REDEYE EVENTS
CHAMPAGNE AND CHICANE Nigel Essam is the founder of RedEye Events, one of the most exclusive companyies who hosts high premium hospitality events at major global sporting events. Servanne Sohier sat down with him to find out what he does. Servanne: Could you give me an introduction to RedEye Events and what it does? Nigel: We were established over 13 years ago and are a global sports hospitality company. We supply hospitality at major sporting events, and specialise in Formula One, with the Monaco GP being our signature event each year. We have a presence at every one of the twenty-one races, with the The Monaco GP being by far our biggest event, where we entertain over 1000 clients across 4 days at various viewing facilities that are arguably the locations to view the race. Our next biggest is The British Grand Prix, followed closely by Abu Dhabi, Singapore, Monza, Hungarian, The U.S and Mexico. We have an interesting model in that every event we host is white label event, with none of our companies logo visible. Corporates and brands tend to love us because the events are neutral with no conflicting branding. The clever thing is that this model empowers trade partners to sell on our behalf, which allows us to have a huge reach. Our database is around 14,000, but because we deal with so many other trade companies, we’re able to piggyback onto their databases, giving us a reach of over a million potential clients. This level of exposure attracts lots of brand attention and sponsorship opportunities. They all love our approach. We’re able to put their product in the hands of their perfect client demographic and because we market so aggressively, they get great brand exposure. So why is it called RedEye Events? For me, “red eye” means an early morning, red-eye flight. Yes. Well, that’s really where it came from. Our logo is half of the symbol for world travel. So Red Eye symbolises travel and late night happenings, a party as much as anything. What is your background? My background is mainly linked to construction, but I do have multiple businesses. One day, 14 years
ago, I was invited onto someone’s boat in Monaco to watch the Grand Prix. I thought as most people probably do, that I would attend, tick the box and never go back, but loved the Principality so much, I set up a business the following year centred around the Monaco GP and I sort of never left. What inspired you to go into the hospitality and events business? Again it was really Monaco Grand Prix because I fell in love with the place, but also because I had been in business since I was 21, and attended lots of corporate hospitality events and had always been underwhelmed, with the level of hospitality offered and felt that guests deserved better. The first event you go to is reasonably impressive, but after that, it’s just variations on a theme. It is usually average food, and an open bar. So I looked at it and thought, well, I need to do something where the actual race – whether it is a horse race or a Formula One race – is almost secondary to the theatre of our event, to the facility itself. This strategy was well founded because 13 years on we are well respected in Formula 1 and the events trade in general and like to think we offer something guests would struggle to obtain at any other event. Say I come to one of the events, say the Monaco Grand Prix, what can I expect? The Monaco Grand Prix is a perfect example of how we do things a little differently. From the moment the clients receive the itinerary to tell them what they’re to expect throughout the event, to when they arrive at Fontvieille harbour, there is a tangible difference. They are greeted by our coordinators and our clients will see a difference immediately. These coordinators aren’t in a normal coordinator outfit; the standard polo shirt with a logo on it. We
spend a lot of time choosing the outfits each year. They’re always a little bit edgy, something a little bit different. The guests are then put on a tender which takes them to their viewing facility for the day. Whereas most other companies tend to have cheap small speedboats, our tenders are, Wajer tenders, which are around 800,000€ euros each, so the moment they arrive they’re having something that’s of premium quality. Of course, you’ve got our premium hospitality. A lot of people tend to cut corners where food and beverage is concerned, which is what I noticed in the early years of running events, and which a lot of our competitors do. So again, using Monaco as an example, we tend to use Absolute Taste, the caterers to McLaren. They’re not the cheapest, but their quality of service is incredible and their food is amazing. We also look for premium champagne, wine and spirit brands, which includes a mixologist and brand ambassadors who can tell you everything about the drink. Our Friday night yacht party is known as the best in the harbour, where we fly in a London DJ and F1 legend Eddie Jordan also plays
What sets us apart is the fact that we always look for unique facilities, whether its a yacht, roof terrace or the 5 star hotel that sits in the centre of the circuit in Abu Dhabi. with his band The Robbers. We always offer additional features. On race day we always have a Q&A with an F1 star, which always works really well because most corporate clients tend to be on-the-fence Formula One fans. They like the sport, but don’t really understand it. So by getting someone who knows the sport to talk prequalifying and race, they get to hear more technical detail which helps get them into the excitement of the event. What sets us apart is the fact that we always look for unique facilities, whether its a yacht, roof terrace or the 5 star hotel that sits in the centre of
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