherlock Holmes, the founder was no doubt inspired by those  classic stories. Watson hosts big scavenger hunts for the public and for corporate team-building in major cities across the U.S.  I spotted their booth from across the room and made a beeline - the words "adventures" and "scavenger hunts" are enough to get me moving. I was thrilled to learn that the sales people at the booth were as enthusiastic for their product as I was - they made it sound terrifically fun.

Next I stopped by a beloved vendor, Crumbs Bake Shop. As usual I was distracted by their multi-tiered display of mini-cupcakes, and of course had to relieve it of a sample of my personal favorite (Its filled with raspberry. It transcends delicious). Crumbs does a great job of accommodating catering requests both large and small, and their sales staff is always kind and helpful. Who cares though? When you get down to brass tacks, what really matters is that Crumbs cupcakes are insanely good.

I had a great chat with David from NYCPhotobooth.  Originally a professional photographer, he got into the photo booth rental game when a client asked for one - and he couldn't find it. NYCPhotobooth is now an industry standard, and has come up with models to accommodate all kinds of event requirements, even one that can be easily FedEx'ed (and which was on its way back from Las Vegas when we spoke).

PBG Event Rentals created a large glowing installation for the luncheon portion of the event. Although I did not love all of the shapes of the LED sculptures they provided, I was taken with the soporific effect of the changing colors.  Overall the space had a fantastic, otherworldly feel to it that drastically improved the Sheraton's lunch presentation (not terrible, just not even remotely inspired). This one statue changed colors and brightness in a pace so gentle it took a minute to fully realize it was changing at all.

All in all, the Best Events Expo was a morning well-spent. My only complaint? They wanted to charge me $3.25 to check my coat.  Tsk tsk, Best Events - you should know better.