Event Entrepreneurs Venture into Premium Market

Chinedu Eze
As industries and entrepreneurs seek ways to cushion the impact of the current economic hardship in the country, event entrepreneurs have said time is ripe to venture into the premium market.

Participants at a recent one-day BusyBee Annual Event Business Summit explained that premium itself is excellence; excellent service delivery, excellent customer relationship and all round excellence in the entirety of one’s business ending in the client paying more money and receiving best value for his money.

Going premium moves professionals from budget customers to customers that can afford excellent services; it also involves streamlining what the budget customer can afford to achieve a premium delivery.

In her welcome address, Managing Director, BusyBee Group, BisiSotunde, said the Summit aims to synchronise business with solutions to provide event companies with a competitive advantage in the industry.
Themed, ‘Repositioning your brand for the Premium Market,’ she said the Nigeria event industry is huge and has come of age to premium.

In her paper presentation tagged ‘Sell your premium services with style, Deep Bajwa, CEO, Opulence Events, London, pointed out that when you are offering premium you cannot cater for everyone, so there is need to understand the market, what is value and luxury.
She added that to get to that market, professionals would need to be visible and the only way to achieve this is to get your face to the media.

CEO, Lifetime Events By Jacqueline, New York, Jacqueline Vaquez in her presentation entitled ‘How to Move from Budget Clients to Luxury/High End Clients, stressed that partnerships are very essential because through these you see people that connect to your business and build on those strong relationships.

She also stressed on the need for preparation, which entails gathering as much information as you can on an intending client and creating a profile of the client and this would give an idea of the direction to go.

Another vital factor, according to Vaquez is Value, which is a combination of quality and pricing. She said value is very important because that is what the client is expecting; “it’s a return on investment.”
Thereafter panelists at the panel discussion brainstormed on the need for professionals in the industry to venture into the premium market.

They averred that ascending to the premium level is very important right now because people’s spending power is not so much, so for every kobo they spend they want to get the best.

Speaking at the panel, the Managing Director, Klala Photos and Films, Ayokunle Adebusoye, noted that the event industry is the fastest growing industry now and a money-making one as well.

“The more you build well the better the values the better the income the better what you get. So the best is put in your best, build more, make more money and transform to the next level,” he said.
“You need to equip yourself with great content, you need to need make yourself visible and sustainability and growth of your business are very key.

“When you’re able to think of ways on how to sustain your business, ways of how to grow your business, then you’re certain of maintaining your business – your name and brand you’re taking to the next level,” he advised.
On his part, the Managing Director, Joks Pepper Konsult, Seun Kukoyi, stated that nobody can afford not to be premium at this point otherwise you’re completely out of business.

He said: “You have to be premium; at least you have to have a practical plan to deliver excellent service which is the basis of why we’re even doing the business.

“I think it’s time for everyone to sit down, assess where they are and make up their minds to get to where they ought to be because at the end of the day what is worth doing at all is worth doing well so we all need to do excellent things.

“It’s very important right now because people’s spending power is not so much, of course for every kobo they spend they want to get the best so nobody can afford not to be premium at this point otherwise you’re completely out of business so you have to be premium.
“At least you have to have a practical plan to deliver excellent service which is the basis of why we’re even doing the business.

“So, I think it’s time for everyone to sit down, assess where they are and make up their minds to get to where they ought to be because at the end of the day what is worth doing at all is worth doing well so we all need to do excellent things.”

Unlike the belief in some quarters that going premium would end in less income because the clientele base would drop, Kukoyi, argued that premium in itself is not necessarily money but that it is excellent delivery which also comes with spending excellent money.

On the contrary, he posited that premium service would increase the number of customers because people want excellence.
“The clients will be paying more but they get better service. Not exactly that there’ll be a reduction in the number of clients you have rather more people will come to you when they know you deliver excellent service and that is a boost in your income,” he further explained.