19 World-Famous Event Planning Companies & Brands That Will Inspire You
Searching for inspiration from the best in the business? You’re in the right place to discover famous event planning companies and brands. These world-renowned event organizers set the bar high year after year. And, their thoughtful, stage-stealing events leave guests lasting impressions. Take a look below to get ideas you can apply to your next event.
Here are some the most famous event planning companies from around the world.
1. Bassett Events, Inc.
If you’re planning high-profile private parties, charitable events, or an off-the-charts wedding, look no further than Bassett Events. The small team, led by Jennifer Bassett, specializes in bringing an element of surprise to the most elegant of events.
Location: Toronto, Canada
What they plan: Social events, charitable events, weddings
What they offer: Full event production and design, vendor contract negotiation, staffing, sponsor and media management, video production, and much more.
Who they’ve worked for: The World Wildlife Fun, Fours Seasons Hotels & Resorts, Toronto Zoo, Jeremy Piven, Carrie Underwood, John Legend, and many more.
About the brand: If you’re planning high-profile private parties, charitable events, or an off-the-charts wedding, look no further than Bassett Events. The small team, led by Jennifer Bassett, specializes in bringing an element of surprise to the most elegant of events.
2. MKG
Location: New York City & Los Angeles
What they plan: Immersive “brand experiences”
What they offer: Insights research, experiential strategy, creative campaign development, exhibit and environment design, event production, and more.
Who they’ve worked for: BarkBox, ShopBop, Google, Audi, Delta Air Lines, and other big-name brands.
About the brand: Big brands turn to MKG when they need to create spectacular product launches, Instagram-worthy environments, and unforgettable “brand experiences.” This agency doesn’t produce run-of-the-mill events. Glance at their website and you’ll see hot-dog seesaws, ball pits for adults, and life-size art installations.
3. Colin Cowie
Location: New York City, Los Angeles & Las Vegas
What they plan: Private and corporate events, weddings
What they offer: Venue sourcing, event design, event floral and decor, event coordination, guest list management, social media, and more.
Who they’ve worked for: Oprah, Jennifer Aniston, Elton John, Kim Kardashian, American Express, Cosmopolitan Magazine, Hard Rock Hotels and more.
About the brand: You might know Colin Cowie as a book author, designer, and TV celebrity ” and he earned his renown by planning exclusive, extravagant events. He’s best known for planning luxurious weddings for celebrity couples, but his work also includes non-profit events and grand openings.
4. David Tutera
Location: Los Angeles
What they plan: Weddings, non-profit events, and more
What they offer: Event concept and design, decor, planning, production, vendor management and more.
Who they’ve worked for: The White House, The Alzheimers Association, The Make-A-Wish Foundation, Prince Charles, Jennifer Lopez, Matthew McConaughey and more.
About the brand: As a wedding dress designer and TV host, David Tutera surely knows how to plan a luxury wedding. The team aims to deliver experiences that draw on your wildest imagination and make your big dreams come to life.
5. A Perfect Event
Location: Chicago
What they plan: Weddings, galas, corporate events, birthday parties and more
What they offer: Event management, florals, stationery, styling, favors, and more.
Who they’ve worked for: The Chicago Cubs, Dom Perignon, Kendra Scott, Louis Vuitton, Oprah, and more.
About the brand: With an extensive career in events, Debi Lilly helps client escape from reality with masterful event design. Beyond event production and design, the company also owns an intimate event spaced called the DL Lounge. Debi is known for serving high-profile clients. Her most renowned event? Oprah’s on-air birthday party.
6. Rafanelli Events
Location: Boston, New York City, and Palm Beach.
What they plan: Weddings; non-profit gala events, private events, and corporate events
What they offer: End-to-end event planning, plus branding and consulting
Who they’ve worked for: Allison Williams, Chelsea Clinton, Matt Damon, Barack & Michell Obama
About the brand: Founder, President, and CCO Bryan Rafanelli is one of the top celebrity wedding planners ” he’s best-known for organizing Chelsea Clinton’s top-secret 2010. His company plans over 100 events in a year, paying attention to all the details and giving their high-profile clients peace of mind. In his own words, the goal is to “try to tell a story.
7. Oren Co is a famous event planning company
Location: New York City and Los Angeles
What they plan: Private celebrity events and weddings.
What they offer: Full-service event planning, design, and management.
Who they’ve worked for: Reese Witherspoon, Natalie Portman, Adam Levine, Jason Bateman, and more.
About the brand: For luxury experiences and trend-setting events, turn to Yifat Oren and the team at Oren Co. This team is highly regarded as one of the top tastemakers in A-list events. They’ve set the standard for particularly private events ” in fact, clients hire Oren Co to avoid the limelight.
8. Wonderland
Location: London, New York City, and Miami
What they plan: Brand-forward experiences
What they offer: Brand strategy, event design & event production, experiential marketing, social media, and more.
Who they’ve worked for: ASOS, Topshop, Ariana Grande, Häagen-Dazs, and more.
About the brand: Events by Wonderland have more upbeat, modern, and young vibe than some other tenured companies. Wonderland is a “creative-led experiential” event company that’s worked with luxury, travel, retail, technology, and other brand verticals for over 15 years.
9. Eventive
Location: New York City
What they plan: Product launches, brand experiences.
What they offer: Branding, marketing & event production.
Who they’ve worked for: Purina, Kellogg’s, Rihanna, Welch’s, NFL
About the brand: Eventive focuses on brand management and brings brands to life with events. The team places a special focus on breaking boundaries for their corporate clients. Eventive’s creativity highlights the company mission while delivering a fantastic event experience.
Discover some of the top event planning brands worldwide:
These award-winning brands represent the very best in worldwide event strategy, hosting, and planning. Here’s what they do, how they do it, and how you can learn from their success!
10. Royal DSM
Location: Netherlands
What types of events they plan: Product launches, exhibitions, corporate meetings
Their best event: Their Connecting Bright Innovations 2017 hosted eight startup brands to participate in a pitchfest for investors and led to multiple beneficial partnerships between exciting companies.
Main takeaway: The best event planning companies know that bringing people together – for personal networking, partnership opportunities, and everything in between – is the heart of what makes an event successful. Find ways to highlight the industry leaders you have relationships with already (like Royal DSM did with their expert panelists) and bring them together with strong up-and-comers.
11. Autodesk
Location: San Rafael, California
What types of events they plan: Workshops, seminars, training sessions, demonstrations, competitions
Their best event: First Robotics is a competition series in an inspiring lineup of other global events that bring young people from all over the world together. Once there, participants can try their hand at creating new robots using the Autodesk suite of products.
Main takeaway: There are lots of creative and interesting ways to feature your products at your events without making the event entirely about them. Host a competition like Autodesk does or invite programmers to code new add-ons or functionalities for your existing programs.
12. Lincoln Financial Group
Location: Arlington Heights, Illinois
What types of events they plan: Webcasts, conferences, corporate meetings
Their best event: Back again after a year hiatus, Lincoln Financial Group’s 2019 Conference for Analysts, Investors and Bankers continues their successful series, bringing together key customer demographics from across the country.
Main takeaway: Always make sure you have a specific group of attendees in mind when planning your event. Then, choose agenda items and speakers that most appeal to their pressing issues.
13. Verizon
Location: New York, New York
What types of events they plan: Digital open houses, hiring events
Their best event: Their ongoing open house and hiring event series is consistent (they host one at least every other month), highly accessible (with both in-person and online attendance opportunities), and provides a ton of value (they walk you through the process of their inside sales career paths and other opportunities).
Main takeaway: Your customers aren’t the only ones you should create events for. Why not plan some gatherings for possible future employees? Not only are you spreading the word about your brand, but you’re also providing free education for applicants who are interested in this field. And you’ll most likely recruit some great new team members as well!
14. Parkinson Foundation of the National Capital Area
Location: Washington, D.C.
What types of events they plan: Fundraisers, community and support groups
Their best event: Their 2019 Walk Off Parkinson’s event was a huge success, raising an abundance of funds (over $350k) as well as awareness for the nonprofit.
Main takeaway: Walkathons aren’t a new event type. But this nonprofit branded theirs well with a clear website, full-proof participation instructions for both onsite and online participants, and strategic partnerships with local sponsorships (as well as key press figures who helped spread the word). So as long as your event brand and messaging all align, you can succeed at any event type.
15. Visit Orlando
Location: Orlando, Florida
What types of events they plan: Festivals, concerts, dinners
Their best event: Visit Orlando’s Magical Dining event is a five-week affair featuring over 100 area restaurants who have all put together ticketed prix-fixe meals for attendees. Locals and vacationers both look forward to this yearly gathering across the city.
Main takeaway: Event series’ that involve exciting local partners are a great way to get the community involved, help spread the word (as your partners will help advertise), and create a memorable experience for both new and old clients.
16. MGM Resorts
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
What types of events they plan: Themed parties, fashion shows, galas, award shows, conferences, weddings, trade shows (and much, much more)
Their best event & why: It’s hard to choose just one event to call their best given how prolific the events division of MGM Resorts truly is. So in this case, we’d like to highlight the sheer variety and diversity of their events. Although their event planning process remains the same, no two events they’ve hosted have ever been alike thanks to their attention to detail, design, and the needs of their various clients.
Main takeaway: Their multi-dimensional teams include artists, designers, entertainers, organizers, and technicians. Having a variety of talents at their disposal helps bring larger than life events a reality. Consider hiring or partnering with creative professionals outside of your normal routine to see how their perspective and skills can contribute to your next event.
17. Visit Dallas
Location: Dallas, Texas
What types of events they plan: Parades, festivals, art shows, sporting events, marathons
Their best event: Dallas Blooms is a flower festival showcasing over 500,000 blooms at the city’s breathtaking Arboretum. Live musicians play for guests as they enjoy the gardens, cocktails, and speakers at this multi-sensory experience.
Main takeaway: Sometimes all it takes to come up with a winning event idea is to start with a solid venue. Besides gardens, your next corporate or private event can take place at a historic mansion, mini-golf course, or even a movie theater. The options are nearly endless.
18. IHG
Location: Atlanta, Georgia
What types of events they plan: Corporate meetings, group events
Their best event: Since IHG Hotels offer both venue spaces and event planning services, there are literally hundreds of events going on at their facilities across the world every single day. Because they deal with such a high volume of events, we’re going to focus on how they streamline their planning process while still providing unique experiences and personalized service for each of their guests.
Main takeaway: Event software helps the IHG events staff organize, update, and carry out all of their events happening across multiple locations at the same time. Their system (which includes templated budget guidelines, events checklists, and event type specific guides) provides a strong foundation for each and every event. With all this in place, the team is free to come up with unique details to fill in the blanks.
19. BlackRock
Location: New York, New York
What types of events they plan: Speaker series, roadshows
Their best event: The BlackRock Insight Series tackles the latest trends, news, and relevant concerns for their target audience. But the best part is, it’s all online, so event attendees can participate no matter where they are located. Although BlackRock still has in-person events on their roster, they make a point to connect with their webinar guests on a regular basis.
Main takeaway: Digital events are a great way to reach audiences all over the world. Not only does this strategy strengthen its brand, but it also establishes them as a thought leader for these topics. Which is something your company can easily replicate for your own event marketing.
Feel inspired by these famous event planning companies to host your own award-winning event soon?
Then be sure to these industry secrets on how to get the logistics right and you’ll be following in the footsteps of the event pros on this list in no time.
Looking for more information about famous event planning companies?
The answer to this question is very subjective, but companies like MKG, and individuals like Colin Cowie and David Tutera have been trusted by high profile brands and celebrities to plan their largest events.
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Have you had a good experience with these or other event planning companies? We’d love to hear about it. Join the conversation on Twitter and Facebook.