Topic: Resident Party Idea

I was thinking of having a jewelry party for the residents. Even though this is a "girl" thing, it would be a great place for the guys to meet girls or purchase gifts.

Does anyone have any ideas to get participation from everyone? We'll be serving refreshments, too.

I had one and this is the perfect time because Mother's Day is soon. Then the men don't need to decline because, if you have a mother, most want to remember her. The Hostess of the jewelry party (Stella and Dot was the line) gave away free jewelry gifts and that attracted a lot of people. She also provided food, so it was literally a no cost event.

I don't know how much room that you have to work with but I used to offer an Annual Boutique and I invited different vendors to come and set up a table and invited the residents to come and shop. I have room for about 7 vendors. I prioritized any resident who was selling something like jewelry or make up. I also started including people who represented business that provide services that tenants could use like tax brokers, insurance brokers, real estate agents, and even massage and chiropractic.

I have 168 units and I was surprised at how many residents either own or work for such businesses and services right here in our own community! It was a great way to offer a direct line of networking and exposing them to a large shopping group and it provided a convenient location for the residents to stop on by and do some shopping and mingling. Local businesses were also readily eager to participate in events that provide inside instant advertising to a large group. Even getting gift certificates from them for the raffle drawings were always easy to obtain.

I never charged the vendors a space fee but I did require them to pitch in for a raffle/door prize and bring an appetizer or drink so the guests all had free refreshments while they shopped. It was a lot of work for me to coordinate it but it in some cases, I'd be the "hostess" and woulr qualify for whatever the sales bonus would amount to for the sales or leads generated on that day.
I also found a great time of year to host it was early Spring and late Summer. And for Spring, we'd advertise the Easter, Mother's Day/Father's Day, and Graduates and for Summer, many people shop for the upcoming holiday season which is always rapidly approaching.

If even you can only do one type of party topic due to space limitations, do it! And then find others and do them at different times throughout the year. :)

We are seeing interest in swap/share parties for residents of multi-family housing. Themes such as DVD movie sharing or CD swaps, book swaps etc. are getting some nice responses. Residents want to meet each other but sometimes they need more motivation than just a party. Having the ‘excuse’ of coming down to the party room (or lobby, etc.) with a handful of their old CD’s that they’ve already ripped to the computer anyway (for example), and the hope that they will to head back to their apartment shortly with someone else’s cool but unused swag makes it a more palatable goal than just a party. And they will meet their neighbors in the process anyway, which is the whole goal.

A jewelry party? A CD exchange? Wow these are great ideas!! I have annual pizza parties but they are really lame! I think my male residents who hate shopping (including my husband) would really like something like this.