Profiles of Canadian Success: Designing Trendz

Designing Trendz by DMS Video Productions Toronto 

Designing Trendz Inc. is a full service event design and décor company with a talented creative team dedicated to orchestrating every aspect of an event, professionally and with flair.  Based in Toronto, the company has been producing stellar award winning events since its inception in 2001. Today Designing Trendz continues to take pride in dedicating themselves to the needs of their discerning loyal clients and ensuring that each client’s needs are carried beyond décor to include all aspects of an occasion to produce the most stunning events imaginable.

Lead by Creative Director Craig Gruzd, Designing Trendz is comprised of a full service staff: Event Managers, In-House Floral Designers, Decorators, Prop Designers, Drivers and General Studio Employees, housed in a 10,000 square foot: office, showroom, floral studio and warehouse.

Discovering his artistic and creative talents at a young age Craig Gruzd dreamt of an outlet for his passions. Determined to discover a way to use those talents Craig moved from South Africa to Toronto to realize his dreams. Craig came to Canada with a background in catering and quickly gained employment within the special events industry. During that time Craig noticed that a void existed between aspects of the industry, specifically a void between the décor and other elements used to create an event. Recognizing this as an opportunity Craig founded a modest event design company to bridge the gap. Previously decor elements such as centerpieces, linens, lighting and even event entertainment lacked cohesiveness, Designing Trendz Inc. was born.

Craig founded the company on the basic principal of total event design and changed the face of the industry. Since founding the company, Designing Trendz has become one of the largest event design and décor firms in the country. With Craig at the helm as Creative Director, Designing Trendz has created numerous unforgettable events taking inspiration from colour, texture, design, art and architecture.

Craig and his expert team of designers and managers now travel the world in search of the latest ideas and trends constantly raising the bar for event design and décor. Known for setting new standards, Craig is in high demand as one of the most sought after speakers at industry events.

In his busy schedule Craig is committed to giving back to the community. He is active in developing the next generation of event professionals by working with students at colleges, assisting them in realizing their dreams.

This is a profile of a Canadian Event Success Story, just one of the new and creative ways CEP Magazine showcases amazing, talented event professionals in Canada.  CEP Magazine: a Canadian company, dedicated to Canadian business.

VCEC Wins Eco Award

The Vancouver Convention Centre is the winner of the 2010 Recycling Council of BC’s (RCBC) Environmental Award in the public sector category. The award will be presented tonight at RCBC’s 36th Annual Zero Waste Conference and Gala in Whistler. 

“This remarkable facility continues to set new standards for environmental excellence,” said Kevin Krueger, BC Minister of Tourism, Culture and the Arts.  “Today’s award is another example of why the Vancouver Convention Centre is considered a model of sustainability and one of the world’s top convention facilities.”

AVW Telav Gives Back

AVW-TELAV makes massive equipment donation to English Montreal School Board

 As part of their ongoing commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility, AVW-TELAV has generously participated in a massive equipment donation project with the English Montreal School Board (EMSB). The donation consists of 34 overhead projectors, four slide projectors, two zoom lenses for slide projectors, 15 stage risers, 117 stage riser legs, 79 video and overhead carts, 12 cart skirts, 15 VHS players, three DVD players, 21 television monitors (26” and larger), 24 black drapes (12’X12’), 34 audio cassette player/recorders, 65 blank VHS tapes, 2253 blank audio cassette tapes, and 10 slide projector bulbs. Not only did AVW-TELAV donate the equipment, then shipped and unpacked it.  

“The EMSB is very grateful to AVW-TELAV for the generous donation,” said Paul Kettner, Literacy Consultant, English Montreal School Board. “Students at more than 25 schools, both elementary and secondary, will benefit from this equipment in areas such as literacy, media studies, social studies, and drama.”

Become a CEP Event Reporter

Join the CEP Magazine team as an intern reporter and find yourself inside the hottest events in Canada

CEP is currently seeking creative, inspired, energetic and motivated individuals to join the Magazine and Web Production team as an official Canadian Event Reporter.

Your role is to cover the special events in your area, both public and corporate by going behind the scenes with the planners and producers, suppliers, designer and entertainers and report back with creative reviews, news and stories for the blog and magazine. Its a chance to get backstage at your favorite events, venues and peek over the fence into the planning of some of the biggest and most popular events in Canada. Through the program individuals have the opportunity to gain experience in the areas of blogging, event reporting, event production, music, design, media relations, photography, interviewing, public relations and journalism.

CEP provides a forum to gain valuable knowledge, work experience, building your portfolio and an opportunity for networking and connection building in the world of special events and media in exchange for your  exchange for hard work, creativity, and innovation. The goal is for each intern reporter is to gain contacts and skills to establish themselves in their field of interest.

In order to be a it for the position, you need to be:

Well versed in web blogging, know how to use a digital camera, are truly interested in the special events industry, have a cool, upbeat disposition, enjoy getting out there, are a great writer, are outgoing, well groomed and well spoken.

Additional requirements include:

• Passion for special events
• General Knowledge of  trends and understanding of the industry
• Ability to handle deadlines
• Can work with little guidance 
• Excellent verbal and writing skills
• Detailed oriented and self motivated
• Reliable and honest.

You will be out on the town representing CEP Mag so its vital that you are willing to follow proper media guidelines and protocol when on site. Get out there, be cool, have fun, learn, watch and listen and report back.

If interested, please email your resume and letter about why you want to be a CEP Reporter to stacy@canadianspecialevents.com please include two samples of your written work.

Meet the Idea Hunter

Everybody Wants an Idea Hunter For Their Events

Join team ‘MPI Crew the Ride’

A Challenge for all Meetings and Events Professionals

MPI members have the skills and experience to help crew this ride.  Cancer can be fought!  You can make a difference.  Join team 'MPI Crew the Ride'.  If you have any questions or are interested in being a team captain, please contact Natalie Wilson on 604-408-6266 or at nwilson@phn.com.  Please join us! conquercancer.ca or (888) 771-BIKE (2453)   Natalie Wilson, Director of Recruitment MPI BC Chapter

Poster Garden Makes it to the Oscars

Silhouette Optical’s setup in the celebrity gifting lounge will feature vibrant graphics on a Rollup Banner

 

The bright lights of Oscar night will shine on PosterGarden when Silhouette Optical, an international manufacturer of high fashion eyewear, sets up its display in the gifting lounge before the 82nd annual Academy Awards on Sunday, March 7.

A customer of PosterGarden’s, Silhouette’s space in the celebrity gifting lounge will include a head-turning Rollup

Banner with brilliant graphics printed on TerraPro. Silhouette’s display promotes their popular Titan Minimal Art line of eyewear, which is marking its 10-year anniversary this year. Celebrities and press who attend the awards extravaganza browse their way through the gifting lounge, selecting goods to take home with them. The lounges are usually filled with everything from jewelry and electronics to clothing and stylish eyeglasses.

“It’s pretty exciting to think that one of our displays is actually going to be a part of such a high-profile event,” says Travis Rigby, President and CEO of PosterGarden. “We’ve always known that our displays can mingle with the best of the best, but this reinforces it for us.”

PosterGarden’s vibrant graphics and sturdy, simple portable displays are widely used at trade shows and corporate events, but they’re versatile enough to be used just about anywhere, including at the Oscars. Display options include banner stands, popups, tabletop displays, and many others. PosterGarden also offers an extensive line of green and sustainable display products.

The Rollup Banner that Silhouette selected is an easy-to-use banner stand that sets up quickly and turns heads with its full-color, custom-printed graphics. And at the 82nd annual Academy Awards, where big-name stars like Morgan Freeman and Sandra Bullock will be out in force, there’s no telling just whose heads may be turned. “We’re looking forward to hearing about Silhouette’s experience at the awards and how our display helps them,” Rigby says. “This is a big deal for them, and obviously they want to put their best foot forward. We’re glad they came to us to help them do just that.” For more information about PosterGarden, please visit www.PosterGarden.com.

 

About PosterGarden Located in the Pearl District of Portland, Oregon, PosterGarden is an innovative, customer-focused leader in the portable trade show and event display products industry. Offering uniquely simple experiences, PosterGarden carries a full line of display products, including retractable banner stands, popup booths, tabletop displays, event tents and flags, and accessories. The company also offers a comprehensive suite of graphic design services and prides itself on a stellar record of customer satisfaction. To learn more about PosterGarden, please call 1-800-707-0204, or visit www.PosterGarden.com.

MPI Supplier of the Year Award Goes to………

Iceculture Named 2010 Global Business of the Year

Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters (CME) held a Roadmap to Recovery Summit at the Chateau Laurier Hotel in Ottawa with theobjective was to align business and policy leaders towards priorities for high-value economic growth in the context of the structural changes that will define the recovery from the recession.

 More than 300 business and Government decision makers and Association representatives from coast to coast strived to identify the challenges of moving from recession to recovery after the deepest global recession in Canada in more than 70 years. 

Minister of Industry, Tony Clement was the keynote speaker for the 2010 Canadian Innovation Awards which recognized those companies that have challenged the status quo, and succeeded.  ‘Their stories will truly inspire others in the country’, said CME Vice-President of Public Affairs, Jeff Brownlee. Minister Clement also emceed the awards ceremony.  During the afternoon session, independent panel discussions embraced a wide range of topics including international business,  skills, innovation, financing and supply chain logistics.

 President Jayson Myers said,’ Today, more than ever, we have to do better. We have to innovate the way we approach innovation in this nation. We have to be faster. We have to go higher and we need to be stronger.  ‘This is why we share great Canadian success stories such as those of the winners in the Canadian Innovation Awards’.

 Five Ontario companies were honored for innovation. Winner of the EDC Canadian Innovation Award – Global Business of the Year 2010 was Iceculture, the Hensall-based manufacturer of crystal clear ice blocks. More than 70 % of production from the Hensall plant finds its way to markets outside Canada.

 In accepting the award Julian Bayley, who founded Iceculture with his wife Ann, said, ‘National recognition by your peers is a solid endorsement of performance and this award must be shared with the complete Iceculture team – without teamwork, it would simply not have been possible.

 ‘Small business drives the Canadian economy and makes a tremendous contribution in doing so, perhaps more than ever, in recessionary times. We are proud to be part of it. ‘The award is a little bitter sweet in that it marks our achievements over the past few years A year ago was our most successful in our 25 year history. Then things changed dramatically, as we all know only too well, and we found ourselves fighting for survival during a recession where our markets softened and in some cases, completely disappeared. ‘Developing strategies to meet the challenges of a changing marketplace have demanded we re-invent ourselves and find new products and processes. It is not easy making radical changes and it takes a lot of courage to move away from systems that have proved successful in the past. ‘The US market was harder hit than our own and we had to start looking further afield to sell our services. India which is considered a threat to many manufacturers offered us an opportunity, and we grabbed it.

 ‘Last week we returned from India where we installed an ice lounge in New Delhi – the first of several to be opened in the country. The future looks  promising.’

VANCOUVER CONVENTION CENTRE GOES PLATINUM

VCC Becomes the first convention centre in the world to receive highest level of LEED® certification 

The Vancouver Convention Centre is proud to announce that its iconic West building, opened in April 2009, has been awarded LEED® Platinum certification for new construction by the Canada Green Building Council. Platinum is the highest level of LEED® (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification. 

“The Vancouver Convention Centre is the only convention centre in the world to receive the highest level of LEED® certification,” says Kevin Krueger, Minister of Tourism, Culture and the Arts. “Not only is the expanded Vancouver Convention Centre bringing economic benefits to the province and the tourism industry, but it’s a model of sustainability that will set a new standard.”

 “While the West building was to have been designed to a LEED® Gold standard, the resulting quality of its design, construction and operations warranted a Platinum designation, making us a leader in environmental sustainability in our industry,” says Ken Cretney, General Manager, Vancouver Convention Centre. “This designation is a reflection of years of hard work and thorough planning by Vancouver Convention Centre staff and our outstanding project team. Without our dedicated team, this prestigious accomplishment would not be possible.”

“From the very beginning of the expansion project, our goal was to create a building that is not only functional and beautiful, but also environmentally sustainable in every way, bringing urban ecology into the downtown core,” adds Cretney. “We are committed to doing our part in reducing the facility’s carbon footprint and to create a healthy environment for both our staff and guests.”  

Vancouver Convention Centre’s sustainable design features and practices include:

·         a six acre ‘living’ roof, the largest living roof in Canada and the largest non-industrial living roof in North America

·         a sophisticated drainage and water recovery system, which has successfully reduced potable water use by 72.6%

·         83% of construction waste has been diverted from landfill

·         an extensive facility-wide recycling program that recycles an average of 180,000 kilograms of materials annually, nearly half of the total volume of waste generated.

·         purchases “green power” electricity generated from low-impact renewable sources

·         a restored marine habitat built into the foundation of the building

·         a seawater heating and cooling system that takes advantage of the adjacent seawater to produce cooling for the building during warmer months and heating in cooler months

·         natural light and ventilation maximized throughout the building

·         local BC wood products used throughout the building

LEED® is a third-party certification program and an internationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings. LEED promotes a whole-building approach to sustainability by recognizing performance in five key areas of human and environmental health: sustainable site development, water efficiency, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality.  

The only two-time winner of the International Association of Congress Centres’ APEX award for “World’s Best Convention Centre,” the Vancouver Convention Centre opened in July 1987 after originally serving as the Canada Pavilion at the World’s Fair in 1986. Since inception, the facility has demonstrated a constant commitment to service, technical and culinary excellence, as well as environmental sustainability. With the expansion complete, the Centre has tripled its size to cover 1.1 million square feet (or four city blocks) for a combined total of 471,000 square feet of pre-function, meeting, exhibition, and ballroom space.  

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