The EPN Journal Podcast

Event Planner News - hosted by Bob Toovey

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The Event Planner News Podcast aims to explore news stories from the industry and go behind the scenes with members of the community. Our guest list features event planners, experts in hospitality & venues, and people from many other related areas. Please get in touch if you would like to be a guest.

1D AGO

Evolution Dome, product launches & celebrations at International Confex 2026

At this year’s International Confex, held over two days in February at London’s ExCel, I spoke with Ash Austin, Director and Founder of Evolution Dome. Inside their brand new Nexus Pod that was set up on the show floor, we discussed his new industry guide to temporary inflatable structures and their 15 year anniversary. You can read more about Ash Austin's founders story on EPN Journal. If you enjoyed this episode then please share it with friends and colleagues, and don't forget to subscribe so you'll be notified of new episodes. A huge thank you to our partners ⁠Vividink⁠, ⁠Eventflow⁠ and ⁠There.app⁠. You can ⁠⁠find out more about them on EPN Journal⁠⁠. Thanks also to MMG for recording this episode. You can show your support by liking, subscribing, and by leaving a comment. Thanks for listening!

18 min
4D AGO

Are events, shows and conferences growing or just being nomadic?

This Week In Events is a weekly series that dives in to industry stories from last 7 days. This edition was recorded live on Thursday 26th at International Confex 2026. This week, the team consists of Paul Richardson of ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠VividInk⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, Jill Hawkins of ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Aniseed PR⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and hosted by Bob Toovey of ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Event Planner News⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Journal⁠. We discuss confex, the organised events that happen outside of a show (morning breakfast get togethers, sponsored evening drinks etc), and a news item from Exhibition News, London Excel welcomes 23 additional major events. If you enjoyed this episode then please share it with friends and colleagues, and don't forget to subscribe so you'll be notified of new episodes. A huge thank you to our partners ⁠Vividink⁠, ⁠Eventflow⁠ and ⁠There.app⁠. You can ⁠find out more about them on EPN Journal⁠. And big thanks to First Sight Media and their team for their expertise in making this episode possible. You can show your support by liking, subscribing, and by leaving a comment. Thanks for listening!

39 min
FEB 20

Do we need a revolution in events or do they simply need fixing?

This Week In Events dives in to event industry news stories from the last 7 days. This edition, for Friday 20th February features Paul Richardson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, Paul Cook and hosted by Bob Toovey⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. This weeks discussion was inspired by a recent LinkedIn post by Julius Solaris. His suggestion included running an event party on the morning of the second day. We discuss the idea, and how we should be fixing what we have now before 'revolutionising' the attendee experience. During our chat we mention a report, you can find that here - Freeman Trends Report - Insights on Retention & Experience We would love to hear your thoughts and comments, check out the EPN Community page and find out how. Discover ⁠more episodes of This Week In Events⁠ on EPN Journal. If you enjoyed this episode then please share it with friends and colleagues, and don't forget to subscribe so you get notified when new episodes are published. Thank you to our partners ⁠Vividink PR⁠ and Eventsflow for their continued support.

41 min
FEB 19

Silchester Farm Venue & the pressures on hospitality

Alastair Winsey is the owner of the wedding and corporate event venue, Silchester Farm. He has first hand experience of how venue staff are struggling to keep up, not just with the current economic situation, but also with the pressures of the work and the admin involved. In our conversation, we explore the needs of venue staff and how the business tries to support them, the ways in which AI can help with admin, and the history of Silchester Farm. If you enjoyed this episode then please share it with friends and colleagues, and don't forget to subscribe so you'll be notified of new episodes. A huge thank you to our partners ⁠Vividink⁠, ⁠Eventflow⁠ and ⁠There.app⁠. You can ⁠find out more about them on EPN Journal⁠. You can show your support by liking, subscribing, and by leaving a comment. Thanks for listening!

33 min
FEB 5

Why Sustainable Food Options Are Key To The Events Industry

Welcome to Backstage Pass, where we chat with those who work behind the scenes in the event industry. Eden Caterers and 15Hatfields have a strong and long standing relationship. Between them, they have demonstrated that sustainability can be more than just ticking box, and it can become a business advantage. In this episode of Backstage Pass, I’m joined by Joe Harris of 15Hatfields and Nick Mead of Eden Caterers to talk about how they work together and how they have pushed sustainability forward. Our conversation ranges from how the long relationship between Eden and 15Hatfields started, and their involvement with defining a sustainability standard inspired by the Olympics, to providing sustainable food options and what their collected data is revealing. If you enjoyed this episode then please share it with friends and colleagues, and don't forget to subscribe so you'll be notified of new episodes. A huge thank you to our partners ⁠Vividink⁠, ⁠Eventflow⁠ and ⁠There.app⁠. You can find out more about them on EPN Journal. You can show your support by liking, subscribing, and by leaving a comment. Thanks for listening!

45 min
12/19/2025

How Different Are Corporate Events? With Guest Jennie Plumlee

Welcome to Backstage Pass, where we chat with those who work behind the scenes to make events happen. My guest is Jennie Plumlee, who has many years of experience, which includes being a Marketing Director, organising Conference Sponsorships and creating global Webinars. And there’s much more, as you can see on her LinkedIn profile. She’s currently sharing her expertise with university students, in particular, helping them discover a career in corporate events. Jennie is also sharing some of that knowledge on Instagram. Jennie found a few minutes in her busy day to have a quick chat with me. I start by asking why corporate events are different. If you enjoyed this episode then please share it with friends and colleagues, and don't forget to subscribe so you'll be notified of new episodes. EPN is supported by the event industry community, Vividink, Eventflow and There.app. Discover how ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠you can become a patron⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

29 min
12/12/2025

This Week In Events For Friday 12th December (the last one for 2025!)

This is a short episode as it’s the last one for 2025. We’re taking a break and we will be back in January 2026. Our amazing team has taken part in 20 episodes, so a huge thank you to Paul Richardson, Jill Hawkins, Paul Cook and Kristyna O'Oconnell. As mentioned in this episode... Listen to our most popular episode Apply to be a guestDiscover how to become a supporterA huge thank you also goes to our amazing patrons and sponsors, Vividink, Eventflow and There.app for their continued support. Event Planner News is fueled and supported by the amazing event industry community. It’s because of our patrons and sponsors we keep doing what we do. If you would to offer your support, then please get in touch. Lastly, a huge thank you to you and all those who took the time to listen. I really look forward to you joining me in 2026 for more great episodes!

4 min
11/28/2025

This Week in Events For Friday 28th November 2025

This Week In Events dives in to event industry news stories from the last 7 days. This edition, for Friday 28th November, features Paul Richardson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, Paul Cook and Bob Toovey⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Stories discussed this week... Evissio report on the ‘Awards Industry’A look at IBTM, the exhibitor and attendee experienceThe UK Budget: minimum wage and the freeze on train fares for 2026We would love to hear your thoughts on the topics discussed, so please leave a comment. Discover more episodes of This Week In Events on EPN Journal. If you enjoyed this episode then please share it with friends and colleagues, and don't forget to subscribe so you get notified when new episodes are published. Thank you to our Patron Vividink PR for their continued support. Discover how ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠you can become a patron⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

1h 13m

The Event Planner News Podcast aims to explore news stories from the industry and go behind the scenes with members of the community. Our guest list features event planners, experts in hospitality & venues, and people from many other related areas. Please get in touch if you would like to be a guest.

Creator

Event Planner News - hosted by Bob Toovey
Years Active

2025 - 2026
Episodes

44
Rating

Clean
Copyright

© Event Planner News - hosted by Bob Toovey
Show Website

The EPN Journal Podcast