Luxury loses out More than 80 percent of respondents to an online poll from Special Events say that thanks to the lousy economy, their clients are shifting away from high-end, luxury products such as crystal and fine china for their events, turning instead to less "over the top" choices. Only 15 percent of respondents say they still see a demand from clients for luxury event elements. Calling caterers: Some caterers say even though their corporate client canceled their holiday party, the vendor still got paid. Is that true for you? Let us know by answering the poll, at the bottom right of our site beneath "Resource Center." And watch for results next week ...

TBA announces CSR council Los Angeles-based event agency TBA Global announced yesterday that it has formed a Corporate Social Responsibility Council to "educate and implement best practices both within the company and on behalf of its clients," the company said in a statement. The company will offer "community engagement consulting" to existing clients to show how events can bring the brand’s own CSR to life through engagement activities with local communities and the environment associated with their meetings and live events, as well as their corporate initiatives. “During these economic times, face-to-face communication has become an even more important way for companies to reassure, engage and motivate customers and employees,” president and chief operating officer Lee Rubenstein said in statement. “We believe face-to-face events can deliver even more business value by adding community engagement and sustainable activities to the agenda."

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