My husband and I commenced in the party hire, balloons and party products business 6 years ago. It was our first business and, having never done retail before, we wanted to serve customers the way that we wanted to be served. That meant being greeted, personally helped around the store, given relevant advice, and above all NOT being sold to.
One of the best ways to help our customer is to get them to help themselves. Party planning needn't be long or involved - nor costly. But it does take a little planning and time, so where possible allow at least two weeks before assaulting your party store!
First, have a clear idea of what your style of party. By party style I mean cocktail, formal dinner, garden barbeque, informal with dancing etc. If you can get clear on this you'll be amazed at how much easier the rest of the party will be.
Next decide on a party theme. Even the most informal of parties should have a theme. This can be as elaborate as fancy dress, Hollywood, Football Final, as generic as "magenta and purple" colours, or as simple as "summer barbeque" etc. Once you've got style and theme decided, the hard work is done.
At this point you need to determine exactly where in the venue are you creating various various parts of the party. For example, at home you may have pre-party nibbles and drinks in the lounge-room, then a sit-down meal outside in a marquee or under the stars, followed by dancing in the pergola area. (Don't forget your wet weather back-up plan.) At a function centre you may have the front reception room, then the main dining hall etc. There is no right or wrong with the "where" of venues - you just need to be clear.
In Part 2 I'll discuss the next stages - food and drinks.
It's just not a party without Party Plus
www.partyplus.com.au
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment