The meshing between a rocking soundtrack, a sensational charismatic dancers, and some fabulous multimedia support – all translates into a really strong event performance with impact.

Be prepared to be amazed! Click the play button…

Bit of a shoutout here – if you recognize this performer, let us know as we have a number of projects we’d like to work with him on. Seriously.

Source Notes: Clip via youtube

Sensational Events through Powerful Experiences.

FACTOR168 Creative Event Company delivers creative, strategic, and tactical event management and event production services across Australia and throughout Asia

With that I took the opportunity to sit down in Hong Kong recently for a coffee and a chat with a long standing friend and business associate – Bert Li from Amway.

Bert has for the past decade plus been charged with the responsibility of delivering a series of annual events throughout the world, many of considerable scale, on behalf of Amway Greater China.

In doing so Bert occupies a unique position in being able to comment directly on the experience of engaging and working with a variety of diverse event company partners, large scale and boutique, not only in Europe and North America, but also with companies like ourselves operating within Australia and Asia.
Are there any significant differences in the working style from region to region?
In a word – yes. According to Bert, he has found that event companies stationed within Asia are more flexible in their overall approach. They display a greater willingness to accommodate his organisation’s very specific needs and have a greater appreciation for his guest’s expectations.

On the other hand, he found that working, for example, in the United States and in many parts of Europe, that it was more a case of an ‘Our Way or No Way’ position being adopted.

Many seemingly creative event outfits were often hamstrung by their own process ‘sophistication’ rather than being focused on being more client-centric showmen. This was often further compounded by their lack of knowledge discovery and empathy for the host organisation’s culture and event legacy. Not surprisingly, many proverbial wheels have had to be reinvented over time.

Bert was quick to add however, that despite Asians being more accommodating with their working style, they still functioned with a different set of standards which often translates into an inconsistency in terms of delivering fully on their service promise. He nominated China as being particularly challenging, Thailand and Malaysia as being challenging, and Hong Kong and Singapore as being less so. He conceded that this was not as big an issue within western businesses.

By way of an example, Bert shared with me an occasion where a number of high-end projectors were ordered for an event in Southeast Asia. Technically they had the capacity to be very bright as promised, however no allowance had been made for the actual age of the bulbs inside. Turns out the projectors were not so bright at all but the vendor felt they had delivered, technically, on what was promised. It is often said that it’s the devil in the detail and this is certainly the case in some parts of Asia depending on your vendor.

I asked Bert for his take on events within Australia. Bert describes Australia in pre-and post-Olympic terms. He believes that the games contributed to the local event industry adopting a more mature international outlook.

In doing so this event helped transform Australia into a nation open to adopting an attractive blend of Western and Eastern practices that makes it well suited to Amway Greater China.
This led me to ask – so what makes a good vendor for Asian events? This is difficult to determine but Bert lists three personal must-have points – the person, the culture, the creative.

Bert places a huge amount of stock in the creativity and energy of individual event personalities, their ability and leadership, and their collegiate manner.

The event lead needs to be someone who is easy to work with, brings value and expertise to the table, and proves to be a quick good fit with Bert and his team.

Ultimately Bert and his vendor need to share, as Bert puts it – a ‘You Die I Die’ shared outlook on the event outcome.

Naturally the event company needs to demonstrate its capacity to deliver on what are at times very complex events. Just as importantly, it needs to also be seen to inhabit a real creative culture that is passionate and energised about designing and delivering a uniquely memorable event. This is no small challenge when one also has to allow for and overcome the massive creative legacy of guest experiences already in place from previous events and the competitive nature these sort of big scale events attracts.

Bert tells me that as part of his duty of care, he often counsels his fellow colleagues sitting on the tender selection panels not to be taken in by too much overt displays of creativity. He cites extensive animated 3D rendering as an example – pretty but often without substance. Instead he advocates concentrating on what the key creative thread running through the entire event concept actually is and how this will translate into achieving their primary goal.
That goal is to generate unique and enduring Amway event memories. Ensuring guests feel valued and have enjoyed a unique event memory that will excite and “incent” them along with their colleagues, friends and family into the future.

This sits at the heart of any good event and we agreed that the keys to a successful Asian event rest with an acknowledgement of audience identity and the application of considerable showcraft expertise.

An Amway guest list is drawn from across all the provinces of China. There is a huge degree of diversity at play in terms of language, cultural and social mores. So it comes as no real surprise then that Amway events pragmatically place a huge amount of importance on the creation of a compelling and visually rich event environment above anything else.
This then translates into a programme featuring the universal appeal of music and dance. The creative also tends to favour audience favourites such as special effects, including pyrotechnics and stage mechanics, as well as innovatively embracing new show technology applications.

In terms of identity, guests do not travel from Asia with the expectation that they will then engage in what is for all practical terms a common Asian event experience. They don’t want same same, they want different. An example of this, and a common mistake made by event companies catering to Asian guests, is to try to emulate a Cirque du Soleil styled event programme which would normally go over very well with a western audience. It’s just not that effective in the east.

Incredible costumed performances with awe-inspiring feats of strength, acrobatics, and aerial skills are… well commonplace and just not as special within Asia. If you manage to secure the opportunity to attend either the Red Theatre’s Kung Fu show or the Tiandi Acrobatic show – both in Beijing, you’ll never look at Cirque the same way again. Better to remain true to the event hosts’ cultural strengths where possible.

Identity however, can be utilised well with some tweaking. Bert tells of the time he staged an event in Austria that featured a massive temporary ice rink featuring a Chinese national skater. One of the other highlights of the show was a performance by the world famous Vienna Boy’s Choir. By all accounts they were sensational but unfortunately the Chinese audience was left feeling indifferent. There was no cultural reference and it apparently lacked showcraft in terms of how they were presented – which was simply so as not to detract from the voice.

Bert returned to the choir concept in Melbourne.

This time around however, a new choir was assembled and featured two important additions. The application of identity and showcraft.
To the delight of the audience, the choir were schooled in a number of Mandarin language songs and importantly the performance was also given a stronger showcraft treatment – cascades of dry ice fog and an artful lighting design. Not surprisingly, the reception second time around was hugely positive from the audience.

This checklist of the person, the culture, the creative makes good sense to me and could or should be applied to most client-vendor partnerships within the Asia Pacific.

The other key learning take-away from our catch-up was to never underestimate the importance of cultural identity and to never forget that an event is all about business theatre. These two factors were certainly in place when Bert and I first met. He engaged me to produce Australia’s largest inbound corporate event series on his behalf.

This memorable event featured iconic Sydney event sites where we entertained and mesmerised over 13,500 guests. This event has since served as a quality benchmark for both our organisations. Since then Bert has revisited Australia with smaller events on the Gold Coast, Melbourne and a return visit to Sydney is currently being mapped out and planned for.
Knowing Bert and his team, I have no doubt it will be another amazing event that innovates and motivates and will, without question, require Bert and I to share another Causeway Bay coffee together into the future.

Darren Kerr is a partner and producer at FACTOR168 Creative Event Company. He has been delivering creative, strategic, and tactical event services throughout Asia and across Australia for almost two decades for clients as diverse as Amway, Westfields, NCR, The Walt Disney Company, EMC Corporation, Swire, and Oracle.

Source Notes:

For the published version in the September issue of Micenet Asia – please click here.

FACTOR168 Creative Event Company delivers creative, strategic, and tactical event management services throughout Australia and across Asia.

Sensational Events through Powerful Experiences – www.factor168.com

Cue applause.

We have nothing more to say about this clip other than it seriously rocks in an amusing comic-geek kinda way.

Sometime ago The Walt Disney Company acquired Marvel and almost all of their super heros (except for like the cool ones like Spiderman, Superman, and Batman).

With that in mind we thought we’d belatedly celebrate this union with this clip that for some odd reason always seems to draw laughter from the more disturbed members of our team. And laughter is good right?

Source Notes:

A news article talking about Disney acquires Marvel

The clip was from Marvel.com

FACTOR168 Creative Event Company

Creative. Strategic. Tactical.

Sensational Events through Powerful Experiences.

So be well warned – come the 25th this month, all Geeks, and those that harbor geek tendencies who are yet to come out of the IT Support closet, will be stepping up and out from behind their computer screens. And then…

They’ll come out of comic book, a little more slowly out of the gaming stores, they’ll setting aside their handheld device with steely conviction, and as one proudly bellowing ‘Hazzar!’ along with chest beating and complicated hand shakes before scampering off for poptarts or cheese powdered crunchy bits.

Now of course if you feel really kinda motivated, you could actually participate in more formal Geek Pride activities. But before you take this step, best you swat up on the Geek Pride Manifesto created to celebrate the day. The key elements such as the basic rights and responsibilities of geeks are detailed as follows -

Rights:

1. The right to be even geekier.
2. The right to not leave your house.
3. The right to not have a significant other and to be a virgin.
4. The right to not like football or any other sport.
5. The right to associate with other nerds.
6. The right to have few friends (or none at all).
7. The right to have all the geeky friends that you want.
8. The right to not be “in-style.”
9. The right to be overweight and have poor eyesight.
10. The right to show off your geekiness.
11. The right to take over the world.

Responsibilities:

1. Be a geek, no matter what.
2. Try to be nerdier than anyone else.
3. If there is a discussion about something geeky, you must give your opinion.
4. Save any and all geeky things you have.
5. Do everything you can to show off your geeky stuff as though it were a “museum of geekiness.”
6. Don’t be a generalized geek. You must specialize in something.
7. Attend every nerdy movie on opening night and buy every geeky book before anyone else.

But okay – are you actually a Geek? Check out the matrix below and see where you or someone you know that you suspect of carrying the Geek DNA and make a quick assessment.

For some non-geek ladies that have read the above manifesto, they may find a geek a more attractive proposition. If so, feel free to pop over to this SITE for a funny and kinda sweet ‘how-to-nab-a-geek’ guide.  Sadly I recognized a lot of former boyfriends in this… oh dear.

With that in mind and with the expectation that there may be some empowered frisky Geeks smothered in Old Spice on the loose this 25th, you may find it informative to consult the following Geek dating chart… it all now makes so much sense. Funny yet disturbingly rings true.

Source Notes:
The dating geek chart is courtesy of the fab website www.gossipgamers.com and the Geek Matrix is courtesy of this SITE. All other images from http://vi.sualize.us/

The manifesto of Geek Pride Day is courtesy of the font of most instant knowledge – Wikipedia. The history of the day can also be found HERE .

FACTOR168 Creative Event Company
Creative. Strategic. Tactical.
Sensational Events through Powerful Experiences.

Well certainly the Japanese know all about this and the legion of ‘Hello Kitty’ fans but I have just made the discovery that needs immediate sharing!

Branding juggernaut ‘Hello Kitty’ as part of its ever expanding toy and apparel line now features… ( cue dramatic drum roll followed by snare) …yes you guessed it – an ATM and a cash card for all the little ones to use.

Good to get them young I always say. Now young’uns can sit around and take turns taking money out of baby ATMs until they are all overdrawn. <sigh> Yay.

When I was a kid I played with frogs.
And tagged along at a respectful distance with my sister and her pals as they went from house to house indulging in various arts and crafts. And played ball.
No ATMs for me… okay they weren’t invented back then but you get what I mean.

Kids should be allowed to enjoy a childhood free of adult preoccupations.
That comes soon enough.

Yes that’s right, I am having a little soap box moment here. You got me cold.
I am not personally a fan of overtly commercializing childhoods – but extending off Darren’s recent post about branded transactional experiences – this would have to be a prime example of a branded transactional experience in the extreme. Oddly enough – if we were talking about a ‘Hello Kitty’ branded Visa or Mastercard I’d be very okay with that. In fact that sounds kinda cool – if you need the credit and are a fan.

FACTOR168 | Creative Event Management Company

Love this idea of making what is a pretty boring and functional transaction with a bank -a memorable fun experience instead.There should be more of it.

Sure, many cash machines around the world offer a number of language options but this is the first time I’ve come across a ‘slang’ based version.

Customers on selecting this option are requested to enter their Huckleberry Finn (PIN) before they can receive their sausage and mash (cash).

Those wanting to withdraw £10 sterling will have to ask for a speckled hen, while the machine may inform users that it is contacting their rattle and tank, rather than bank.

‘We wanted to introduce something fun and of local interest to our London machines,’ said Ron Delnevo, managing director of operators Bank Machine.

‘Whilst we expect some residents will visit the machine to just have a butcher’s (look), most will be genuinely pleased as this is the first time a financial services provider will have recognised the Cockney language in such a manner,’ he added.

All the usual fees associated with an ATM applied but Bank Machine offer the actual Cockney display prompts at no charge. Must have been an oversight on their part.

Bank Machine have done well. They have in effect creatively customized a functional transaction and transformed it, at what I imagine is a relatively low cost exercise, into a distinctly memorable experience.

People that visit and transact with these machines will carry with them positive associations with Bank Machine units as part of the East London landscape.

No doubt Bank Machine partners will also love the extra trade that this sort of traffic, for a ‘butcher’s’ or not, will bring. And following their transaction, they’ll be ready to spend some of that ‘bangers and mash’.

This same thinking can be strategically applied to other relatively ‘soul-less’ transactional activities that all companies share on a regular basis with staff and clients.

Certainly within the event spectrum, this same approach can be applied with great potential impact.

Event elements such as the registration process and post-event follow-ups are perfect candidates for being reimagined with a greater creative and interactive dimension. The possibilities are extraordinarily exciting.

Now for those that do not live in or visit East London – you can experience the Cockney slang in all of it’s glory with this fun little online app’. It is an English to Cockney translator.

Lor’ luv a duck! i’ is bee’s knees fun. Know what I mean?

* The image featured here is from Bank Machine.

FACTOR168 | Creative Event Management Company

No not that one… nor the one with the Salsa dipping sauce and Mojo Webb soundtrack… no. It is my Finnish pleasure.

I can’t recall exactly when I cam across this musical… umm.. phenomenon… and I can’t remember who introduced me to them but I am externally grateful. They always brings a smile to my dial and when the creative well is a little shallow, this outfit always seems to refresh and re-energise me.

They are a Finish Rock Band created by a Finnish (you’ll notice that I really like using the word Finnish where ever possible in this paragraph) film director Aki Kaurismaki (seriously that is his name, cool huh?) who featured in his Finish film cunningly titled “Leningrad Cowboys Go America” starring a fictional Finish progressive rock band with a taste for polka – the Leningrad Cowboys. Finished with laboring the Finish.

After the film, the band not expectantly took on a life of its own. Recording music, making videos and giving concerts. The band appeared in two other Aki Kaurismäki films, “Leningrad Cowboys Meets Moses” and “Total Balalaika Show”.

This second film featured the band in concert and for the first time with the 160-member Alexandrov Ensemble. It was in Helsinki and it was magic.

The Cowboys followed this up with a slightly smaller ensemble, about 70 odd Alexandrov member. They played at the 11th Annual MTV Music Awards in New York to an estimated global audience of 250 million people worldwide. Not bad at all.

This strange musical fusion of Finnish Art-Pop and Russian Military gave birth to some of the oddest cover renditions I have heard, but nothing more so than their glorious take of “Sweet Home Alabama” – the signature hit song from one of the most famous airplane crash band’s Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Check out the wacky glory of the Cowboys and the Alexandrov’s in action below.

About ten years after this concert film the Cowboys and the Ensemble got back together for a concert imaginatively titled “Global Balalaika Show“. And they were still popular! They have since toured regularly including private corporate functions… although I suspect seeing them perform without the Alexandrov Ensemble would be a little disappointing in some ways. For me anyway. The clash of stiff Cold War feeling military uniforms with the pop-art explosion of the Cowboys loud-jackets and Cirque de Soleil inspired pointed hair and shoes. It’s this visual and audible clash set to music that makes it all work so wonderfully.

As a general rule, the Leningrad Cowboys consist of eleven cowboys and two Leningrad Ladies. Their songs indicate a strong thematic preference for Genghis Khan, Russian folk standards, tractors and rockets, Led Zeppelin and the Beatles, and of course vodka.  Naturally.

That’s not to say that they haven’t tried their hand at more contemporary-ish songs.

The second clip embedded below is their version of that late ’90′s hit from punk-ish group Offspring. In some ways I like this song “Pretty Fly for a White Guy” more so than their other offerings. If for no other reason than it features the Ladies auxiliary of the ensemble opening the track by singing “Give It To Me Baby” in heavy accented English. Adorable and fun.

AND check out the way they have gone about staging the concert. Tiered stage levels and an elevated catwalk flown through and above the audience. Transferable to a memorable corporate environment? Yes sir.

The Leningrad Cowboys official site can be found overrrrr….overrr… here!

and the wonderful Russian Choir and Backing band is the Alexandrov Ensemble… and their site can be found……over….. there!

As a special added bonus for 168′ers – we have organized, kinda, for their entire site to be presented totally in Russian for a greater cultural experience. Awwww pretty.

Your most welcome.

FACTOR168 | Creative Event Management Company

Like a good flash mob moment, they appear to be democratically spur of the moment and yet a huge amount of pre-planning can often be involved. And they are becoming more and more popular, just check out the number of city specific zombie walks listed in the zombie walk forum. A clutch of states in the US, Australia, the UK, Finland, Brazil… people urrrrrrrrghhhh like it.

The zombie walk in Brisbane is a great example of the commercial power of flash mobbing with the charity of choice being…. you guessed it – The Brain Foundation.

What a fabulous tie-in and with not for profit outfits desperate for low cost or no cost special events that generates income and raises profile – this is a perfect fit. As an added bonus – unlike many other charity outfits with a more conservative position, the foundation through such a… well let’s be frank odd theme, also enjoys great targeted access to the difficult to mobilize Gen Y and to a lesser extent Gen X.

No surprise that the best example of flash mobs can be found in the USA. The following clip is a great example of a flash mob in process. Staged at Grand Central Station in New York – the mob on cue all froze, held their positions and then on signal reactivated. Memorable, well managed, and certainly worth watching… if for no other reason than enjoying the poor guy on the service buggy caught in the middle of the whole thing. Enjoy.

This and other similar flash mob moments were staged by Improve Everywhere – check out their site and the sister site Urban Prankster. Very inspirational for developing marketing campaigns that really create unsual and impactful experiences at ground zero.Certainly beats product tasters or girls in too small tops handing out leaflets.

FACTOR168 | Event Management Company

No one in the office has ever recieved more than 25 roses ever – and 108 means marry me, so we were wondering what 168 would mean?

A single bloom of red rose    love at first sight or “I still love you”

A single rose in any colour    indicates simplicity and gratitude
2 roses           mutual feelings
3 roses           “I love you”
7 roses           “I’m infatuated with you”
9 roses           “We’ll be together forever”
10 roses         “You are perfect”
11 roses         “You are My Treasured One”
12 roses         “Be mine!”
13 roses        “Friends forever”
15 roses         “I’m truly sorry”
20 roses         “I’m truly sincere towards you”
21 roses         “I’m dedicated to you”
24 roses         “Forever yours”
25 roses         Congratulations
36 roses         “Remembering our romantic times”
40 roses         “My genuine love for you”
50 roses         Unconditional love
99 roses         “I will love you all the days of my life”
101 roses       “I’m completely devoted to you”
108 roses       “Will you marry me?”
999 roses       “I love you till the end of time”

We hope you’ve enjoyed it as much as we enjoyed compiling it and if there are any flowers that we have missed, please drop us an email with your suggestions. A Sunflower for you all.

Scabiosa Admiration
Scilla                            Forgive & forget
Snapdragon                  Please don’t misunderstand
Snowball/Viburnum     Commitment
Spider Flower               Elope with Me
Stock                           Lasting beauty
Sunflower                    Adoration
Sweet Pea                    Delicate pleasures
Smilax                         Loveliness
Snapdragon                 Deception; Gracious Lady
Stephanotis                 Happiness in Marriage; Desire to Travel
Stock                          Bonds of Affection; Promptness; You’ll Always Be Beautiful to Me
Sweetpea                    Good-bye; Departure; Blissful Pleasure; Thank You for a Lovely Time

Tulip, Cream I will love you forever
Tulip, Red                   Declaration of love; Believe Me; Declaration of Love
Tulip, Yellow               I am hopelessly in love; There’s Sunshine in Your Smile
Tulip, General             Perfect Lover; Frame; Flower Emblem of Holland
Tulip, Variegated        Beautiful Eyes

Veronica Fidelity
Violet                          Modesty
Violet, Blue                 Watchfulness; Faithfulness; I’ll Always Be True
Violet, White               Let’s Take a Chance

Waratah Prosperity
Willow                         Bravery & humanity Zinnia Thoughts of absent friends

Zinnia, Magenta Lasting Affection
Zinnia, Mixed            Thinking (or In Memory) of an Absent Friend
Zinnia, Scarlet           Constancy
Zinnia, White             Goodness
Zinnia, Yellow            Daily Remembrance

We’ve delivered a huge number of projects in Sydney Australia and the state of Sydney is New South Wales. The state flower is the Waratah. Nice.

We like Nasturtium, we just find it hard to pronounce. And rosebud is a gem as a flower, even Citizen Kane loved it… the flower and as a decorative finish on snow sleds.
Magnolia Nobility
Marigold                    Cruelty; Grief; Jealousy
Mistletoe                   Kiss me; Affection; To Surmount Difficulties;Sacred Plant of India
Monkshood               Beware; A Deadly Foe is Near
Moss                         Maternal Love; Charity
Myrtle                        Love; Hebrew Emblem of Marriage

Narcissus Egotism; Formality; Stay as Sweet as You Are

Nasturtium                Conquest; Victory in Battle
Oleander Caution
Orange Blossom         Innocence; Eternal Love; Marriage and Fruitfulness
Orange Mock              Deceit
Orchid                        Love; Beauty; Refinement; Beautiful Lady; Chinese Symbol for Many Children
Orchid, Cattleya         Mature Charm
Paeonia Bashful
Palm leaves               Victory and Success
Peony                        Shame; Happy Life; Happy Marriage
Petunia                      Resentment; Anger; Your Presence Sooths Me
Phlox                         A good partnership; harmony
Pine                           Hope; Pity
Poppy, Oriental         Silence is golden
Poppy, Red                Consolation; Pleasure
Poppy, Scarlet           Extravagance
Poppy, White             Tranquility; Consolation
Poppy, General          Eternal Sleep; Oblivion; Imagination
Poppy, Yellow           Wealth; Success
Primrose                   I Can’t Live Without You
Primrose, Evening     Inconstancy
Ranunculus You are very attractive
Rose, Black                You are my obsession
Rose, Champagne      You are tender & loving
Rose, Leonidas          Sweet love
Rose, Nicole              You are graceful & elegant; aristocratic
Rose, Orange             You are my secret love
Rose, Pink                  Brilliant Complexion; the glow of your smile; Perfect Happiness; Please Believe Me
Rose, Red                   Passionate love; Love; I Love You
Rose, Single Stems     Simplicity
Rose, White                I am worthy of you; spiritual love; Innocence and Purity; I am Worthy of You;
Rose, White & Red      We are not separable; unity
Rose, White & Red Mixed    Unity; Flower Emblem of England
Rose, White-Dried     Death is Preferable to Loss of Virtue
Rose, Yellow              I am not worthy of your love; Decrease of Love; Jealousy; Try to Care
Rose, Bridal               Happy Love
Rose, Dark Crimson  Mourning
Rose, Hibiscus          Delicate Beauty
Rose, Leaf                 You May Hope
Rose, Tea                  I’ll Remember Always
Rose, Thornless        Love at First Sight
Roses, Bouquet of Mature Blooms    Gratitude
Roses, Single Full Bloom    I Love You; I Still Love You
Rosebud                   Beauty and Youth; A Heart Innocent of Love
Rosebud, Red           Pure and Lovely
Rosebud, White        Girlhood
Rosebud, Moss        Confessions of Love

FERN Magic; Fascination; Confidence and Shelter
FIR                                 Time
FLAX                              Domestic Symbol
Flowering Cabbage        Prosperity
Foget-Me-Not               True Love; Memories
Forsythia                       Anticipation
Forget Me Not               True love

Gardenia You’re Lovely; Secret Love
Geranium                      Stupidity; Folly
Gerbera                         You are the sunshine of my life
Ginger, Pink                  Diversity
Ginger, Red                   Unlimited Wealth
Gladioli                         Give Me a Break; I’m Really Sincere; Flower of the Gladiators
Gladiolus / Sword Lily   Strength of Character
Gloxinia                         Love at First Sight

Heather, Lavender Admiration; Solitude
Heather, White               Protection; Wishes Will Come True
Helenium                       I miss you very much
Heliconia                       Great returns
Holly                              Defense; Domestic Happiness
Hyacinth, General          Games and Sports; Rashness; Flower Dedicated to Apollo
Hyacinth, Blue               Constancy; Predictability; reliable
Hyacinth, Purple            I am Sorry; Please Forgive Me; Sorrow
Hyacinth, Red Or Pink   Play
Hyacinth, White             Loveliness; I’ll Pray for You; Subtle and graceful
Hyacinth, Yellow           Jealousy
Hyacinthus, Pink          Active; energetic
Hydrangea                    Thank You for Understanding; Frigidity; Heartlessness; Arrogance; aloofness

Iris Fleur-de-lis; Emblem of France; Your Friendship Means so Much to Me;                                                         Hope; Wisdom and Valor; My Compliments; Passion
Ivy                                Wedded Love; Fidelity; Friendship; Affection; Friendship; fidelity; marriage

Jasmine Amiability
Jonquil                          Love Me; Affection Returned; Desire; Sympathy; Desire for Affection Returned

Larkspur, White Joyful; happy-go-lucky
Larkspur, Pink               Fickleness
Larkspur, Purple            Sweet disposition
Lilac                              Field Humility
Lilac, Purple                  You are my first love
Lilac, White                   You are so pure and innocent
Lily of the Valley           Return of happiness
Lily, Calla                      Your voice is music to my ears
Lily, Casablanca            I am in heaven when I’m with you
Lily, Pink                       Romantic
Lily, Stargazer               I see heaven in your eyes
Lily, Yellow                   Live for the moment; nothing is forever; I’m Walking on Air; False and Gay
Lily, White                    Virginity; Purity; Majesty; It’s Heavenly to be with You My love is pure and innocent
Lily, Calla                     Beauty
Lily, Day                       Coquetry; Chinese Emblem for Mother
Lily, Eucharis               Maiden Charms
Lily, Tiger                    Wealth; Pride
Lily Of The Valley        Sweetness; Tears of the Virgin Mary; Return to Happiness; Humility

Naturally budget makes an impact on our selection as does the season, but above all – it is the artistry of the design of the floral work that is key. Together with our floral artists we have created some sensational creations – beautiful celebration bouquets, featured ‘hero’ displays, table centrepieces that serve as great conversation starters and so on.

But sometimes that’s all not enough…

What we discovered on one high profile event for an international financial firm from Hong Kong was that flowers came with specific associations that we needed to be mindful of. We were familiar with roses but anything more than that… thankful our client guided us and the day was saved and happiness was everywhere.

It took us some time, a couple of missteps, but eventually we developed a quick reference list of major flowers and their possible meanings. The flowers listed from A through to L are detailed here for your consideration.

Acacia Concealed Love; Beauty in Retirement; Chaste Love
Ambrosia                            Your Love is Reciprocated
Amaryllis                            Pride; Pastoral Poetry
Amaryllis/Hippeastrum      I am proud of you; pride
Anemone                            Forsaken
Anemone/Mona Lisa           I don’t want to lose you
Anthurium, Red                  You work to get where you are
Anthurium, White               Think of me
Arbutus                              Thee Only Do I Love
Aster                                  Symbol of Love, Daintiness

Aster China                        Variety is the spice of life

Azalea                                Take Care of Yourself for Me; Temperance; Fragile Passion; Chinese Symbol of Womanhood

Bachelor Button Single Blessedness
Begonia                             Beware
Bells Of Ireland                 Good Luck
Bellflower / Campanula    Gratitude
Bird of Paradise Flower     Freedom, Good perspective
Bittersweet                       Truth
Butterfly Orchid                You are always on my mind
Bluebell                            Humility

Cactus Endurance
Camellia, Pink                  Longing for you
Camellia, Red                   You’re a Flame in My Heart
Camellia, White                You’re Adorable
Carnation, General           Fascination; Woman Love
Carnation, Pink                I’ll Never Forget You; Motherly love
Carnation, Red                 My Heart Aches For You; Admiration; I hold you in high esteem; respect
Carnation, Purple             Capriciousness
Carnation, Solid Color      Yes
Carnation, Striped            No; Refusal; Sorry I Can’t Be With You; Wish I Could Be With You
Carnation, White              Sweet and Lovely; Innocence; Pure Love; Woman’s Good Luck Gift
Carnation, Yellow             You Have Disappointed Me; Rejection; Enjoy the moment
Cattail                              Peace; Prosperity
Celosia                             Fortune
Chrysanthemum              You’re a Wonderful Friend; Cheerfulness and Rest
Chrysanthemum, White   Truth
Chrysanthemum, Yellow  Slighted Love
Crocus                             Cheerfulness
Cyclamen                         Don’t lose faith in me
Cypress                            Mourning
Cyclamen                         Resignation and Good-bye

Daffodil Regard; Unrequited Love; You’re the Only One; The Sun is Always Shining with You
Daffodil Narcissus           You are an angel
Dahlia                              Fickleness
Daisy                               Innocence; Loyal Love; I’ll Never Tell; Purity
Daisy, Garden                  I share your sentiment
Daisy, Red                       Joy
Daisy, White                    Innocence; truth
Daisy, Yellow                  I will try hard to earn your love
Dandelion                       Faithfulness; Happiness

It is certainly not an exhaustive list so if a flower doesn’t feature and it should – your feedback is appreciated.