An Evening of Style and Sophistication – Friends & Company Mad Men Culture Party Recap
Feature Writer: Matt Chong
Marketing and Communications Strategist, BCIT
First off, let me start out by saying that I am a huge fan of the show Mad Men. As somebody who works in advertising, I’ve spent many hours discussing the antics of Don Draper with my colleagues. So when I saw that Friends & Company was putting on a Mad Men Culture networking party at the Opus Bar, I knew I had to be there
I typically attend more formal networking events where one might exchange business cards, shake hands and talk about your businesses. There is definitely value in these kinds of events as they are more direct and are great for people looking specifically to cultivate new businesses and expand their networks. Other events such as the Mad Men Culture Party are more geared towards meeting new business contacts and building your network.
Some of the best networking events are more casual in nature but also provide an opportunity to meet people in a less formal environment. When going to a networking event that is more of a social or a party, you definitely want to unwind and have fun but also remember why you’re at the event. Set some goals on the number of people you want to meet or find out who’s going to the event and make it your mission to connect with them. I often like to go to different kinds of events all the time to expand my network and meet people that I might not normally meet in my life work.
One tip that I picked up recently is to do a bit of research before you go to the event on social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, Meetup.com or Linkedin. This is a great way to connect with people before going to the event and find out what people are talking about. You can also see if anybody you know from your own personal network is attending the event. Before heading to the event, I quickly scanned the event hash tag (#madmenparty) and got a quick background about the topics that people were talking about before the event. This is a good way to connect with people both online and offline during the event. Be sure to save the event hash tag and check it periodically throughout the night to pick up on the online buzz.
Upon arriving at the party, I was happily surprised to see that almost everyone in the bar was dressed up in their finest 1960′s themed Mad Men outfits. Vancouverites are notorious for skipping the costume part of theme parties so it was definitely refreshing to be around so many great outfits.
I happened to attend this party by myself however; if you are going to an event with a friend, make sure to branch off and meet other people. This takes the pressure off and allows each of you to have landing pad in between conversations. If you go to an event by yourself, then find somebody who is also at the event alone and you can be each other’s wingman.
One really neat part of the event was the character masks that were at the door upon entering. Guests could choose which character from Mad Men they wanted to be and play the part all night. Some of the other highlights of the evening included vintage 1960′s era magazines that were at the cocktail tables and a photo booth that took vintage black and white photos.
Overall, this was a great event and I was really impressed with how well the event was organized and attended. The devil is in the details when it comes to theme parties and every element from the venue to the vintage magazines was spot on. Look out for more events from Friends & Company.
“Friends & Company” is Vancouver’s newest GLBT Business Network. Net proceeds from their events go to the Out in School and Out on Screen programs. Visit www.friendsandcompany.ca for more information on this exciting new networking group.
Follow Matt on Twitter: @mjmchong
