The Platinum Standard: How Engage! Turned Hospitality into Cultural Currency
Inside the global race to host Engage! — where destination, design, and dopamine collide.
By the time the truffle risotto is served, the ceiling has bloomed with florals, the lighting cues have shifted moods like a well-edited film, and half the room has already penciled in next year’s collaboration. This is not a wedding. This is not a product launch. This is Engage!—the summit where the best in the luxury event business gather to remind each other (and the world) that events are not logistics. Events are theater. They are emotion. They are art.
Engage! is more than a gathering of planners and designers. It represents the merging of all facets of the event industry—corporate, social, hospitality, incentive, and experience design—into one fluid, creative movement. It’s where wedding planners mingle with hotel CMOs, caterers trade insight with festival producers, and designers who once shaped only private ceremonies now shape public culture. The walls between event categories are dissolving, and Engage! is leading the charge.
What began as a luxe networking escape for top-tier wedding planners has grown into a roving, international summit of the world’s most creative minds in hospitality, experiential design, and ultra-high-end event production. Equal parts spectacle and salon, Engage! is the most anticipated rendezvous of the year for the people who design desire itself.
This year, it takes place not in a ballroom, but in a storybook Tuscan village. At Castelfalfi, guests float between candlelit courtyards and ancient stone towers, truffle hunts and al fresco wine pairings. They’re not here for continuing ed credits. They’re here to be seen, to be inspired, and above all—to recharge. Because while Engage! is technically a conference, it feels more like a three-day immersive theater piece in which every attendee is cast as the lead.
And the conference itself? It’s a showstopper. Engage! has rewritten the rules of professional programming. Each learning space is a transformation—rooms are bathed in color, layered with cascading florals, rich fabrics, flickering candlelight, and scentscaping. Conference rooms have become immersive art galleries. One year, the general session stage was flanked with gemstone-toned installations inspired by desert light. Another, the lecture room was anchored by a celestial stage wrapped in velvet and mood lighting. Even the transitions between sessions are performance-worthy.
The breaks are high art. Rather than dull coffee stations and limp cookies, guests might wander into a Parisian-style patisserie offering custom lavender madeleines, or a lounge where the cappuccinos are topped with edible branding and served in bone china. Break areas become curated conversation zones, with ambient music and floral-sculpted centerpieces designed to shift attention and mood.
Every detail is polished. Even the speakers are treated like stars. Prior to their presentations, they are scheduled for professional hair and makeup, ensuring they’re stage-ready not just in content, but in presence. And it shows—most of the presentations rise to the level of TED Talks, blending polished storytelling with visual spectacle and tightly crafted takeaways. These aren’t panels. They’re performances.
You see it in the fashion. Mood boards go out weeks in advance. Guests arrive styled to the nines: Loro Piana linens, Naeem Khan sparkle, vintage Pucci. It’s runway meets ritual. Every attendee receives a themed color palette—down to dress code specifics for day, dinner, and gala. The level of detail would rival a couture show. But beneath the surface glamor lies real creative grit.
At any table, you're likely to sit beside Bryan Rafanelli, architect of presidential inaugurations and discreet royal nuptials, or David Beahm, whose installations have transformed train stations and temples alike into dreamscapes of petals and light. There’s Colin Cowie, who brings brand polish to every champagne flute, and Carla Ruben, doyenne of catering, here not with a tasting tray but a notebook, recharging her senses. Others such as Marcy Blum, Lynn Easton, Mindy Weiss, Jes Gordon, Michelle Rago, Laurie Arons, and Sarah Haywood bring not just star power but experimental verve, treating Engage! as both retreat and creative sandbox.
What sets Engage! apart is that it’s not just a gathering of top-tier creatives—it’s a live demonstration of their genius. The final gala is a wedding with no bride and groom, designed solely for the delight of those who design for others. It’s where surprises reign: Diana Ross has performed. So has Kesha. There have been drone light ballets over vineyards, pop-up denim bars where guests customized jackets with crystals and patches, even fragrance labs where attendees crafted their own scents. And yes, there is a silent disco.
The experience is photographed by a who’s who of elite photographers. Corbin Gurkin, with her painterly eye; Paul Morse, the former White House lensman who now shoots luxury weddings; Joel and Justyna Bedford, whose cinematic storytelling feels like a Vogue editorial in motion. Others include Genevieve de Manio, John Cain Sargent,Allan Zepeda, Ben Finch, and Carla Ten Eyck. Their images don’t just document—they elevate. They become part of the event’s legacy.
Even the gifting suites feel more curated gallery than grab bag: Longchamp totes, Dior card holders, Assouline books, silk robes in Pantone palettes. Styled by TPD Design House, the gifting is as much about narrative as it is about luxury.
There is no rigid divide between attendee and contributor. Everyone is both. Designers bring their boldest ideas to the table, florists experiment with scale, and photographers turn even corridor conversations into editorial vignettes. Engage! is part event, part collaborative studio—a living installation of the industry’s most creative minds.
Of course, the brilliance of the programming is rivaled only by the exclusivity of entry. Pricing for the summit floats between $5,500 and $8,500 per person, depending on the destination’s grandeur and itinerary depth. And while tickets technically go on sale months in advance, they’re often snapped up within minutes—each summit selling out faster than the last. A waitlist opens for hopefuls, though slots rarely resurface. For seasoned attendees, a $500 loyalty discount awaits at your fifth summit—less a marketing gimmick than a gesture of insider camaraderie.
Corporate observers—heads of marketing from Rosewood Hotels, LVMH, and NetJets among them—are increasingly becoming fixtures at the back of the ballroom, quietly taking notes. What they’ve begun to realize is that Engage! has become a trend oracle. It doesn’t just reflect what’s stylish in weddings or events—it influences what brand campaigns will look like six months from now. From gifting suite strategy to floral storytelling, Engage! is a mood board that moves markets.
Even those in the world of exhibitions and festivals are tuning in, eyeing Engage! as a working prototype of what immersive design, curated serendipity, and audience choreography could feel like if done at a higher level. Why rely on crowded expo halls and logo walls when you can watch an orchestra emerge from an olive grove mid-dinner?
This isn’t about selling software or sponsorship tiers. This is about curating emotion. Designing prestige. Making people feel something—then turning that feeling into content. Because Engage! isn’t just an event. It’s a cinematic universe. One where Instagram Stories, Pinterest boards, and editorial reels don’t just document what happened—they declare what’s next.
And here’s the neuroscience behind why it matters: Studies show that emotionally charged experiences form stronger, longer-lasting memories. When guests are immersed in beauty, meaning, and surprise—when an event transcends function and touches awe—the brain responds with dopamine and oxytocin, reinforcing both loyalty and recall. This is not fluff. This is ROI.
In an emotionally saturated world, good-enough events no longer make the cut. Just as fashion consumers gravitate to visionary designers, discerning clients now seek planners and creatives whose work reflects identity, aspiration, and originality. Event pros are becoming celebrities in their own right—commissioned not for logistics, but for point of view.
The result? The best events are getting bolder, more cinematic, more intentional. And the ones that simply “check boxes”? They vanish without a trace.
For those who understand the power of gathering, Engage! is not optional. It’s gospel.
You don’t just attend.
You arrive.
And you design your next chapter while you’re there.
Upcoming
Engage!25 The London Experience
Dates: July 21–24, 2025
Venues: Claridge’s, The Connaught, The Berkeley, and The Emory
Highlights: Attendees will experience classic British hospitality across Mayfair’s finest hotels, with events at iconic London locations, curated by guest creative director Bruce Russell Events.
Engage!25 Peru Belmond Retreat
Dates: September 8–11, 2025
Venues: Monasterio, A Belmond Hotel & Hiram Bingham, A Belmond Train
Highlights: An intimate gathering focused on strengthening meaningful connections, featuring professional facilitation, peer-led discussions, and immersive experiences like a journey through the Sacred Valley to Machu Picchu aboard the Hiram Bingham train.
Engage!25 Mallorca Retreat
Dates: November 3–6, 2025
Venue: Cap Rocat
Highlights: Set in a former military fortress turned luxury hotel, attendees will enjoy Mediterranean-inspired wellness activities, intimate networking sessions, and curated culinary experiences.
Engage!25 Santa Barbara Summit
Dates: December 8–11, 2025
Highlights: This summit will feature coastal luxury with events overlooking the Pacific Ocean, incorporating West Coast flair into its design and programming.
Engage!26 Evrima Retreat
Dates: February 23–26, 2026
Highlights: Embarking from San Juan, Puerto Rico, this all-inclusive retreat will sail to Anguilla and St. Barths, offering luxury accommodations, world-class dining, and immersive experiences at sea. ations:
A Sampling of Iconic Past Destinations and Venues
A celebration of the properties and destinations that helped define a generation of unforgettable gatherings.
2025
Castelfalfi – Tuscany, Italy, Cap Rocat – Mallorca, Spain
2024
Villa TreVille – Amalfi Coast, Italy, Nemacolin – Farmington, Pennsylvania, USA, Royal Livingstone Hotel by Anantara – Zambia, Victoria Falls Hotel – Zimbabwe, Sanctuary Chief’s Camp – Botswana, The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island – Amelia Island, Florida, USA
2023
Villa Igiea – Palermo, Sicily, Italy, Hotel de Crillon – Paris, France, Regent Porto Montenegro – Tivat, Montenegro, The Boca Raton – Boca Raton, Florida, USA
"David" you have made me curious and fascinated. I feel like I could be watching a Netflix documentary. I remember when I bid at a charity luncheon in Toronto to go to New York Fashion week and had the most spectacular time attending Oscar De La Renta's showroom and sitting in seats near writers from Vogue, Elle, Instyle etc... I was very lucky to see him before he passed. I also saw two other shows but his left such an impression on me. This would be a dream come true for me. I will keep dreaming every word of this and imagining what it would be like to hobnob with the rich and famous. Another great post.