" We thought we were out of the woods, but it turns out we're not. Over the last few days, we've seen a number of events cancelled, including end-of-year meals and Christmas trees. Elodie Soubeyroux, sales manager of Domaine de Raba, a hotel on the outskirts of Bordeaux that is used to hosting seminars, sums up the "seminar" approach. another difficult period for corporate events. The fifth wave of the pandemic has brought a sudden brake to the entire sector, particularly since Jean Castex's call for caution on 6 December. In his speech, the Prime Minister urged us to take our foot off the accelerator. "festive and convivial events in the professional and private spheres "It also urges companies to make greater use of teleworking.
While the Domaine de Raba's public service clientele have got the message loud and clear and have postponed their events, some companies are less cautious, such as this one which recently held its end-of-year meal in the temporary restaurant converted into a mountain refuge. " 'Put gel everywhere, but we're comingthey assured us" says Elodie Soubeyroux. Similarly, a number of large-scale corporate events, for around 500 people, have been held at the Bassins des Lumières, a former World War II submarine base that has become the world's largest digital art centre.
But these examples are becoming increasingly rare. " We receive many requests for postponementThe last two Thursdays and Fridays of the year were fully booked." says Pauline Regeon, sales manager for events at Château Pape Clément. " As soon as the number of participants exceeded 100, all events were cancelled." says Jérôme Girelli, manager of the Hilton Garden Inn Bordeaux, who refers to a " hecatomb "However, Amélie Déchénais Amélie Déchénais, head of the Bordeaux Convention Bureau, was nevertheless looking forward to a fine end to the year with a good portfolio of events, " but following the government's announcements, hotels began to register cancellations, sometimes even concerning privatisations. "
This phenomenon is obviously not confined to the Bordeaux region alone. The association La Clé-Collective des Lieux Événementiels estimates that, for its 77 members, more than 1,000 events will be cancelled in December. " This represents almost half the sales we were expecting for the month, with a higher percentage in Paris." explains Delphine Bouclon, noting a contradiction between " places that are not administratively closed "and gatherings that are not prohibited" .
Even if, in practice, there is no formal ban except in the public service, the precautionary principle and the duty to protect employeesEspecially with the festive season approaching, when a cluster would obviously be very much frowned upon, they prevailed. " Quite a few companies are playing it safe and have cancelled everything until the end of the year to return to the remote model." says Michel Font, founder of Nelta, a consultancy specialising in career support for talented senior managers and executives. " Today we are being asked toconsider events that can be held remotely or face-to-face - those without social events - so that we can switch from one to the other if necessary. For example, we're working on a seminar scheduled for early February by dividing it into two-hour sequences. That way, if it has to be held by videoconference, participants will have time to take a real break away from their screens." he continues.
Corporate events go digital again
Digital technology, already a tried and tested fallback solution during the last confinements, is regaining strength and vigour with the spread of the pandemic, as Société Générale recently experienced. At the beginning of December, the bank had initially planned to bring its management teams together at the Longchamp racecourse, for the first time since the start of the pandemic. A seminar for 300 people was scheduled to take place over two days, but was cancelled. converted by necessity into a remote event of three hours. " The decision was taken on the Friday evening for the following Wednesday, so we switched the event to digital in just four days." explains Carine Bertacco, Managing Director of the Lever de Rideau agency. The set design has been changed, with a more intimately furnished TV set; the editorial content has also been rethought, with a time limit for each contribution. " From an emotional point of view, the objective was not entirely achieved, as there was no eye-to-eye reunion between the teams, but the messages were conveyed and the interactivity was there." says Carine Bertacco.
" This case is not uniquesays the director of Lever de Rideau. Our next events from December to February will all be digital.With the exception of 7 %s which were cancelled. As we have already experienced this type of period, we are better organised to anticipate this transformation. "The fact remains, however, that the current period is in danger of destroying a fine momentum, just as the events sector seemed to be back on track after months and months of inactivity. " From September to November, we saw a major acceleration with the resumption of seminars in hotels and the holding of major national events in Bordeaux.says Amélie Déchenais. But today, there's a feeling of uncertainty about events up to the end of January and a loss of confidence in February and MarchThese are big months for events and conferences. "
This moment of hesitation is also felt in the implementation of projects. " People are taking precautions for events scheduled for January, and even for those further away, in May or June.says Pauline Regeon at Château Pape Clément. Signatures are slow in coming. As a result, the conditions are being relaxed again and again. You have to play the game. " There is also the corollary risk that, after this great emptiness, there will be an overflow, as Florence Blancpain, manager of the Palais de la Bourse, one of Bordeaux's most prestigious event venues, fears. To those who are asking us today to postpone their events, we invite them to come in March and April, because after that there will be such a concentration that we'll have to turn business away."
