Creating memorable event experiences has always been at the heart of what drives Bronson Van Wyck.
Van Wyck, a Tuckerman native living in New York, has offered his party planning expertise to notable clients including President Barack Obama, singer Katy Perry and actress Gwyneth Paltrow. Companies and nonprofits using Van Wyck & Van Wyck, the company he founded with his mother, Mary Lynn, range from Burberry, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, the New Orleans Hornets and the Clinton Foundation.
Typically, those events have been geared for a limited, in-person audience. As the roster of corporate clients continued to grow, Van Wyck saw an opportunity to expand brand-focused work, leading to the creation of Workshop, a sister company to Van Wyck & Van Wyck.
Workshop is geared toward building an experience in which those not in attendance can still feel a connection to the event. Social media has provided an avenue for brands to reach millions, rather than a select audience.
"We have this gigantic, massive opportunity to leverage what is happening at an event and communicate with people who are far and wide, well outside the confines of the four walls in which the event is occurring," Van Wyck said. "This allows us to leverage the investment that host brand is making. And we can reach more people than ever."
These days, Van Wyck said, a round table of 15 people, each with 1 million followers on a photo sharing site such as Instagram, could have a bigger impact than a seated dinner for 200 people. Using drones to film the event and posting highlights online would further expand a brand's reach, something that companies are just now realizing.
Among Workshop's first events was a launch party for Armarium, an invitation-only app providing access to dress styling services and what the company describes as "high-fashion pieces on a borrowed basis." Knowing that photos from the event would populate social media, Van Wyck's team meticulously placed mannequins throughout the venue so that no matter what angle selfies or other photographs were taken, clothes available through Armarium would be captured.
When Trisha Gregory and Alexandra Lind Rose founded Armarium, Gregory knew right away who she wanted help in planning the launch party. Gregory, the former head of public relations at Salvatore Ferragamo, became acquainted with Van Wyck years earlier.
Gregory had experience with Van Wyck & Van Wyck as a client and guest.
"Bronson and their team have an innate sense of luxury and how to communicate luxury," Gregory said. "They have a constant rotation of ideas that are super unique and unparalleled in the industry. Bronson and Workshop always provide a level of 'shock and awe' in a good way. I think the brands that work with them are always really pleased. Any sort of [event on a budget] is going to garner press attention."
Van Wyck's ability to put together an attention-getting event isn't all that resonates with clients and colleagues. Work ethic has also garnered attention and helped build the company and its roster of clients.
Workshop President Lisa Wilson, a Yale classmate of Van Wyck's, recalls the time she reached him on the phone as he was sweeping out a tent before an event in the Bahamas. Then, as now, Van Wyck "isn't afraid to get his hands dirty," Wilson said. "He's willing to show by example. That's always appealed to me about this company."
Van Wyck's events have often been associated with high-society and high-fashion clients in New York or Los Angeles. Still, he sees a place for his talents -- born from the hospitality he was raised on in small-town Arkansas -- in his home state or other places in flyover country.
There are few companies or clients that Van Wyck hasn't had an opportunity to work with since Van Wyck & Van Wyck began. Included on his wish list are Arkansas-based global success stories such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Tyson Foods Inc. and Stephens Inc.
"When we helped with the opening of Crystal Bridges that was very much a celebration for the people in that community," Van Wyck said. "I'd love to work with some of the great companies based in Arkansas. We've created in Arkansas some of the most successful businesses in the nation. I think if they're not already, they will be using events and experiences to connect with and engage their customers. That's what we do.
"Hospitality knows no geographic, class or cultural boundaries. It's universal. Like love."
SundayMonday Business on 04/24/2016