A brand new awards ceremony is launched tonight at the Hurlingham Club in Putney, London. The Eventia Corporate Event (CE) Awards celebrate best practice in business-related live marketing in the UK. The ceremony has been developed in the aftermath of the merger of two events bodies, the CEA and ITMA earlier this year into Eventia.

“Both of the two associations had been running their own awards events (the CEA Awards and the ITMA Awards) for a number of years,” explained Izania Downie, Eventia’s executive director. “There was a slight degree of overlap since both were about excellence in the creation of live events, and so after the merger, the first task was to achieve a greater differentiation between the two. This is why the CE Awards now exclusively honour events that took place in the UK, while the ITM Awards focus on events held overseas.”

According to Downie, the events that have become finalists set a benchmark for the rest of the industry and for the wider business community. “The Eventia CE Awards bring together a host of venues, caterers, production companies and event management agencies, to honour those organisations that have produced the most outstanding events and service in the UK during the last year,” she said.

For companies organising or looking to hold events, the CE Awards offer great case studies to inspire their future live marketing campaigns, while for suppliers they are a barometer of growth areas and talent, presenting key business prospects. For the industry as a whole, they draw attention to the onward march of live and experiential marketing, and the success it is bringing to business in the UK.

Look out for a written review of the night, including a comprehensive list of winners, over the next few days on EVENTS:review, plus a video report of the night, featuring interviews with the winners, coming soon.