The Party People Actually Turn Up To — Holiday Parties in Minneapolis, MN
Seventeen seasons of company parties, client evenings and year-end awards. We hold December venues from March, which is the single reason our clients get the room they wanted at a rate that has not doubled.
What We Put On
One party, six offices, or something that is not in December at all.
Not sure a December party is even the right idea for your team? That is a conversation we are very happy to have honestly.
Seventeen Seasons of December
Company parties and client evenings across the Twin Cities.
We Book December in March
Coppice has planned corporate holiday parties in the Twin Cities since 2009, and the single most useful thing we do happens nine months before anyone thinks about it.
Every good December venue in Minneapolis and St. Paul is contracted by late spring. Companies that start looking in September are choosing from what is left, at seasonal rates, on the dates nobody wanted. We hold capacity from March across a set of venues and release what our clients do not take.
The rest is what you would expect — food, drink, entertainment, a run of show and staff on the night. But the reason our clients get the room they actually wanted is that we were in the market before the market opened.
- ✓December venue capacity held from March each year
- ✓780 holiday parties since 2009
- ✓Teams of 20 to 1,500, single site or multi-office
- ✓We will tell you when January is the better idea
What We Handle as Standard
Whether it is forty people or fifteen hundred.
Venue held before the season opens
We contract December capacity from March. You choose from good rooms at sensible rates rather than from whatever is unbooked in October.
Food served, not queued for
The most common complaint about company parties is a forty-minute buffet line. We plan service so nobody waits and there is still food at nine o'clock.
A run of show with a proper ending
Speeches early, awards while the room is attentive, and a defined finish. Parties that drift are the ones people leave at eight.
Dietary and cultural inclusion
Non-alcoholic options that are not an afterthought, halal and kosher where needed, and a menu that works for the whole workforce.
Safe transport home
Ride codes, shuttles or taxi accounts arranged and communicated in advance. It is a duty-of-care question, not a nice touch.
An attendance read afterwards
Who came, who did not, and what the feedback said — so next year's decision is based on something better than a vibe.
Your Party Does Not Have to Be in December
We will say this out loud even though it costs us the peak-season margin: for a lot of companies, January is simply better.
December venues cost roughly double. Your staff are at their third party that week and half of them have family commitments. Suppliers are stretched. Attendance is routinely the lowest of any month you could pick.
Move it to late January and the same budget buys a considerably better evening — a venue you could not have afforded, a proper meal instead of canapés, and a room where people are actually pleased to be there. About a fifth of our clients have moved, and none has moved back.
- ✓December venue rates are roughly double January's
- ✓Attendance is consistently higher outside party season
- ✓The same budget buys a materially better evening
- ✓Roughly 20% of our clients have moved — none has moved back
Four Reasons People Skip the Company Party
It is standing room with no real food
A three-hour reception with canapés and a cash bar is the single most common format and the most disliked. People eat before, arrive late and leave early.
It is on a weeknight in the busiest fortnight of the year
Mid-December weeknights compete with every other party and every school concert. Attendance is decided by the date more than by the event.
Nobody planned how people get home
If getting home is the guest's problem, a meaningful share of the workforce will not come at all — and those who do will leave at nine.
It excludes part of the workforce
An evening drinks event quietly excludes parents, non-drinkers and anyone observing dietary requirements nobody asked about. They notice.
From March to the Night Itself
The earlier you start, the better the room you get.
Hold a date
Tell us roughly when and how many. We hold capacity from our March venue block — it costs nothing and it is the whole advantage.
Format and budget
We propose a format built around attendance rather than around a theme, with the budget broken out line by line.
Book and build
Venue, catering, entertainment, AV and transport contracted and managed. You approve; we chase.
The night and the read
We run it and staff it, then send you attendance and feedback data within two weeks.
What People and Culture Teams Say
We used to start looking in September and take whatever was left. Coppice holds December venues from March, so for four years running we have had the room we actually wanted at a rate that did not double because it was the fifteenth.
Our staff survey said the party was the least popular thing we did all year. Coppice asked why, found out it was a three-hour standing reception with no food and a cash bar, and rebuilt it. Attendance went from 40% to 88%.
Six offices across three states, one party each, one budget and one brand. They ran all six inside eleven days and every location got something that felt considered rather than franchised. Our regional managers stopped complaining, which is unprecedented.
Hold a Date Before the Season Opens
Every good December room in the Twin Cities is contracted by late spring. Tell us roughly when and how many — holding a date costs nothing and it is the single best thing you can do for the party.
What Employers Ask Us
When should we start planning?
March, genuinely. Every good December venue in Minneapolis and St. Paul is contracted by late spring, and companies starting in September choose from leftovers at seasonal rates. We hold capacity from March and release what our clients don't take — so an early call costs nothing and preserves every option.
Is it too late if we're only asking now?
Depends on the month you're asking in, and we'll tell you honestly. If December is genuinely picked over, we'll usually recommend January rather than sell you a room we wouldn't book ourselves.
Why do you keep suggesting January?
Because for many companies it's simply better. Venues cost roughly half, attendance is higher because nobody is at their fourth party that week, and the same budget buys a considerably better evening. About a fifth of our clients have moved and none has moved back.
Our attendance has been terrible. Can you fix that?
Usually, and rarely by spending more. Low attendance is almost always the date, the format or the journey home — a weeknight in mid-December, a standing reception with no real food, and no plan for getting people back. We look at those three first.
Can you do several offices?
Regularly. Multi-office and regional programmes are a real part of what we do — one budget, one brand, several locations, each feeling considered rather than franchised. Our record is six cities in eleven days.
Half our staff don't drink. Does that work?
It works better, in our experience. Non-alcoholic options designed properly rather than added as an afterthought, food that's a meal, and a daytime family-inclusive format if that suits your workforce. Parties built only around a bar exclude more people than employers realise.
What does a corporate holiday party cost?
Headcount, the venue and whether it's a served meal drive it more than anything else. A forty-person client evening and a 600-person company party are very different numbers. Tell us the headcount and what you'd like to spend and we'll tell you what's realistic before anyone builds a proposal.
How do you charge?
A flat management fee agreed up front, never a commission on venue or catering spend. We're recommending January over December on a regular basis, which we could not do honestly if we were paid a percentage of the December bill.
Tell Us Roughly When and How Many
Holding a date costs nothing. We'll come back within three business days with a format recommendation and a budget range — including whether we think January is the better call.