This episode of Venue Stories features 4 members of the team at {10-11} Carlton House Terrace in Central London, which is just a short walk from the National Gallery and overlooks St James’s Park.

The building is one of London's finest Georgian treasures, designed by John Nash and constructed between 1827 to 1833. It was two separate homes each with their own fascinating histories, in 1923 process of combining the two houses began.

Now {10-11} Carlton House Terrace is the home of the British Academy and a venue used by filmmakers, TV and the BBC. It’s also a great place to hold weddings.

This episode was recorded on location and features…

• Catherine Owen - Head of Venue Sales & Marketing
• Marion Baros - Venue Business Development & Marketing Manager
• Charlotte O’Kane - Event Planner from Searcys
• Richard Oxley - Searcys Group Executive Chef

We had a great conversation, discussing football, sausage rolls and of course the venue and what goes on there.

If you have something to say about this episode then leave a comment or head over to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠EPN Journal Community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ where you find out how you can share your thoughts.

A huge thank you to our partners ⁠Vividink⁠ and ⁠Eventflow⁠. You can ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠find out more about them on EPN Journal⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Thanks also to Mattia Portello and the AV team at CHT for providing the recordings and to Alicia Earls at Patch Marketing for helping to put this episode together.

Thanks for listening and don’t forget to like and subscribe so you get notifications of new episodes.

Welcome to Venue Stories, a series that explores venue spaces, people and histories.

In this episode, my guest is Salem Retibi from Searcys who is the venue director at 30 Euston Square.

30 Euston Square is a grade II listed events venue in central London and dates back to 1906. It features oak-panelled Heritage Rooms, marble fireplaces and period features.

It also has modern AV, flexible spaces and an experienced events team.

An historic London venue that has preserved its original architecture and features yet offers modern event spaces.

Don’t forget to like and subscribe so you get notifications of new episodes.

If you have something to say about this episode then leave a comment or head over to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠EPN Journal Community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ where you find out how you can share your thoughts.

A huge thank you to our partners ⁠Vividink⁠ and ⁠Eventflow⁠. You can ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠find out more about them on EPN Journal⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Thanks for listening...

In 2025 the volume of global smartphone shipments reached around 1.25 billion units. Combining new phone activations with replacement SIMs issued by mobile operators, total physical SIM card production for smartphones stood at roughly 3.2 to 3.5 billion units.

In 2026, phone shipments are expected to be around 1.09 to 1.20 billion units. Physical SIM card production for smartphones in 2026 is estimated at approximately 2.9 to 3.2 billion units.

That Sim Card, a small piece of plastic that looks tiny in your hand, doesn’t look like much. But when there’s billions of them, it is a major problem for sustainability.

This is something that Holafly is trying to fix, with eSims.

An eSIM (embedded Subscriber Identity Module) is a programmable microchip permanently built into a device's motherboard, replacing the traditional removable plastic SIM card. Using less plastic is so much better for sustainability.

There’s also other considerations that Holafly aims to help with, such as improved security, bringing an end to unexpected high phone bills, and making logistics a lot less complicated.

I talked to Ricardo Rodriguez, Head of Sales B2B at Holafy, at this years Meetings Show, about their solutions and why travel companies should be using eSims.

Don’t forget to like and subscribe so you get notifications of new episodes.

A huge thank you to our partners ⁠Vividink⁠ and ⁠Eventflow⁠. You can ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠find out more about them on EPN Journal⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Thanks for listening...

At the recent Meetings Show, I spoke with Galen Grady, SVP & GM at Navan. A company that up to now has specialised in Business travel & expense management.

They are now adding venue sourcing and attendee travel services under the name of Navan Events.

Galan shares details on the new additional services, and his experiences of moving to the UK with his family.

Don’t forget to like and subscribe so you get notifications of new episodes.

If you have something to say about this episode then leave a comment or head over to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠EPN Journal Community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ where you find out how you can share your thoughts.

A huge thank you to our partners ⁠Vividink⁠ and ⁠Eventflow⁠. You can ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠find out more about them on EPN Journal⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Thanks for listening...

Earlier this year, RefTech and Eventflow announced a new partnership. The introduction was made by Richard John, who is a Meetings and Events author, mentor and consultant.

At this years Meetings Show, I caught up with Christian Skelton of Eventflow and Margaret Reeves of RefTech at the Meetings and Events Support Association’s exhibit stand. We discussed the power of partnerships and the importance of focussing on your core business.

What do you think about partnerships in general? What do you see as the pros and cons? Leave a comment or head over to the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠EPN Journal Community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ where you find out how you can share your thoughts.

A huge thank you to our partners ⁠Vividink⁠ and ⁠Eventflow⁠. You can ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠find out more about them on EPN Journal⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

I would like to note that while Eventflow is a valued sponsor, our conversation remained entirely objective and editorially independent.

Thanks for listening...

Juliette Devillard is the founder & CEO of Climate Connection and Connection Studio. Her areas of interest included sustainability, mental health & wellbeing, and helping founders and entrepreneurs to become better speakers.

When Juliette and I first discussed this episode, as I do with guests before we record, we didn’t plan to go too far in to mental health and wellbeing - but we did. It was during our chat on that topic that Juliette shared something personal about her own mental health journey. I won’t give details here because it’s important you hear it in context.

There are many things about podcasting that I love, one of them is talking to guests who make you think about things you’ve not considered before. That’s why talking with Juliette was a learning experience and a pleasure.

Don’t forget to like and subscribe so you get notifications of new episodes.

If you have something to say about this episode then leave a comment or head over to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠EPN Journal Community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ where you find out how you can share your thoughts.

A huge thank you to our partners ⁠Vividink⁠ and ⁠Eventflow⁠. You can ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠find out more about them on EPN Journal⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Thanks for listening...

Marketing people and event planners create events, one uses the term ‘experiences’, while the other uses ‘experiential’. It sounds like they’re two sides of the same coin, but is that really the case?

To help me understand this, I’m joined by Harry McCreanor who is the Global Business Development Director at the AVANTGARDE Group.

Along with the main question, we chat about whisky, cars and is there really a difference between B2B and B2C these days?

Do we get to an answer? I guess we do but it’s all rather fuzzy.

Don’t forget to like and subscribe so you get notifications of new episodes.

If you have something to say about this episode then leave a comment or head over to ⁠⁠⁠⁠EPN Journal Community⁠⁠⁠⁠ where you find out how you can share your thoughts.

A huge thank you to our partners ⁠Vividink⁠ and ⁠Eventflow⁠. You can ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠find out more about them on EPN Journal⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Thanks for listening!

Mental health and wellbeing is still, and will always be, a very important topic. Providing for your attendees wellbeing needs to part of the fabric of an event, not just an add-on or an exercise in ticking a box.

This is something Johanna Roodt has been specialising in for the last 6 years She also a coach and a mother of a young family.

We discusses the critical importance of mental health and well-being within the event industry. Drawing on her extensive international background in event management, coaching, and yoga, Johanna advocates for embedding well-being directly into the fabric of event design rather than treating it as a token gesture. She shares practical strategies for event organisers to support both their attendees and their behind-the-scenes staff, and provides simple grounding techniques for managing stress during overwhelming trade shows.

Find out more about Leladijo here and their event mental wellbeing e-learning here.

Don’t forget to like and subscribe so you get notifications of new episodes. If you would like to comment on this episode then leave a comment or head over to ⁠⁠⁠EPN Journal Community⁠⁠⁠ where you can find out how to share your thoughts.

A huge thank you to our partners ⁠Vividink⁠ and ⁠Eventflow⁠. You can ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠find out more about them on EPN Journal⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Thanks for listening!

Searcys began with humble beginnings. Founder, John Searcy, began his journey as an apprentice pastry chef in 1834 where he honed his craftsmanship for which Searcys has become well known today.

My guest is Rebecca Hawkes, Director of Sales & Events at Searcy’s. She is responsible for the company’s portfolio of 26 venues.

This includes restaurants at locations such St. Pancras, Battersea Power station, National Portrait Gallery and the Barbican.

We discuss how Searcy's maintains sustainability across it's venues, ice cubes and wet weather plans.

Don’t forget to like and subscribe so you get notifications of new episodes. If you would like to comment on this episode then head over to ⁠⁠EPN Journal Community⁠⁠ and find out how you can share your thoughts.

A huge thank you to our partners ⁠Vividink⁠ and ⁠Eventflow⁠. You can ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠find out more about them on EPN Journal⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Thanks for listening!

What is the current state of the jobs market in the events industry? How has recruitment changed?

Around 5 years ago, recruitment was affected by COVID-19 lockdowns and now the conflict in the middle east.

To discuss this and the current state of the job market, I’m joined by Robert Kenward of Jigsaw Talent Solutions.

Robert has 25+ years’ experience advising senior leaders across events, MICE, and experiential sectors. He’s a recognised industry voice who blends honesty, humour, and hard-won experience.

How do you feel about recruitment and the state of the job market? I would love to hear what you think, head over to ⁠EPN Journal Community⁠ and find out how you can share your thoughts.

A huge thank you to our partners ⁠Vividink⁠ and ⁠Eventflow⁠. You can ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠find out more about them on EPN Journal⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Thanks for listening!