Event professionals Elliott Grant and Joe O’Connell have joined forces to launch a new boutique events agency, BLACK BOOK.
Based out of London's Shoreditch, BLACK BOOK will focus on helping other businesses engage, communicate, motivate and improve their business performance through a range of event services including incentives, conferences, hybrid events, venue sourcing, creative communications and production.
Founders Grant and O'Connell said: “We don’t see ourselves as an events agency in the traditional sense and what we don’t want to do is approach clients with a pre‐defined set of services. Our clients will have goals and objectives and we want to help them meet those through the best medium possible. We will be agile and adapt to whatever our clients need, offering a better service than they would get elsewhere.”
BLACK BOOK’s core ethos is built around collaboration and creating long‐lasting partnerships with both clients and suppliers.
“We want to slightly redefine the industry in terms of relationships by working with clients and suppliers who are our friends and hopefully build a better product and service as result. It will be less of a transactional business and more of a collaborative one to create outstanding event solutions,” explained Grant.
The name comes from O’Connell and Grant’s black book of contacts, built up through their years of working in the events industry. Grant is currently president of the SITE (Society for Incentive Travel Excellence) GB Chapter and has previously held roles at agencies including Black Tomato and Top Banana, while O'Connell has worked for a number of well‐known agencies including First Event, Reed & Mackay and Orange Door.
“When I was sounding out the idea of starting a new agency with clients, one said to me that the reason they choose to work with me personally is because of my impressive black book of contacts, so its thanks to that client that we found our name,” said O'Connell.
The partnership was created thanks to a mutual industry contact, who introduced the pair because of the similarities in their outlook and objectives. “We have both always wanted to do our own thing at some point and Covid‐19 actually provided the opportunity because we were both at a point in time where it was the right path to take,” said O'Connell.
Despite the current challenging market conditions, the duo chose to launch the business now because they already had clients requesting proposals.
BLACK BOOK officially launched on 15 June and received client briefs in its first week of business. The agency is already working on three proposals, a small product launch at the end of this year, and an overseas incentive and London conference next year.
“We feel that travel and events are slowly starting to come out the other side now – borders are beginning to open up, airlines are starting to fly again, hotels are reopening, and most importantly clients are starting to put plans in place,” said Grant.
“We genuinely feel that we’ve launched at an exciting time for the industry. Post‐pandemic, clients will need to communicate with and engage their employees in more creative and innovative ways. As people work from home more, it’ll be more important than ever to offer incredible experiences and event solutions that bring companies together and nourish culture and values.”
BLACK BOOK plans to expand through adding more people and services over the next few months. The eventual goal is to build a collective of experienced event managers with strong client relationships looking to work in a more dynamic and autonomous environment.
For more info and contact details visit www.thisisblackbook.co.uk
M&IT editor Paul Harvey is a journalist with more than 15 years of experience. He began his career in the local press, working for various titles across the north. Since joining M&IT in 2013, he has become a trusted and respected voice in the sector, championing event professionals and reporting on all aspects of the events industry for the brand.
