After 2 years, the Christmas party is BACK.
And it’s become cool.
Gone are the soggy sandwiches in the back room of a pub. Forget karaoke in the office fueled by one too many glasses of terrible wine. In 2022, the best companies are thinking much bigger (and better) than that. We’re talking eco-friendly events. Activity-based meetups. Throwback decorations.
Here are five of the hottest trends for end-of-year events to give you some inspiration for your own Christmas party.
Meeting your colleagues IN PERSON
After two years of weird online Christmas parties (or no parties at all), this year is all about in-person Christmas events that get remote and physical teams together for a night (or day) of having fun in the most inventive ways possible.
The rise of remote work means the Christmas party might be the first time whole teams have met each other in real life, so ice breakers are a must. Activities like workshops and interactive events such as casino or quiz nights will keep the conversation flowing.
So long as there is no Zoom involved, you’re all set.
We’re dreaming of a nostalgic Christmas
A hot trend this year is for nostalgic Christmas decorations. Because let’s face it, many of us have had a hard year and we’d like to be coddled in Christmases of yore, thank you very much.
This could mean embracing traditional Christmas colours like red, green and gold. Depending on your age, it could mean going back to the 1980s complete with gaudy tinsel on the trees and plenty of foil decorations hanging from the ceiling.
Whatever nostalgia means to you, we’ve got you covered at our Farringdon event space which can be decorated however you like. Your company Christmas event could look like anything from a Frank Sinatra dream to the interior of your nan’s house.
However you want it, we can make it happen.
Partying on a school night
Some of the best companies are embracing the rise of remote work and flexible working hours by hosting their Christmas party on a weekday.
We’ll be honest, we LOVE this idea.
To start, if you’ve not yet got a venue lined up (again, we can help with that), there is always more availability on weekdays.
Second, offering a weekday event might mean more of your company can attend - December weekends are busy for everyone.
Third, a daytime or weeknight event means thinking outside the box and that’s everything Oh La La! is about. How about a booze-free event, where the emphasis is on something (anything) other than getting smashed on warm box wine? Like macaron making workshops for instance...
If all the cool kids are (responsibly) partying on a weeknight, we’re all for it.
Eco-conscious parties
The biggest trend around Christmas parties this year has to be eco-friendly events. This includes everything from finding a central event space accessible by environmentally friendly public transport, to plastic-free events.
Eco-friendliness is our bag at Oh La La! Macarons. How about making your Christmas macaron workshop vegan-friendly? Or using environmentally-conscious caterers in our event space? Or offering an organic, biodynamic and natural wine tasting event?
Your colleagues - and the planet - will thank you for it.
HOT TREND ALERT: Food activities
Centering your Christmas party around food - and not just dinner - is a big trend this year. Cooking classes, wine tastings, street food tours, you name it, if food is involved, someone is doing it for their Christmas event.
We’ve already got some great companies signed up for our Christmas macaron workshop but we have room for a few more this December. Your guests will learn how to cook and decorate notoriously tricky macarons with our talented bakers. Add Prosecco or cocktails, or keep it booze-free, the choice is up to you.
Because learning a new cooking skill (and eating the fruits of your labour) beats dinner in a crappy restaurant with an overpriced set menu any day of the week.
