Office holiday party planning in Naperville comes down to one uncomfortable question: what do you book that people will actually turn up to? Dinner gets a polite yes and a quiet decline. A bar leaves out half the team. Here is what works, and when to book it.
Book earlier than feels necessary
December weekday evenings are the first thing to go across Naperville, usually by early November. If your team is more than about fifteen people and you want a Thursday or Friday in December, September and October are when that gets decided.
A lot of companies now run their holiday party in early December or even late November for exactly this reason, and the team turnout is better because diaries are less full.
What makes an office party people attend
Three things separate the parties people come to from the ones they skip.
Nobody is on display. Anything with a stage, a microphone or a leaderboard filters out a third of your team before it starts.
It is not built around drinking. An evening whose entire structure is a bar excludes whoever is driving, pregnant, in recovery, or simply not drinking. A party where alcohol is optional rather than load-bearing gets better attendance.
It fits a workday or an early evening. A three-hour commitment on a December Friday competes with everything else in people’s calendars. An hour does not.
Ideas that hold up for a Naperville team
- A private art session. Everyone makes something, nobody performs, and people take home a real object rather than a branded pen. About 60 minutes.
- A private dining room rather than a table in a busy restaurant, so the group stays one group.
- A cooking class for smaller teams who like a shared project.
- A daytime activity plus lunch, which suits teams with school runs and long commutes better than an evening.
- A volunteering morning followed by food, if the culture fits.
How a studio holiday party runs
At Naperville Art Studio a corporate booking is private. Your team has the studio and our team runs everything: setup, guidance, flow and cleanup.
It takes about 60 minutes. Everyone chooses their own project and their own colors, so there is no instructor at the front to copy and nothing to be ranked against. Pricing starts at $45 per guest for teams of 10 and up, and we build the package around your group and budget.
We are alcohol-free, which for a company party is often a feature rather than a limitation. It takes the awkward drinking question off the table entirely, and downtown Naperville is minutes away if the team wants to continue somewhere after.
What teams do with the artwork
Every piece is professionally finished and ready in about 10 days. Plenty of teams hang theirs in the office, which is how a one-hour party becomes something people point at in March. For client appreciation events, guests leave with something they made rather than something with your logo printed on it.
Distributed teams flying in for an offsite can have pieces shipped anywhere in the continental US.
Common questions
When should we book an office holiday party in Naperville?
By early November for December dates, and earlier for larger groups or Friday evenings. October and November dates go quickly too.
How much does a corporate party cost per person?
Ours starts at $45 per guest for teams of 10 and up, covering the private studio, all materials, guidance and the professional finish. No separate room hire and nothing extra at the counter.
How big can the group be?
Teams of 10 and up. Tell us the headcount and the date and we will build the package around it.
Do you serve alcohol?
No, we are an alcohol-free studio. Downtown Naperville is minutes away for after.
How long does it take?
About 60 minutes of creating, plus arrival and choosing projects. It fits an afternoon offsite or an early evening.
Do you host teams from outside Naperville?
Yes. Companies come to us from Aurora, Wheaton, Lisle, Downers Grove, Bolingbrook, Warrenville and Oak Brook as well as Naperville itself.
Planning this year’s party? See corporate events and holiday parties and send us your group size and date.
Have a question for the studio?
Send us a message and a real person at Naperville Art Studio will get back to you within one business day. Prefer to talk? Call or text 630-441-3951.