18 Oct Taylor & Braithwaite Celebrate 50th Anniversary
Taylor & Braithwaite held their 50th anniversary charity gala dinner and auction in aid of Cancer Research UK on 6 October 2017, organised by CBA Events.
Celebrating their 50th year supplying, servicing and maintaining plant equipment and machinery throughout the North of England and Scotland, Taylor & Braithwaite’s aim was to host a prestigious evening with a wow-factor for its team, suppliers, friends and family which brought everyone together for some good food, dancing, networking and the opportunity to raise money for a charity close to everyone’s hearts.
CBA Events were appointed in December 2016 to manage all pre-event, on site and post-event elements, working closely with Taylor & Braithwaite and the venue throughout the process, from the initial concept meeting to an eight-strong team managing the event on the night.
Starting with the venue find, we focused on hotels within the Lake District, in order to remain close to Taylor & Braithwaite’s Appleby base.
The chosen venue was The Low Wood Bay Resort and Spa, a 4-star hotel situated on the shores of Lake Windermere. The hotel has a wealth of experience in hosting similar events and with its reputation and setting, it provided the perfect backdrop.
In-keeping with the black and gold theme, we managed all design aspects of the evening from the celebratory logo to the branded invitations, dressing the room to the event brochures positioned at each place setting.
On arrival, guests were welcomed to the Gallery Lounge where Veuve Clicquot flowed and photographs were taken, whilst being entertained by an award winning close-up magician. Guests met, mingled and were wowed before the grand unveiling of the Lakes Suite.
The house lights were dimmed and the double doors opened revealing the beautifully dressed room with black and gold linen, chair covers finished off with gold organza, sparkles on the tables, a star clothed backdrop stage, carefully selected music and show stopping lighting; it really was the wow-factor Taylor & Braithwaite had asked for.
Following the formal welcome and address, the lucky winner of the first game walked away with a luxury Fortnum and Mason’s hamper. Further spot prize winners won afternoon tea for two vouchers or a much sought-after Derwent Bay Bear. Raffle tickets were sold to hopeful would be winners; the top prize being £1,300 worth of travel vouchers.
With all money raised going to the company’s chosen charity, Cancer Research UK, guests were encouraged to dig deep.
Having posed as drinks waiters earlier in the evening, the fabulously talented Singing Waiters caught guests unaware towards the end of the main course and began their performance. With a mixture of musical genres and theatrical performance they exceeded expectations and once again raised the roof, concluding with a stompingly good rendition of ‘500 miles’ by The Proclaimers; scarcely a seated guest to be seen.
Taylor & Braithwaite worked hard to secure a range of impressive auction lots; the generosity of suppliers was obvious, which guaranteed an exciting event. Local auctioneer, Michael, took to the stage and proceeded to work his way through 18 lots. From major sporting event hospitality to Michelin star dining, luxury retreat weekends to 4 days in Rome, Michael worked his magic and generous bidders provided yet more funds for the pot.
Before guests really let their hair down, MC for the evening, Chris, wrapped up proceedings and announced that due to everyone’s generosity we had raised just over £34,000 for Cancer Research UK! With the DJ taking to the stage, every inch of the dance floor occupied, guests danced the night away before retiring to the bar to continue the celebrations.
Helen Parsons, Operations Manager of Taylor & Braithwaite Ltd, said: “The CBA Events team were supportive and fun to work with throughout the whole process. Their friendly staff were professional and knowledgeable and made the evening the massive success it was. We couldn’t have done it without them.”
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