KC Event Planners Talk About the State of the Industry

Bernays Saunce mothership EventPros, Inc.'s owners are featured in an interview in Special Events Magazine, where they discuss the state of the Special Events industry and the birth of EventPros, Inc. They also touch on marketing and public relations firms doing special events:

In 2008, for instance, while other event business owners were wringing their hands about tightened budgets, canceled events and the prospect of more bad news to come, Svoboda and Short debuted a communications services department. As Short explains, the duo created the new department to compete directly with marketing and public relations firms that were cutting into EventPros' market share.

“These companies were handling events, but they didn't even like doing it — they were just doing it because their clients needed it,” Short says. “Because they weren't making any extra money on events, they weren't hiring us to do them. They were just doing the events themselves, and not doing a very good job.”

With its new division, EventPros is able not only to sell clients on the strength of its event-production capabilities but to add value by offering marketing and communication services such as Web development, scriptwriting and video production. Short adds, “It speaks to our fiscal responsibility that we were able to bring in-house a lot of services we were farming out.”

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KCRiverFest 2008 Named Finalist for Best International Festival

Kansas City’s EventPros Honored with Nomination
(KANSAS CITY)—KCRiverFest has been named a finalist for an international special event award.

The Special Events Magazine Advisory Board released the list of entries nominated to receive a Gala Award, the most prestigious prize in the special events industry. EventPros, Inc., a Kansas City special events and communications company, received the nomination for their work producing KCRiverFest, Kansas City’s annual Independence Day festival. EventPros produces KCRiverFest on behalf of Friends of the River—Kansas City.

"We had nearly 400 entries, a 20 percent increase over last year," says Special Events editor Lisa Hurley. "The competition was fierce." This year’s competition drew entries in 35 categories from Brazil, Canada, China, Denmark, England, Germany, Spain, Thailand, United Arab Emirates and the United States.

Nominated entries went through three rounds of judging. The Special Events Magazine Advisory Board will select the winners during The Special Event 2009 Conference, Jan. 27-30 in San Diego, Calif. The Gala Awards will handed out on Jan. 30 at a black-tie gala ceremony.

As finalists for the Best Fair/Festival, EventPros/KCRiverFest is in competition with events in Sacramento, California and Harrisburg, N.C. Last year’s winner in this category was Marketing and More of Munich, Germany for “Mini United 2007,” a three-day festival in Zandvoort, Netherlands.

“EventPros is the premier event planning company in Kansas City, and their nomination to receive a Gala Award from Special Events Magazine is a testament to the quality of their work,” said Chris Gutierrez, KCRiverFest chairperson. “KCRiverFest has become Kansas City’s Riverfront tradition and Friends of the River-KC is pleased to be working with EventPros on this event through 2011.”

The 2008 KCRiverFest was the first produced by EventPros. Shortly after the successful festival, EventPros accepted a three-year contract to produce the acclaimed festival.

“We are very excited and humbled to be a finalist for this international award. We see this not only as an honor for our work producing KCRiverFest, but as a strong indication of the quality and importance of this festival to our community. We are also gratified to bring international attention to this unique Kansas City event,” said John Short and Bill Svoboda, owners of EventPros.

“We’re very proud of our team, as well as the leaders and volunteers of Friends of the River,” Svoboda and Short added. “It’s an honor to work with them on this growing event, and look forward to making KCRiverFest 2009 an even bigger success.” The EventPros team producing KCRiverFest includes Lisa Holst and Alex Greenwood, along with a host of professional staff and volunteers.

Major sponsors for KCRiverFest included KCTV 5/myKSMO, the Port Authority of Kansas City, Isle of Capri Casino, Neighborhood Tourism Development Fund, EventPros, Inc., Time Warner Cable, Cumulus Radio, Urban Times Magazine, Radio Disney, Burns & McDonnell, Hertz, King Hershey Attorneys at Law, Clarkson Construction and BlueCross BlueShield of Kansas City.

For more information on The Special Event show, visit thespecialeventshow.com. For more on the magazine, visit specialevents.com

Friends of the River-Kansas City (FOR-KC) is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to celebrate the heritage and to promote the development of the Kansas City riverfront through education, community outreach, volunteer commitment and fundraising.

Founded in 2001, EventPros, Inc. specializes in all facets of event planning and production of any size and budget, including large-scale community festivals. The firm recently introduced extensive image management, marketing and communications consulting services. EventPros also performs functions for events, conferences and parties including theme development, food and beverage design, transportation and tours, talent sourcing and on-site event management. Visit http://www.eventprosinc.com or call 816.960.3400 for more information.