St Georges Day Festival - The MODS are coming!

Only me again...

My latest event...

Never Gonna Give you up......

Hello again,

Just checking in to let you know how excited I am to bring Rick Astley to Preston Guild Hall on Saturday 30th May 2015.

I have had the pleasure of working with this singing sensation twice now, and I can't say that I will ever get board of booking him....OK, I know 80's was my era first time around, and I was a fan but his voice is as good today as it was back then, so if you can, come along to see him live..

In fact - go one better and head over to the Guild Promotions Facebook page, and enter the details to win a Meet & Greet with the man himself.

Doors will open at 7pm and the entertainment starts warming up from 7:30pm.

You can also take full advantage of our VIP Hospitality packages;

Starting from £35.00 plus booking fees, this hospitality package includes:

• Reserved premium seating within the 1^st 5 rows
• VIP bar area within one of our newly refurbished hospitality suites
• Souvenir laminated VIP Pass with lanyard

Starting from £45.00 plus booking fees, this hospitality package includes: – Best seats available

• Hospitality Package to include a 3 course meal in the Lancaster Suite
• VIP bar area within one of our newly refurbished hospitality suites
• Souvenir laminated VIP Pass with lanyard

3-Course Dinner

Chunky Vegetable and Herb Soup

Thyme Roasted Chicken Breast served with Fondant Potato and Creamy Tarragon Sauce

Sticky Toffee Pudding with Butterscotch Sauce

Freshly Brewed Coffee and Mints

Vegetarian option upon request

Are you coming??

#NEVERGONNAGIVEYOUUP

Once ever Guild...

Hi All,

I know!!! I know!!....its been a while, but its my New Easter Resolution to update my blog more often (Well I am too late for New Year Resolution so this is the next big excuse...)

It has been a crazy busy 12 months since I left C&T...
Enjoyed one too many 'ladies at lunch-dates'..
Set up D2D..

Joined forces with the Katy Holmes Trust to help organise the North West Pride Awards, judged at Prestons Got Talent, and then I was asked to join the team at Preston Guild Hall,

Charter Theatre - PGH

Grand Hall - PGH

to set up a new leg of the business called Guild Promotions Ltd, all of which I intend (New Easter Resolution) to go into much more detail about in future blogs.

But I thought I would start with...Guild Promotions, as there is so much to tell you...

Next blog will be all about Guild Promotions Ltd

Bye for now

Susan x

Return to work....

Hello 2013...

I cannot believe that it is over halfway through January already!!

Soon be Christmas again!!!

Well I have to say that Christmas is a long and distant, but pleasant memory. Having been ill – like the majority of the population – for most of it, the time off from work went quite quick!

We all returned, bright-eyed and bushy tailed, with a trip to Madame Tussauds in Blackpool, to celebrate both mine and Ryan’s respective birthdays.

We thought we would invite all our friends from Cuffe andTaylor to enjoy a morning with the stars.
As you can see from the pics below - a good time was had by all!

 



Top Left to Right DANIEL CUFFE, BRETT DAVIS, SUSAN BURNS, AIDAN CARTMELL
Bottom Left to Right: RYAN BROOKS, RACHEL SHARPLES, PETER TAYLOR

Awards Ceremonies - the way forward....

Apologies in advance.....I have had a few drafts sat here doing nothing, so I thought I would publish them anyway.........this was supposed to be dated November 2013....whoops!!

Oh I do love  a good Awards ceremony, and there are so many to choose from, the question is which ones do you enter?

Since 2010 when I entered and received  ‘Highly Commended’ award at the UK Events Award ceremony, I knew it was a great way to let people know what you and your business are about. So once I joined Cuffe & Taylor in the same year, I wanted to enter the most relevant ones that would gain the most exposure and credibility within the industry.

As the business grew, I was a complete menace for photos – I would shove poor Daniel into as many photos as possible to ensure that we displayed a united front, when it came to the founding directors. He would curse me up and down, but I smiled it off knowing that it would give me plenty of material to share when filling out the forms and questionnaires. Now Peter on the other hand was extremely compliant, and was in no way shape or form camera shy – which helped me to bully Daniel…sorry Daniel 

Another tip to ensuring the awards entries stood a good chance was to obtain testimonials

Here are a few that I got back;

We have had the pleasure of working with Susan since 2012, her attention to detail both during and pre-event really does make a massive difference to not only to the success of an event but to delivering a safe site for staff, contractors and ultimately all in attendance. Susan remains calm under pressure and always looks upon everything with a level impartial head making the right decisions in a timely manner which is a quality only the best of event managers possess. I believe Susan will excel in whatever role she is set and is an asset to any company.

“From the moment we arrived on site we felt in professional hands. Albeit from the main contractor perspective, comprehensive pre-planning was obvious and our load in proved trouble free. A nice balance of efficient yet practical safety management certainly assisted us with our schedule. As was the story of the 2012 summer, an atrocious weather forecast for the show weekend made for very challenging conditions for everybody concerned. Yet despite being relatively small, the Cuffe and Taylor team expertly handled each demand placed upon them. From my regular visits to the specialized mobile event control unit, Susan’s [Burns] calm demeanor and precise communication was clearly evident, and she commanded the safety of three events with an unbridled fortitude not seen since Margaret Thatcher took on and crushed the trade unions during the 80’s. Susan and the rest of the Cuffe and Taylor team displayed a refreshing approach to event safety management and long may that continue.”  Gavin Scott (Star Events Group Ltd).                  

“G4S were contracted to work on all of Cuffe & Taylor’s outdoor events in the summer of 2012. From our initial meetings we knew they were a company that put the Health and Safety of the general public first on the list of priorities. Their attention to detail prior to the events meant that on the event days, things ran like a military operation. Susan Burns, Head of Operation for Cuffe and Taylor is Event Control at all events, her ability to communicate effectively, clearly and calmly ensures that all relevant information is received and acted upon.

Throughout the summer, there were many challenges faced, not due to lack of planning, but due to adverse weather conditions, on each of the challenges Susan ensured that all areas of the arena were aware and constantly updated of what the situation was – this enabled any situation to be dealt with little, or no disruption to the general public.

I would recommend the Event Control services of Susan Burns and Cuffe & Taylor to anyone who cares about holding a safe and secure outdoor event. I look forward to working with them again on their summer 2013 events”

Ray Critchley - Freelance Health & Safety Advisor IOSH tech NEBOSH

 

“A multi-skilled professional, Susan is an asset to any production or event as her communication skills combined with an attention to detail ensure that Susan's leadership is non ambiguous and gets the best from fellow colleagues and crew. Coupled with a personable character Susan develops good working relationships with clients and organisers and adds that "reassurance" element that is vital for a client to experience during their production. I'd have no hesitation in recommending Susan to head up operations on any event, a true professional less

February 14, 2014, Ray was with another company when working with Susan at Cuffe & Taylor Event Management Limited

Vivien wood – LINKEDIN - Tourism Officer at Fylde Borough Council

“I have worked with Susan since 2010 in connection with the Lytham Proms Festival in her role as Operations Manager. She is a charming person, she is personable, courteous and very efficient. I would have no hesitation in recommending Susan for employment within any events organisation. Susan attended our local authority meetings with regard to the H&S aspects of the Lytham Proms, she was an asset to Cuffe & Taylor and gained a great deal of respect from her colleagues and business acquaintances.

 

Susan has a smile for everyone and is ready to roll her sleeves up and get stuck in to achieve results.

January 24, 2014, vivien was Susan's client

 

The Awards that I entered the company in was

UK Events Award 2011 – Best Small Event for Lytham Proms Festival Weekend 2011

Red Rose Awards

UK Festival Awards – online campaign for Blackpool Tower Festival Headland 2012

The Green Awards – LEP – Lytham Proms Festival Weekend 2013

Event Production Awards

Lancashire Tourism Awards 2011, 2012 & 2013

Best Business Awards

BIBAS – Winners of The Entrepreneur of the Year 2013 and Finalist for Best Small Business Award 2013

 

So as you can see the amount of exposure that is gained from entering Awards, can be endless! My only caveat would be to enter the right ones that match your business Strategy or Mission Statement.

Good Luck!

Food Glorious Food

......that was the hot topic of the day as we launched our VIP hospitality packages for Lytham Proms Festival Weekend 2013

Champagne and Cocktails

 

The freshly ground coffee and delicious Danish pastries provided by Caroline – Director of Twelve -  made up for an early start to prepare for the launch. Pretty soon we were welcoming some of the Fylde Coasts elite, and local businesses to showcase what we had on offer this summer.

Caroline and Chef Husband doing a little interview with BBC Radio Lancashire

The champagne was flowing and the canapés were being snapped up as quick as they were coming out of the kitchen.

Mmmmmm bubbles....hick!!!

 

Then we had a little presentation by Peter, which was kicked off by a bit of footage that Ryan and I edited the previous day. We did quite well considering we had such a short amount of time to edit it.

 

This years Lytham Proms is shaping up to be a brilliant weekend of entertainment – I am thinking of booking the weekend off and actually attending each night as a member of the public – instead of being locked away in Event Control...:(
Just a few more pics from the launch on Tuesday 26th Match at Twelve Bar and Restaurant
Look out for the team below - Daniel, Rachel, Brett, Peter, Jason, Ryan

 

 

Rachelsharps

 

 

Till next time. Have a lovely Easter everybody......

Proud Momma

Mr Ryan Patrick Burns

I apologise in advance, but I am going to be one of those annoying parents who shouts from the roof tops about their children’s achievement’s.

I know it can be tedious trying to be impressed about little Tommys amazing ability to recite Twinkle Twinkle little star whilst hopping on one foot – but we do don’t we?...We ‘WOW’ along with the clearly deranged parent, not wanting to burst their bubble, at their little ones amazing talent…sometimes we even encourage this behaviour and suggest things like “oh they should keep that up – it will make them famous one day!!!”

But for this day only – and I promise I will keep bragging to a minimum in the future – I am going to unashamedly gloat about my first-born sons achievement.

Proud Momma with her first-born

Now you might think – he is not the only 22 year old to obtain a First Class Masters in Civil Engineering – but he is in my family – so there lies my justification to brag..

He comes the gloating….

I was so proud to witness the ceremony to begin with, as I wasn’t sure if he was going to make it. The original ceremony date was back in July, but he was travelling around East Asia, having a ball whilst the rest of his fellow graduates where being honoured in their gowns.

It was a refreshing change not to have been the organiser of a large scale event for once - didn't have to worry if everything was poised ready to go, as the guests start to arrive...

I wish that the ceremony invitations could be extended to siblings and grandparents but unfortunately they are so strict with the numbers that it was just the two parents. Obviously I took  few shots and videoed Ryan going up for his award - one for the grandparents!! Spending a small fortune in the process!!

Ryan with Prof Nigel Smith



Ryan with two of his Uni mates

Awkward moment when you are not ure if you are meant to be in this group shot!!!



So after the ceremony, and the copious amounts of photography, it was off to have lunch at one of the famous Italian eateries in the area.

Salvos Italian Restaurant - Leeds

All in all - it was a wonderful day. One that will stay in my memory forever..
Well done darling...

OK - thats the gloating over - I promise normal blogging shall resume in the New Year....
Have a great Christmas y'all

Oh and if you are in the Leeds area - check out Salvos

Youtube clip of Salvos on Gordon Ramsays F Word



One of the owners, has a blog which I was delighted to stumble across a lovely recipe for Melanze - one of my fave items on the menu...Thank you Gip