“One can not think well, love well, sleep well,
if one has not dined well.”
Virginia Woolf
- The participation of celebrity chefs in corporate events is increasingly becoming a key element for success.
- The involvement level of a chef may vary depending on objectives, participants and budget as some events organized by AIM Group International have demonstrated.
- It is important to personally meet the chefs and take advantage of all the communication opportunities to establish a successful partnership.
The gastronomic culture of a country has always been an expression of its cultural identity. In recent years, the spread of a renewed interest in food has changed our approach to dining: we want to know the origin of the ingredients, to how they were prepared as well as who has prepared them. Therefore it is natural that the chef has taken a leading role in our society: celebrity chefs have become protagonists in countless television programs and magazines.
The meeting industry is following this trend with more and more event planners relying on well-known chefs around which to organize successful events.
How to get a famous chef to become the main attraction of a successful event?
The possibilities are endless as creativity has no limits. One possibility is to demonstrate their cooking: great chefs become the undisputed protagonists of an event, preparing, for the demanding eyes and palates of the attendees, their culinary specialties. This was done at the recent meeting of Italian Autogrill F&B directors in Naples. The event was organized by the EVENTS Division of AIM Group International, which offers a complete service for any kind of meeting or event of any size, whether it is a corporate meeting, incentive program or gala dinner. The Autogrill kick-off is always a crucial moment of confrontation for company executives and the show cooking by Ciro Salatiello, the famous chef of the Napoli Soccer Team, was its culminating moment. The guests received a portion of Kepurp, the octopus kebab invented by the Chef.
Another event organized by the EVENTS division was for DHL customers and prospects in the Marche Region and featured the famous Italian chef Moreno Cedroni. Chef Cedroni has done everything possible to surprise his audience with real “gourmet special effects” such as eggnog in liquid nitrogen, cotton candy, and an edible toothbrush with coconut and mint toothpaste. During the DHL dinner Cedroni recounted in detail the secrets of his culinary inventions, much to the pleasure of his audience.
In other cases you may simply rely on celebrity chefs to organize your dinner menu without requiring their presence among the participants. Even less expensive is to organize a dinner in the restaurant of a great chef.
And what if the attendees are allowed to compete with each other in the kitchen? One of the most stimulating experiences of Team Building can be cooking competitions. With professional chefs in the kitchen, the event’s success is assured as it was for the WorldChefs Challenge Semi – Final Continental Competition, organized by AIM Group International Prague Team for the World Association Of Chefs Societies.
What are some useful tips for organizing an event with a celebrity chef?
Whether you want to actively involve the chef in a cooking demonstration or you prefer the chef to remain behind the scenes, meeting the chef personally guarantees the success of an event. Of course, It’s a good idea to meet him during a site inspection, before the event itself. To meet and talk with a professional chef, showing appreciation and interest in his work, are basic requirements in his or her motivation.
It is also advisable to widen consideration beyond the world of celebrity chefs. A “rising star” that is not well-known, say as a television star but is present in major culinary publications could greatly contribute to the success of your event, as well as being more easily accessible. Plus the participants will remember the event with pleasure when the chef achieves stardom. It is important to remember that every moment spent with the chef can be enhanced in terms of communication. Tweets, Facebook posts, videos and pictures on Instagram help to achieve great online visibility.
Think about the possibility of involving a limited group of opinion leaders, VIPs or a select group of customers for a cooking course during an event, or a tour “behind the scenes” of a kitchen of a famous restaurant. If satisfied, they will be the first to speak of the event, ensuring their help in promotion both among participants and online.
These are just some tips and possible solutions to help organize events with the most important celebrity chefs. We must remember that gastronomy and cuisine are synonymous with creativity – experiment and invent to organize stellar events with these creative star: the participants will appreciate and remember the experience!
