by Thinus Ferreira 

With South Africa’s events organising industry that experienced an extinction-level event the past two years, the 10th Silwerskermfees film festival – cast in beautiful golden shimmer walls this year – is one of the first of several fairy lights-lined events slowing flickering back on for a decimated industry. 

“We’ve missed the feedback and the energy of the guests attending an event. And a big part of events is the feedback from the guests and visitors and delegates attending,” says the experienced and sought-after events organiser Edmund Beukes of XL Events in Cape Town who was once again roped in this year as events manager at kykNET’s 10th Silwerskermfees.

“It’s nice to experience the positivity and buzz that’s so energising of real-life events – that adrenalin-rush,” he says. “We’ve missed that. It’s a different kind of motivation that’s difficult to put in words.”

About starting the engine of real-world event organising back up in South Africa after two years, Edmund Beukes who earlier this year already did a slew of events countrywide from magazine media events to weddings, says “in a certain sense you’ve forgotten what you’ve forgotten after two years – there’s a certain muscle memory with certain things you have to regain again”.

“The terrible thing about the Covid lockdowns was that so many of the suppliers who unfortunately were forced to close up shop. You have to go and find new possible suppliers for various things.”

“Then, the nature of the business of eventing also changed. Currently we’re extremely busy with a lot more smaller events and our bigger clients are not even all back in full force.”

“Luckily, I want to say we’re almost not coping with trying to help everyone suddenly rushing to have their events, but I’m also wondering what’s going to happen in a month’s time as South Africa opens up again and all the big companies return to the eventing space.”

“You look back and are extremely grateful for the work you do have but you’re also slightly apprehensive about the future.”

“We already have to think about two months from now and you’re apprehensive about making commitments about the future and what if there’s a next Omicron. Is there going to be a new shutdown again? There’s been a realisation of how little in life you can actually control.”

About event management in South Africa and the damage the industry suffered because of the extended Covid lockdown, Edmund Beukes says “it was horrific”.

“The place you rent carpets from, the place doing the type of draping the client wants, the conference space and expo space – they’re not back yet. Those companies are still struggling immensely but they have to keep going under duress. And some of them are the sole supplier of a certain product or service in the market.”

“It also damaged a lot of smaller companies but it also separated the chaff from the wheat. I think the stronger survived. I think some who struggled before Covid, the lockdown was the straw that broke the camel’s back.”

“It also helped me to steer my company into a new direction. We had to be inventive and creative and had to dream up new things to do, and you had to look with fresh eyes at things. Sometimes you build your business like an anthill – you just add on and add on without relooking the foundation you’ve built your business.” 

Of French ticklers and gift boxes

During the lockdown period, Edmund Beukes says his company branched out into packing gift boxes that in a sense replaced the connection and space of a brand’s physical event in people’s minds.

“It’s one of the new parts of the business that isn’t receding as real-world events return but is something that is continuing. Now I realise we’re not geared to do both and now we have to invest again to take that part of the business further.”

“We also moved homes – which is something we’ve stopped. We don’t do that anymore.”

He says over the past two years the recent gift box packed for a Showmax series was an interesting one.

“When we had to source the French ticklers for Showmax’s Seks in Afrikaans series it was all of the calls to find 90 French ticklers for gift boxes that was the most interesting thing of everything. It was so much fun because you realise how many themes can go into a box.”

“Even the sound that the wrapping paper makes when you open it, the smell of the candle you include. And I think people love great food. They want to snack, they want to taste – and then a gift box is a success.”

Tiffany chairs and trust

For this year’s 10th Silwerskermfees he says some of the things XL Events originally wanted to bring in couldn’t materialise due to it being imported and the logistical shipping challenges around getting it from China with delayed cargo ships and that country’s factory energy issues.

“What’s nice is the creative freedom that comes with the Silwerskermfees in terms of event management – to go and sit and think. Because we’ve been planning so long in advance, we had a lot of time to think, which means you can conceptualise something fully in your mind before you execute and it’s not merely a sausage factory.”

Edmund says guests will see a lot of detail at kykNET’s 10th Silwerskermfees this year. “It’s enjoyable to work this way because you can work systematically and add things”.

His message for South Africa’s event and entertainment industry is “humility”. 

“It was incredible how companies have been helping and supporting each other during this time. People and companies became more flexible. It’s great to see how people have been standing together, stronger. Prices came down – good and bad.”

“I want to say South Africa’s event organising is almost back with a bang. Two weeks ago we almost couldn’t find a white napkin to rent – it’s an incredible sign. And the big companies are not even back yet.

As to how South Africa’s event industry compares to other countries, he says as far as event design goes, South Africa is far ahead of many other countries.

“We’ve had many international clients and when I look back at photos of things we and others have done in the past  – South Africa is really on another level. To our detriment sometimes, I think we drive ourselves almost too hard. It’s always ‘yes, another new chair’, ‘yes, another new form table’.”

“Go look at America’s Grammys. They’ve been using Tiffany chairs for years and years. We’ve moved on already and you’d think that they would also have moved on but they haven’t.”

“As South Africans we’re way more creative and inventive and it also shows the calibre of corporate clients in South Africa who is willing to experiment, willing to allow for creativity and willing to adapt and change with the times and willing to trust event organisers who bring new ideas for their events space.”