Background
National retailing giant John Lewis has traded in Sheffield city centre since 1847. To celebrate their 160th anniversary, the Sheffield store, originally known as Cole Brothers, wanted to organise a special event for the occasion as well as mark the last major anniversary the branch would celebrate in its present site, before moving to Sheffield’s new retail quarter in 2011.

John Lewis wanted to provide its partners with a prestigious and memorable event. A central and easily accessible location was required but key to the decision was a venue that had grandeur and glamour and could offer a flexible delivery team and excellent catering options. Sheffield City Hall and in particular the City Hall Ballroom provided all these key elements and so the decision was made to host this important event at the venue.

Execution
John Lewis wished to organise the event in-house with five members of staff from John Lewis responsible for delivering a specific area of the event and liaising with the team at the City Hall.

Throughout the lead up to the event, the delivery team met regularly with the City Hall team to review progress and maintain constant communication. The availability of staff at City Hall meant no-one was in doubt about any element in the lead up to the event.

Almost 400 guests attended the dinner. Guests arrived via a red carpet through the Ballroom entrance and were greeted with champagne, followed by a drinks reception in the South Hall. 35 tables of 12 were prepared in the Ballroom. A bespoke dinner was created to serve the clients requirements and included a choice of Butternut Squash and Coriander Soup or Potted Salmon with Potato Salad for starters followed by Roast Beef, Roast Lamb or Goats Cheese Roulade. For dessert, Christmas Pudding or Baileys Crème Brulee was served – finishing with coffee and mints. The evening culminated with a live band to entertain guests. The City Hall venue provided an ideal location for John Lewis.

The city centre location was within walking distance of an excellent selection of hotels and transport links proved convenient for those that lived close by - meeting the needs of both visiting guests and Sheffield residents.

Verdict
To achieve an overall positive verdict Sheffield City Hall needed to deliver a grand, high quality and memorable event to mark the anniversary of John Lewis’ 160th year in Sheffield.

The event received a number of complimentary comments from partners, and feedback confirmed that the event had achieved its objectives. A reference about its success was even made in the annual partner survey; over 5 months after the event took place.

Mark Lewis, Managing Director of John Lewis Sheffield commented ‘The nearly 400 partners who attended had a fantastic evening; they were certainly wowed when the doors to the main Ballroom opened. You had created a stunning spectacle inside. I have especially received numerous comments on the quality of food. It really was significantly better than that which many of the Partners have had at large scale events’.