I remember when I came into MKG for the first time. It was my interview and was a hot muggy August afternoon. Now as I sit hear on this freezing cold snowy December day I cannot believe it is my last day here. All the memories of everything that has happened lays behind me like something resembling my favorite dream. I can Honestly say I had the time of my life working with the MKG team. A group of young professionals so talented,bright,and eager to help one another is extremely hard to come across in a cut throat market like New York. I never once felt uncomfortable or afraid to ask a fellow MKGer to help or explain a project. I had the opportunity to work on a variation of projects ranging from research to executing an event with my peers. All the events were so different in their vision and design but one thing in common that was shared was their execution. They were all done with such pride and creativity that everyone involved could not help but be fulfilled with a great sense of dignity. I will take with me on my next adventure all that I have learned here. It makes me sad to know that I will not be here anymore. But It makes me proud and confident knowing that I had this experience over the past four months.  So I will not say goodbye but see you all later , its better fitting because I hope to stay on board as a production Assistant with the operations department for future events. So to everyone here, I will see you later , and thank you from the bottom of my heart. You are all rock stars. Peace.

Last Day :(

Wow... when they say time flies when your having fun they sure mean it. 

I can't believe today is my last day working at MKG PRODUCTIONS.  These past three months have flown by so fast and have honestly taken my breath away. Each day unfolded a new and exciting project that I had the pleasure of working on. From working endlessly on our hypothetical projects to working real events such as Ray Ban and Target I have honestly learned so much. I will be sure to take this knowledge with me on my future endeavors! I am so proud of all of the work we have accomplished in the past three months and honestly am astounded by what an incredible company MKG truly is. This internship has without a doubt exceeded all of my expectations. Each and every one  of you has made an impact on my life, and for that I am forever grateful. You are all truly amazing, innovative people and it has been an honor to have worked with all of you! Once again you will never know how thankful I am for providing me with the wonderful opportunity of working at MKG. I will miss you all and will be sure to keep in touch! 

My email is reden@uvm.edu

Please don't be shy to email me! I would love to hear from all of you and all of the amazing things going on in your lives!

Best,

Rachel 

Almost done with November. I can't Believe how fast the time goes when your working here at MKG. November was full of fun events and I am glad I got to work on the Cipriani event. What a beautiful venue they have at their 42nd street location. The event went smoothly as does all our events. A personal favorite moment of the night was when the ceremony was over and Ms lady Bunny started the after party. We all danced it up and had a great time as we watched Ms Zeena Divanni strut her stuff on the stairs. We all danced for about an hour and didn't want to leave the dance floor because the music was oh so good. 

Back at the office everyone is getting their talent ready for the retreat. I cant imagine how some of the performances will turn out, we have alot of talent here at MKG. But besides preparing for the talent show everyone has been pretty busy with events. The interns have been working in collaboration with Lizzie and Diane for our clients at Leahman Maupin . We really want to fill that space with some holiday events. We all called over a few hundred companies requesting their event planners contact information in hopes of getting some emails. It was all a numbers game because with a combined effort we managed to get over a hundred contacts for our email blast.Im confident that we will get some positive feedback. I hope this work makes Diane and Maneesh very proud. That's all for now. Hope everyone has a great retreat.

Just another typical day at work....

Projects!

Hello all!

As everyone knows, me and fellow interns are working on our intern projects. In December, we'll unveil our work for everyone to see! But, until then, a sneak preview as to what's been going on.

Among other tasks, we each are putting together this event from start to finish. From catering, to venue research, to lighting and sound, design, decor, props.... it's a lot to juggle! Fortunately, it's teaching us quite a bit about the underworkings of every event we've helped out with/attended/heard of around the office. Above all, it's been a great way to learn more about some of our vendors -- and hopefully find some new ones!

This week, our "clients" should be looking over our second round of design -- decor and furniture and props -- which we've all been working hard on. I'm excited to see how Robert and Rachel's design is coming together. Although we work side by side, we're often engrossed in our own projects to take a moment and appreciate each other's work.

So... hold on to your hats -- come December, we'll blow you away with our fantastic presentations! : )

Winna

Come one, Come all to Lehman Maupin!

With the phones ringing off the hook MKG Productions has been in fast and furious mode, entering brand new and exciting terrain in the world of event planning. Speaking of new and exciting, MKG has recently taken under its wing the Lehmann Maupin Gallery. Located at 540 W. 26th Street this gallery is nothing short of amazing. A trendy alternative to the typicall raw space, Lehmann Maupin emphasizes style and elegance with their beautiful artwork displayed throughout the gallery. Accommodating 300 standing or 215 seating and separated into two gallery spaces, Lehman Maupin is the perfect space for any occasion. The private gallery at the rear of the venue provides a great area for intimate gatherings or company meetings. The venue is fashioned after an industrial loft design, featuring beautiful travertine floors and museum hight ceilings with skylights. The exposed ceiling gives the space an industrial feel, another attribute unique to Lehmann Maupin. Additionally, there is a large balcony overlooking the grand gallery which not only provides an amazing view but is also perfect for lighting and a DJ. Not is only the gallery a great venue for parties but is also fully accommodated with an in house kitchen in the basement, perfect for catered events. Please be advised that this is not your normal, gloomy basement! It is a large finished basement useful for storage and extra work space, an incredible addition to this unparalleled venue. I HOPE YOU ENJOYED YOUR VIRTUAL TRIP THROUGH HEAVEN ON EARTH AT THE LEHMAN MAUPIN GALLERY! :) 

Hello all, its been a while since my last entry, sorry to keep you all waiting. October was full of exciting things for MKG including events, office birthday parties,and even an amazing cocktail party by one of our preferred catering vendors Creative Edge. We went over to the Creative Edge headquarters after a day in the office and were warmly welcomed by their creative team. We all got the chance to sample some of their newest and innovative hors d'ouvres , each extremly delicious and unique. My personal favorite was the fabrachi eggs filled with guinness beer and served with little mini bagel eggs with pepperoni. The cocktails were nothing short of amazing bliss, I believe I started with the mango Mojito's. Then we were all guided on a tour,which reminded me of Willy Wonkas Chocolate factory through the creative edge kitchen. It is quite a process to prepare innovative and creative food, and quite tempting to eat everything in site.

Our events this month were all over the place and done with great team effort. We had the Dig It events in LA, San Fransisco , Boston , and New York. The green initiaitve put forth by timberland for this event is something MKGers were proud to be a part of , not to mention how well we worked with our headquarters being in New York and our team throughout the country. Our other local events included CME at Rockefellar center and The Andaz hotel launch event. Kelly Markus is no longer with us but we wish her well and hope to see her in the future. 

Besides our fabulous events and cocktail parties we also got the the opportunity to celebrate some MKGers birthday's right here in the office. A Mariah Carey themed extravaganza for Zen, a legally Blonde fiesta for Lizzie and a great Indian Food get together compliments of Maneesh. Who said our creativity stopped when our the events are over. I have to say when you work long and hard its nice to be surrounded by people who take the time out to make your day brighter. Its just the MKG style. 

Newcomers!

So, a lot of new faces have come into the office in the past few weeks. I'd like to welcome newcomers, some of which are returning folks, to the MKG team! I'm especially excited to see how easily you guys have integrated here, getting right down to business as if by second nature. Your hard work and team efforts are an inspiration to me and fellow interns - we're all looking forward to working with you and getting to know everyone through upcoming fall events. : )

In the same note, September has quickly flown by, October is upon us, and the end of the year is rapidly approaching. The MKG team has shown me what an amazingly capable and phenomenal team is, one I am thoroughly excited to be a part of in every capacity. With a new intern project on the horizon, I'm thrilled to execute a few ideas of my own and get a true sense of event production from start to finish. It's a big project, but a big thank you all in advance for already having shown us the ropes by including interns in your day-to-day projects and being the fabulous, creative thinkers and hardworkers you are!

Goodbye September, Hello October

As September comes to an end it really feels like fall is upon us.  As we look back at the month past , I think we can all be proud of our accomplishments over the last thirty days here at MKG. The highlight I think for almost everyone was most likely The William Rast event. The level of hard work and patience from everyone exceeded that of prior events and projects. It was just the nature of the event. Not saying that prior events didn't take 100% from MKGers, but this event was exceptional and the first of its kind on our end. 

As October rolls around we all will once again be faced with new challenges. Alot of us will be out of the office for the Las Vegas event for Glaceau. I wish Lanie, Jeff, Lauren and Tina all the luck with that event. I also hope they have time to see Cher. You cant go to Vegas and not see Cher(business trip or not).But in all seriousness doing an event outside your city , or comfort zone takes an MKGer. So it's guaranteed to be no sweat. 

In the mean time , thanks to everyone for making September an incredible learning experience for me . I hope everyone has an even better month in October then they did in September. Let's go MKG.

All staff meeting

Today September 25,2008 was the last quarter all staff meeting. It was nice to hear and see from alot of employees the exciting events that are in store for MKG the remainder of 2008. Things are running smoothly thanks to Nathan and everyone using support. We are all sad to see Susan go but we know that she has an incredible travel experience ahead of her and we all wish her well. Jessi Blom is now full time , congratulations Jessi, and congratulations to all of the project managers ; their new title's are producers. That is something to really be proud of, and it most definitely suits them appropriately. Maneesh did a great job of explaining topics in the meeting clearly . I now have a better idea of the roles and responsibilities of each MKG member. This is important in that it gave me knowledge on the operations and players within the company. I was also excited to learn of the intern project that lies ahead of me and the other two interns. I am excited to know that I will be putting together my own event from start to finish. I am nervous because this will be the first of kind of project of that nature for me. However I am willing to make mistakes and fall flat on my face in order to learn and grow in this fabulous business of events and production.

Bowery Ballroom Walk Thru

DSQUARED2. DELIGHTFUL.

Last Wednesday DSQUARED launched the release of their fragrance He wood/ She wood at a fabulous event at the DSQUARED showroom on the west side. Thanks to MKG the event was one to be remembered. It was the party to see and be seen at, and with the champagne flowing and the music blasting it was sure to be a party not soon to be forgotten. The front of the house was set up with a wooden hand made(thanks to Andrew) beautiful step and repeat that led around the corner to a mysterious shaft elevator. After you reached the 9th floor, the elevator operator opened the doors to the fabulous revamped showroom that displayed fragrances almost everywhere you looked as well as models,caterers and socialites. It was quite a scene. The roof top was like the icing on the cake. This is truly where the party was. The drinking and social gabbing took place there as well as the press interviews, and smoking. Does everyone in fashion smoke? At the end of the event the clients were extremely happy; the fragrance was liked by all and the party even more. MKG pulled it off once again. We controlled the flow of the event with perfection. I learned some great communication skills and hand on experience field work that just cannot be taught in an office, so I am once again truly grateful for working an MKG event.Thanks everyone

First Day On the Job

Hey everyone! For those who don't already know me, my name is Rachel Eden and I'm MKG's newest intern. Although I've only been here for a couple of hours I can already tell its going to be an amazing couple of months. First off I would like to say that it is truly an honor to be apart of such a creative and intelligent group of people. To put it in a nutshell if I were to describe MKG Productions in two words I would use innovation and exuberance. The office illuminates with excitement and an undeniable sense of positive energy that is evident to everyone who enters the office. Although I was nervous, and suffered from the o so common first day jitters from the moment I entered the office my fears melted away when I was greeted by my new coworkers. Above is a picture of me and my fellow intern, Winna whom was extremely helpful with my transition into getting to know the company. I would use the word innovation because everyone is constantly on their feet thinking of new and exciting ways to create only the finest in cooperate events. One highlight of my day was attending the production meeting where I was able to gain further insight into the exciting world of event planning. I can't wait to see what else lies in store for me here at MKG Productions.

Venue search!

So I stumbled across a rather nifty search engine to locate venues nationally, from clubs to hotels to banquet facilities. It allows you to search by location and narrow it down according to venue type or capacity. Just something to reference for future venue searches!

Check out Cvent Supplier Network: www.cvent.com

Lights,camera,fashion

If anyone knows Good Music Justin Timberlake comes to mind, and if anyone knows good producers MKG productions comes to mind. The William Rast fashion show event at the Roseland ballroom on Sunday september7th was more fabulous than any other walk down the runway. I arrived at 10am to a very busy unfinished work site at the Roseland , the work started to pile on but noone was either too busy or flustered to lend a helping hand. All the MKG staff handled every obstacle confidently and diligently. The arrival of Justin Timberlake at the venue was to be nothing short of perfection. Lizzie and I had took some serious time and thought on how to make a celebrity feel comfortable and relaxed in their dressing room headquarters. We made sure that everything Justin wanted was there ready waiting for him. He was definitely happy to see everyone of his favorite snacks and Drinks(Champagne,Jack, and Belvedere) at the tip of his fingers. Our Client's were happy as well. MKG went above and beyond to please them. I myself had to figure out ways to make the impossible possible. (Liquor store run after hours). But when there is a will there is a way . I really believe that this event set a president for much more success to come. Oh I forgot to mention; when the crowd rolled in and the lights went down the show was smooth sailing. It couldn't have gone better. As the night went on and the crowd got wild MKG stayed professional and worked late into the early morning making sure everything went down perfectly. When all the work was complete, we were all happy to go home and go to bed, but soon enough it would be back to the office and on to the next project.

MKG's Newest Intern

Talk about a company that has got its hands full! Hi everyone my name is Robert and I am MKG's newest intern. I have been here for only one full week and feel like I'm an important part of the MKG team already. There are so many exciting events on their way and my first will be the William Rast event at the Roseland Ballroom. So far I have been helping the coordinators for this event with several tasks ranging from research on set decorations, to fixing some loose ends with last minute tasks. Their is a an energetic buzz here. Everyone is excited but has that sense of urgency to make sure everything runs perfectly. Its great to be part of a team where people take an extreme sense of pride in their work. I'm glad to be on board, and I will most definitely blog about the event on Sunday, but until then hard work is at hand. I'm sure the pay off will be nothing short of spectacular.

look what we made

Hey y'all miss me? I missed you! Here's a little peek at some of our recent work (we're awfully proud). Below are a few shots of the decor from the Gossip Girl Hamptons bash . I love how Zen customized the patio furniture slip covers!Don't you love the bar? Who doesn't?

Also be sure to check out the review Biz Bash posted regarding our Traitor Premier party. Ta ta for now.

Love @ MKG,

Meg

MKG Does Sag Harbor

Last Saturday was my first event here at MKG, and what a bash it was. At 8am Saturday morning we embarked for The Estate located in the Hamptons to throw the Gossip Girl Premier Party sponsored by Glaceau. I learned a little industry lingo while I was there and I thought I'd share it with ya'll. A "step and repeat" is one or more logos at the front of house where celebrities walk the red carpet or ropes. They literally step, take a picture, and repeat.

Check out our creative step and repeat in this video, including footage of the Gossip Girl cast, and the lovely decor we gussied up the venue with.

The event was a success and I am so happy that I've finally caught up on my sleep as I didn't get home until 4am Sunday.

Cheers,

Meg

While planning your next event think about having a signature drink. It is a great way to decorate and add a little something extra to an event. Check out Mixology for drink ideas.

Mixology.com

Kayak

http://www.kayak.com

Great site for finding flights! It's a "meta-search" engine. In other words it searches several flight sites at once!

Real Interns Step!

Step it up.

New venue research site!

You may already know of this website but if not it's pretty great for researching venues. Check it out!


http://www.agendaonline.com/

3M Vikuiti Rear Projection Film

NEW Super cool 3M window film that may make future events that much more amazing! Turn a window into a huge video screen...

Source to Find NYC Venue!

This seemed like it could be a good source for looking up venues, not just in New York City.

"New York City is the most populous city in the United States and one of the major global cities of the world. This city is also one of the world's most important city for events.

The venues in New York City are very diverse in style. UltimateVenue lists all the best venues in New York City, from a designer loft, a famous theatre or a prestigious estate to a charming inn, a hotel meeting room or a typical restaurant.

Find the venue in New York City of your dream! In only one minute, this venue search engine will edit for you an exhaustive list of venues in New York City meeting your needs and tastes. The process is very easy!

Choose the type of event, the capacity required and the type of venue you wish, UltimateVenue will find you the perfect place in New York City! Search venues in New York City now!"

www.ultimatevenue.us

Planning an event over seas

Tips for planning an event over seas

Matthew Glass, CEO of Grand Central Marketing gives a sneak peak at planning an event in a foreign country. He also gives some advice on how to prepare.


"When entering another country to conduct business, you need to do more than exchange your currency and reset your watch. You must also trade in your normal operating procedures and adjust your mindset."

Planning an event over seas

http://chiefmarketer.com/presence/overseas_event_05142006/

Great article with tips on planning an event over seas.

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