Company Christmas parties making post-pandemic return
COVID-19 made company Christmas parties a thing of the past, but in 2022, they are happening once again.
Byrun Stedmann is looking forward to next Friday’s company Christmas party. His work held one last year, but it was limited by pandemic precautions.
“At some point in time, life does have to get back to normal,” said Stedmann.
In the kitchen at Truffles Catering in Central Saanich, it’s all hands on deck. More staff have been added to keep-up with demand.
“We’ve seen a big rebound,” said Alistair Eason, the company's general manager.
On Thursday night, the company catered an event for 600 people.
“I think a lot of companies are looking to celebrate their teams, so we’ve seen a full return of event catering,” said Eason.
“It’s really important for businesses and government offices to get together as a group,” said Joel Chudleigh, sales and catering manager at the Strathcona Hotel and Sticky Wicket Pub.
The hotel and pub is sitting at around 80 per cent of pre-pandemic Christmas party bookings.
“If I answer my phone this afternoon, I’ll have three more requests for parties today,” said Chudleigh. “Groups of 15, 20, 25, 30, trying to fit in something for the last minute … That will go on, all the way until about the 20th.”
“Hotels are steady and busy on weekends,” said Bill Lewis, General Manager of Magnolia Hotel and Spa and Chair Person of the Greater Victoria Hotel Association.
Meanwhile, hotel occupancy rates are sitting around 50 to 60 per cent, which Greater Victoria Hotel Association chair Bill Lewis says is good for the offseason.
International travel is still down, with many rooms being filled by domestic or U.S. travellers. Recently, on weekends, it’s people looking for a night away from home after a staff party.
“I think one of the terms we like to use is 'pent-up demand,'” said Lewis. “I’m going to have that family event. I’m going to have the Christmas party.”
Stedmann said he's is still cautious about mingling in a group setting, but knows getting together with coworkers during the Christmas season is important.
“It’s nice to be out and it’s nice to have a life again,” said Stedmann.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Incident on Calgary's Reconciliation Bridge comes to safe resolution
Nearly 20 hours after a man climbed and remained perched on top of the Reconciliation Bridge in downtown Calgary, the situation came to a peaceful resolution.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.