Insider Events – Grand Opening of the Fairfield by Marriott Ottawa Airport

Grand Opening of the Fairfield by Marriott Ottawa Airport
December 12, 2018
Fairfield by Marriott Ottawa Airport
Ottawa, Canada

Organizing Team: Franco Falcucci, Vice President Hospitality, Bona Hospitality, Kimberly Wilson, Sales Manager, Fairfield by Marriott Ottawa Airport and Brian Henry of Quality Entertainment

Number of Attendees: 200

Our intention was to introduce and showcase the newest member of the Marriott family and the second Fairfield in Ottawa to clients and fellow associates from our Bona Hospitality family and friends. In addition, we wanted to thank all our suppliers and construction colleagues for all their hard work in creating this spectacular property.

The development of this property was a pure labour of love originally created by our owners at Bona followed by the devotion of a huge team from construction to the opening Associates.

Planning

The target audience for this event was everyone! Being opened for less than 90 days we were anxious for all to get to know, and to come and see our magnificent property.

Everything was new and innovative for us, so we decided to transform our breakfast area into a Country Chic soiree for the opening. This was done thanks to the help of our many partners, from the creative menu designed by the Chef at our sister property, to the Country Chic furniture from LouLou Lounge, and the ambiance and music from Quality Entertainment

Challenges

The biggest challenge we faced was the Holiday Season! We realized that everyone has so many events to attend during this crazy time of the year and we were uncertain to as how many guests would actually be able to make it. So, we decided to go with an open house format so that our guests could drop by for a visit as short or long as they would like or their time would permit.

Take aways

I believe there were two main triumphs from the event. First, we were humbled at the amount of people that took time out of their busy schedule to join us for our celebration. And second, we were so pleased—almost surprised—at the response to the décor, room size and ambiance of our property.   

Article compiled by Jill Garner, Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada

Article edited by Cynthia Beaudin, Canada Foundation for Innovation

Interested in having your event featured in an upcoming Insider Events article? Contact Jill Garner for more details.