One of Priority Press’s signature events every year is its famous “Open House”, a major event that traditionally takes place the Friday, or “Carb Day” before the Indianapolis 500. Usually, we welcome around 400 attendees. This year, when it came time to make plans, there was still a lot of uncertainty about what would and wouldn’t be possible in terms of in-person, larger-scale events, so we decided to plan a smaller, design-focused outdoor event for June. In many ways, this year’s event met all the needs of our usual open house while also addressing the unique situation we are all in together. There was a big desire on the part of our customers to just take some time, get out of the office, talk to peers, get inspiration, share fresh ideas as they planned for the second half of 2021 and do so in a safe and responsible way.
Our solution? An outdoor paper show, hosted on a Thursday afternoon! It gave us a great opportunity to showcase what’s new from paper merchants, as well as some of our business lines like display graphics, promotional products and product imagery services, while also taking advantage of a pleasant outdoor setup. Everyone had a chance to chat, learn, and relax. Outdoor events are still a popular choice at this point, and as it turns out, it was the perfect choice for our event this year!
Tents were the name of the game on the day of the event. Attendees started out at a registration tent, where they were given Priority-branded name tags, plus swag bags with a branded cup and T-shirt (co-branded with Priority and Sun King). Two other tents anchored the event. One served as our food and beverage area, where we served box lunches, water, and soda. In addition to this tent, we also had a beer truck courtesy of Sun King, who had three beers on tap for the day: Cream Ale, Weemac, and Osiris.
The other tent was home to eleven different paper mills who were set up along the perimeter of the tent with their own tables and giveaways – leaving plenty of room for people to chat at whatever distance they felt comfortable with. The diversity of the mills gave clients some new and creative print ideas, and those very ideas have turned into projects that we are discussing and helping bring to life now. We even displayed a pair of race cars right out in front of our graphics building!
Ensuring a smooth experience for our attendees was a top priority. Black Priority shirts for our team made it easy for guests to know who to contact for help or directions, and we ensured that everything was clearly marked with signage. Our food tables were spread out for easy socializing and movement for more than a hundred visitors who turned up to share this day with us and with each other.
Although it wasn’t quite the same as our open house in previous years, we did take the opportunity during this event to open our doors and give attendees a peek “behind the curtain,” so to speak, at what goes on at Priority on a daily basis. The sales team took groups of visitors on tours throughout all the buildings and walked them through demonstrations. We had a car being wrapped live, the wide format printer going, headshot demonstrations at the Imaging Studio, and the presses turning sheets in the Priority Press building.
If you wanted a free headshot, the photography pros at Priority Imaging were happy to accommodate, giving attendees the chance to update social profiles shots in a professional setting. The state-of-the-art Priority Imaging photography studio is one of four buildings on our campus and made for the fun of touring the Priority facilities.
The whole event was just a day full of joy, connection, and sharing ideas. People were excited to be out of the office and around other people, perhaps for the first time in a long time. We saw a lot of smiles, laughs, and happy people as they engaged in conversation and enjoyed their complimentary lunch, beer, shirts, cups, paper samples and swatches, and other giveaways. It was a great chance for us to connect with our clients and paper mills, as well as for them to connect and network with each other in a relaxed environment.
Plus, we had the chance to really remind our clients and guests of the full range of possibilities offered here at Priority. “Oh wow, I didn’t know you did all that here!” seemed to be the refrain of the day, as guests got to see our facilities and processes firsthand. Our paper show was an absolute success, and we’re so thrilled to have had the chance to share this day with our much-appreciated colleagues and clients. We can’t wait for the next opportunity to spend time together and show everyone what Priority can do!
“OH WOW, I DIDN’T KNOW YOU DID ALL THAT HERE!” SEEMED TO BE THE REFRAIN OF THE DAY, AS GUESTS GOT TO SEE OUR FACILITIES AND PROCESSES FIRSTHAND.
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