Darcy/Like/Love/Fade
Holaaaaa I come to blog about the HVV Tea Partyyy~~
So how's the that (^) for good food hmm? We (the staff) weren't allowed to tuck in during the actual events but boy did we (in the words of JD) WHIP IT once the last few customers stepped out the door. And we loved it. hahaha highlight of the day(s) for me haha. I love food <3
Anyway! We held two tea parties in total: one on the 27th, and the other on the 29th, with a limited guest list for each day because we wanted to maintain exclusivity :) Guests were welcome to browse through a massive clearance sale (items were priced at either $15, $10 or $5), extra pieces from previous backorders, and last but not least brand new items that wouldn't be launched for about a month or so to come! Needless to say it was the last section that garnered the biggest crowd amongst our guests :)
Before I embark on the actual event there are some people I need to thank properly: The team behind Her Velvet Vase! :)
The twins who manned the counter! They were lifesavers omg. Their memories were absurdly good, and they were also terribly observant. They even noticed when a guest left her camera behind, when there were like dozens of HVV cameras lying about the place. Can't stress how pleased we are to have them on board our team :)
JD, Demi, Mark and Shireena, who helped man the stalls for the day, and also part of the HVV team :D
Salina and Melisse, also regulars on HVV
Alex
Lee, big sister's best friend and photographer for the day!!
and of course Clare, head honcho at HVV and my noisy big sister.
If it were not for their dexterity and hard work, our event probably would have fallen apart >.<
Onward!
Day One of the Her Velvet Vase Tea Parties - 27th of December 2010
Guests were already streaming in wayyy before the start of the event teehee
Our guests were also really nice - two of them - Michelle Lim and Michelle Ang (haha) came and bought us chocolates. So unexpected but so sweet! And Michelle Ang also came wearing one of our pieces :)
Demi setting the buffet table. I like how happy she looks haha
Guests perusing the 'Latest Stocks' section
Busy busy!
With Joze and Jiayi :)
This is Suyin! It was a really nice pleasure to speak to her because she stayed back just to have a chat with us. It was a pleasant surprise to have such an easy-going conversation even though it was our first time meeting in person. Glad that we did :)
Most of the other pictures (which were taken in auto-mode) didn't really manage to capture the actual lighting of the office correctly, 'cept for this one. We switched the lighting in the office specially for the occasion! Usually the office is lit a stark white, but on those days we traded the fluorescent lamps for romantic spotlights.
At the end of the first day. Finally could sit down (after standing the whole day, phew!)
No prizes for guessing who brings the laughs to the HVV team :)
The guys WHIPPING IT after everyone had left. There were quite a bit of leftovers because the guests were a little shy or 'paiseh' to help themselves!! We had to coerce a lot of them that they were more than welcome to hahaha
They look really cute and happy here but I had actually just managed to catch Demi and Alex stoning in exhaustion before I snapped this picture. Thanks for helping out guys :)
Group picture after the first day
Lol Farmer JD. Definitely the funniest guy in our team :)
Lepaking around before cleaning up.
Lounging around because I was too shagged to move :(
Some of the polaroids taken that day :)
Day Two of the Her Velvet Vase Tea Parties - 29th of December 2010
JD was very insistent on hanging his Christmas baubles hahaha
Buffet table - check! :) *rubs hands in glee*
Our second guest-of-honour that day (after Lee) is Lee Peng (her younger brother)! Helping out here by setting out the table.
Clare and I watching on amusedly because he looked so earnest while laying it out
The crowd starting to fill in!
Guests Lareenda and Anne browsing through the backorder rack.
I like how you can see the actual waving motion of my hand in this picture teehee
Spot the girls wearing our pieces! Soooo nice of them :)
With Anni and Yao. The nice and petite girls made us look like big monsters :(
With the happiest people in the world :)
End of Day 2, and the conclusion of our HVV tea parties. Another group picture! Minus Alex and Demi because they had to leave :(
And there you have it, the HVV Tea Parties in pictures. Although both days managed to sap almost all the energy out of us, I actually think, with all the sincerity in my heart, that I'd love to do it all over again.
I think Clare would agree with me when I say that we were initially a little apprehensive in meeting some of our guests (on top of all the anxiety that comes with running such an event - details, details..) because you don't know what to expect when you meet your customers in person. Especially after having known them the entire time only through the internet. I mean of course we've held similar events in the past, but these two tea parties are an entirely different deal. The tea-parties-cum-office-warming-parties were organized with the intent to properly meet some of our customers and interact with them on a more intimate level. We really do like the idea of loud and lavish parties and celebrations, but whilst they're fun and pleasing to the masses, you can't quite make a personal connection the same way a small, and exclusive intimate gathering can!
And of course our guests were more than gracious :) The party presented the opportunity to eliminate any 'barriers' that shopping online has a tendency to create - customers were able to experience the full look-and-feel of our newest pieces, the staff, the goings-on here behind the scenes at HVV and of course, the actual office! They gave us suggestions, feedback, chatter, and a whole lot of laughter as we spoke casually to one another. It was really, really nice :) Hopefully we were able to spoil them as much as we'd wanted to!
Clare and I are now actually considering holding meet-ups for the CNY such that customers are able to beat waiting tentatively for their parcels arrive. Singpost's incompetency looks to be worsening of late...
Anyway it goes without saying that whilst Her Velvet Vase was built on sheer grit and stubborn determination, it is but the customers, that that keep our engine fueled.
Thanks for reading! Leave a comment to tell us what you think :)
Off to bed for me now. I hate school.