Creativity on a Shoestring

Ann Gilmartin’s biggest challenge is figuring out how to top herself. The Montreal-born owner of Wings Unlimited in Darien, CT, an eight employee, all-woman incentive house now in its 25th year of operation, has arranged for clients to reward their employees with adventures far beyond their imagination and each year, Gilmartin has to do it bigger and better than the year before. With dwindling budgets and the cloud of the AIG factor over her head, how does she do it?
 
International incentives used to constitute 25% of Gilmartin’s business — or as much as 35% if you include Canada and Mexico, she said. Now she has only one international meeting on the books, most likely bound for Asia.  She said she misses the exotic side of her business, which once included such far-flung and extravagant programs as:

* A Roman-themed, costumed dinner party set in the ruins of Ephesus in Turkey, once home to Cleopatra, where entertainment was provided by Istanbul’s symphony and ballet companies. “Participants cried…it’s something they’ll never forget,” said Gilmartin.

*A golf event held during and just after the Ryder Cup in Spain, where the 30 participants mingled with the likes of President George Bush Sr. and England’s Prince Andrew, and then played the course right after the tournament was completed. The tees were still in place, the bleachers were still up and our clients were overwhelmed, reliving the game as the champions played it. For a golfer, it was like going to Mecca,” she said.

*A private party held behind the pyramids in Egypt “where no one ever goes”, with carpets on the sand, camels, whirling dervishes, belly dancers, the works.

*Celebrity charity baseball events in both Toronto’s Skydome and Houston’s Astrodome, where guests came “dressed with their hats and glove, like little kids’ and played with retired baseball players like Ed Sprague and Jim Wynne. It let attendees build relationships with the people they’d done business with in the past while doing good — so much better than a typical cocktail party,” Gilmartin said.

*A grape-stomping contest, with attendees in actual barrels, stomping with accordion music accompaniment, held in a trattoria off the northern coast of Italy.

*A party, held back in 1997, on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, right after the close of trading, with ticker tape still on the floor. “So much better than looking down from the visitor’s gallery,” she said.

*An event on the NASCAR track at the Charlotte Motor Speedway for high-end local businessmen who had never been, because they viewed it as more of a blue collar venue. “We took over the infield when no actual race was going on, gave everyone a ride in the pace car, and held a drawing for someone to go in a racecar with an actual driver.” For people who had once turned down their nose at the thought of such an event, it was a big hit; Gilmartin said the second year it was held, every attendee came back with a son in tow.

These sorts of events, “infused with creative vitality,” inspire attendees to hit their sales marks year after year—even their spouses get into the act, pushing their husbands or wives to do more business because they want to attend again, said Gilmartin.

Unfortunately, the past few years have found Gilmartin dealing with budgets shrinking by 30% and clients preferring to stay closer to home, which makes for destinations that make Palm Beach look exotic, she said. She’s unwilling to sacrifice the quality and “wow factor” of her past events, despite the cost crunch, and has had to become even more creative to keep attendee satisfaction high.

Stays are shorter and closer to home, she said, and she’s turning to more second-tier cities like Charleston, SC, Nashville and Newport, RI, “places with reasonable weather that perhaps we wouldn’t have considered in the past. In Newport, we took on the theme of the America’s Cup sail, taking 16 attendees out on yachts and having them race each other, followed by dinner at a mansion. In a city like Charleston, we can work with the old world atmosphere, the history by hosting plantation dinners and carriage rides. People will still feel special,” she said.

Collaborate with the Chef

Part of the secret is keeping creativity high while trimming the fat off food and beverage costs as well as ground transportation, said Gilmartin. “Gone are the days of the $35 cupcake; there’s no more filet mignon. Instead we might use salmon or dress up chicken in a way where people don’t feel their experience has been lessened,” she said.

“Now every nickel is accounted for — we use crudities and dips instead of hors d’oeuvres that are sold on a per-piece basis. For breakfast packages, we leave out the omelet stations and smoothie stations — we might talk to the executive chef and ask, ‘In this $12.95 per person breakfast, what’s driving the price so high? What can we substitute for the most expensive item so that our attendees’ perception isn’t damaged, where it can look plentiful without being costly?’ We find that chefs and catering departments are bending over backwards to help us. When you bring in a chef and talk directly to him or her and ask how you can save money, they’re pleased and happy to help. We also look to serve ‘farm to table’, using local produce to keep the venue’s costs down so they can charge us less.”

Buddy Up for Rides

With ground transportation, Gilmartin said she “massages” the arrival list, trying to put people together whereas in less lean times, they might have had their own limo.

“We find that if we use nice vehicles, even if they are vans or medium-sized buses, and add nice touches like cold towels, the attendees don’t feel shortchanged. We’ve even contacted the local board of education and rented out school buses for 50’s and 60’s theme events, which saved 20% off the transportation budget. Our longevity in the business has taught us how to make things happen and how to give our clients the biggest bang for their buck,” she said.

Sometimes, cost-cutting is as easy as just leaving clients to their own devises, said Gilmartin.

“For a global corporate training meeting of 400 young professionals we had a decor/entertainment budget of $1,000 for a four day meeting. During the Major League All Star break baseball we designed an evening around watching the game live in the general session ballroom at the hotel using the already existing screen. Tables were dressed with black and white striped linens with centerpieces consisting of blow up inexpensive baseball bats and balls.  Before the night was over the attendees were moving the tables aside and playing ball with all the “play” equipment and having an uproarious good time at a fraction of the cost. They made their own fun!” she said.