Latest London Christmas Party Trends

Friday 7 December 2018

Goodwill along with good duty of care are top of the agenda according to our latest Christmas Party Research. The findings underline that companies are continuing to invest in their employees at Christmas.

Venue Search London’s research draws on the feedback from organisers who have overseen the needs of 36,000 London Christmas party guests this season.

• 2018’s festivities will see businesses spend an average £86.46 + VAT per person, well in line with the taxable allowance and an increase of 2% year on year
• More than 32% of businesses spend in excess of £100 + VAT on their employee and client entertaining
• Reflecting a healthier lifestyle and focus on employee duty of care and ‘Me too’ trepidation, corporates are increasingly turning to restaurants, bars and clubs for their events with a notable shift in events taking place at lunch time
• Celebrations hosted during the day account for 21% of the market and there has been a significant decrease in demand for late licenses. 54% of hosts want their events to conclude at or before midnight.

According to Kimberleigh Lloyd at Venue Search London: ‘The office party is a very different affair to how it was a decade ago; employers are scrupulous in their duty of care and very aware of the pitfalls associated with alcohol consumption as well as the prevalence of social media and the effects it can have on their brand.  As the new generation of employee is far more health conscious and drinks less, employers are simply adapting to what their teams want’.

Other findings indicate more parties taking place on Thursday and Friday and that nearly 10% of bookings are made in the first quarter of the year to guarantee exclusivity and the best place and date. 

Kimberleigh continues ‘Christmas used to be about black tie and ball gowns but nowadays guests want less formality and far more of an experience which is a reflection of the trends on the high street. Meanwhile there are still largescale parties for the global corporates and these are all about discretion and most importantly bagging the best date before anyone else does’. 

Venue Search London is a specialist event organiser with its finger firmly on the pulse of the capital’s new and emerging venues and locations. The company organises more than 275 events each year and has a broad roster of clients from start-ups and scale-ups, to heritage brands and global organisations.

For a full copy of the Christmas Party Survey, click here.