Winners of Prestige Events Magazine’s 2008 Cool Venue Awards Announced!
One minute you are COOL, the next minute you are not.
COOL is a matter of opinion. It is perhaps the greatest currency you can possess; whether you are running for President, or pitching for the next big event!
The COOL Venues Awards were developed by Prestige Events magazine to recognise an unsung and largely influential element that emerges in the process of planning a corporate event — How exciting is the venue? Will the invitees RSVP? Will they turn up?
In the current economic climate, the pressure on an event organiser is even more apparent.
Every corporate event organiser strives to ensure their next event is THE hot ticket.
Over the past six years, Prestige Events magazine has tried to identify for its readers venues which will make the difference, and set it’s editorial compass on what’s COOL for the benefit of the reader.
The barometer should not be biased towards all that is ‘new’ in our opinion. There is a place for the classic / heritage venue. They often possess a character, charisma, and class that many ‘newer’ builds cannot yet match. So what is COOL? A COOL venue should have: Charisma, Originality, Style, Innovation, Sex Appeal, Authenticity, and Uniqueness. COOL is a very personal opinion. Therefore, a panel of judges was selected to form a council. Each understood the intrinsic factors, elements and characteristics that deem a venue to be COOL. The council represents a diverse collective; writers, industry figureheads, and event organisers / specialists. They have applied the strict guideline that each nominee should not be selected as a result of its technical capabilities, since many of these facets (lighting, AV, etc) can be imported. This year’s ‘barometer’, created by a council of 12 judges (see bottom of page), provides very interesting reading (and to those that didn’t make the shortlist, remember there is always next year and 12 months to change ‘opinions’) . . .
COOLest for small meetings (Holder: Lords)
- Altitude SW1 (Winner)
- Tower Bridge
- Williams F1
- Friends House
- Rejuvenation Centre
- Devenport House
- Stoke Park
- Somerset House
- Andaz
- IOD Hub
- The Trafalgar
COOLest for receptions (Holder: Cannon Bridge Roof Gardens)
- Il Bottaccio (Winner)
- Altitude SW1
- 30 St Mary Axe
- Wiltons Music Hall
- The Crypt in St Paul’s Cathedral
- Christchurch Spitafields
- The Old Fruitmarket, Glasgow
- Namco Station County Hall
- Hard Rock Café
- Middle Temple Hall
- Park Plaza Riverbank
