Dawne Eisenberg is our founder and CEO. She built Pop Events from the ground up and has transformed it into one of Canada’s top event companies. A true visionary and strong leader, Dawne has been named one of the country’s most influential event professionals by BizBash Magazine. She regularly contributes to industry publications like the Corporate Meetings Network.
Dima Hijazi is Pop Events’ COO. With 20+ years of event management experience, she is a consummate professional making the most difficult tasks look and feel easy. Whether it’s last-minute requests, planning an elaborate event for thousands, or managing 40 events at once, she gets the job done—flawless and always on time.
We recently sat down with Dawne and Dima to ask top questions about event management in 2025. They also share their favourite events they’ve planned, how they overcome inevitable challenges, and their predictions for top Christmas party themes this year.
What’s your favourite event Pop Events has organized?
Dawne: Probably my favorite event we ever organized was a Havane-themed client appreciation event for MNP. It was completely customized from top to bottom, and we even brought one of those beautiful old vintage cars into the building.
This is actually a funny story. The venue said that we didn’t need a site inspection… And as it turns out, they gave us the measurements, but they didn’t give us the RIGHT measurements. They accounted for the width of the door, and didn’t actually account for any of the hinges or the space for the door to open. So we had to literally take the door off the building to get the car inside!
Dima: I have a bunch of different ones that I love. My favorite summer event was the Waterworld summer picnic we put on for Waste Connections Toronto in 2019. We held it at Boyd Conservation Park in Vaughan, Ontario.
We were actually up on a hill, which isn’t necessarily the greatest option for a bunch of water activities… For instance, we had to bring a three-ton water truck to fill up the paddle boats. We were pretty worried it was going to fall backwards. Thankfully it made it up the hill, as did our other truck. At the end of the day, we always make it work!
This event had over half a dozen different water activities, including a water slide, paddle boats, water guns, slips and slides, and more. We even had a water obstacle course! It was so much fun because there were so many activities for people of all ages to enjoy.
My favorite adult party would be the Kirkland Lake Gold Holiday Adult Gala in 2021. It was a two-for-one: they were celebrating the holidays, plus they had recently merged with another gold company, making them the LARGEST gold company in the world.
The event had about 200 guests with very high-end VIP attendees. We pulled out all the stops for them—from booking the venue to creating the menu, decor, activities, and more. For entertainment, we arranged a live band, a murder mystery live show, and even a Latin dancing show! We also provided over 50 gift baskets to do part of the raffle as well.
What’s an example of a recent challenge you faced at an event or during the planning process, and how did you resolve it?
Dawne: I’d have to say the MNP event. We literally had to take the door off its hinges! But in general, the biggest issues we encounter are actually when we’re given the wrong information. With the event I just mentioned, we were told that it’s not necessary to have a site inspection and we’re like, are you sure?
So if things don’t fit in an elevator, for instance, we have to run our rentals up flights of stairs, creating a safety issue. These are the things we often encounter.
The other thing that we come up against isn’t much of an issue per se, because we just deal with it. But it’s not necessarily something we like to see in the industry. Dima actually came up against this recently. We were managing a venue for our client and, out of nowhere, the venue started trying to monetize every little thing.
Dima: In this specific case, we were picking the menus from the venue for our client. Apparently, our contract with the venue stated that substituting a dinner menu for a lunch menu would be $6 per person rather than a flat fee.
And I was like, nowhere on that menu did it say this is a lunch menu that I’m using for dinner. We had already run this menu by the venue first before we sent it to the client, and our point person never flagged that there was going to be an extra cost. So I had to go back to the venue and ask them to revise this because it was never flagged to us. Either that, or we’d need to have a chat.
But to be honest, nothing has been catastrophic at any of our events. Knock on wood and every other surface possible!
Another example off the top of my head is Grand & Toy’s Amplify Conference in October 2024. The banner that we got for our stand was too big.
The good thing is that we always ensure we have a minimum of 2-3 hours to set up our events. So within that buffer time, I was able to come up with different options, find different solutions, and settle on one of them. We ended up just cutting it to size, but I’d also considered rolling it or making more hooks. The easiest, fastest, and cleanest was just to cut it. So we did that.
Dawne: Actually, I thought of an event that was even more horrible. It was way back in the day—Dima, you weren’t even with Pop at this point. I believe it was for Colliers International at Angus Glen.
When there’s a snowstorm, we typically have a contingency plan in place. (For example, we’ll put our staff up in a nearby hotel). But this storm literally came out of NOWHERE. There were no weather reports, nothing!
And so the dancers that were supposed to do the show refused to drive to the event. This was a problem because they were the main entertainment. Made even more disappointing by the fact that they lived very close by.
Meanwhile, our Santa—this sweet little old man—is driving his little Honda Civic from, like, Brampton to Markham in this storm! And our staff are there too, making it all happen.
At one point, our team is like, “Forget the dancers. WE’RE going to do the dance show!” So our staff get up on stage and are just rocking the dance show, doing the best they can. I think Santa even got involved with the dance show, because we just wanted it to be great for the guests, you know?
But that’s Pop for you—we’re always going to make it happen. Failure is never an option.
What do you think will be the biggest event theme for Corporate Christmas Parties this year?
Dima: I can’t wait for Christmas! We usually get our inspiration from what’s new in terms of movies or animated movies, spending on what’s big that year.
Dawne: I feel strongly that the best theme for this year is a sort of Canadian theme. Canadian wilderness, Oh Canada, or Great White North, however you want to spin it. It’s a really nice looking theme—it’s very rustic and Christmassy—and there’s so much you can do with it. Plus it feels very timely and relevant and it’ll make everyone feel kind of good and seasonal.
For one of our long-time clients, we’re pitching a Canadian forest or camping version of this idea. Think rustic signage, pine trees, campfires, Muskoka chairs, etc.
This particular client likes distinctive themes that aren’t necessarily based on movies and pop culture. They’ve done a lot of timeless holiday themes like Country Western, Carnival, etc. Last year they did Tropical Christmas! So we love this Canadian idea because it’s a classic theme with a unique spin.
Kids will love this Christmas theme, too. We can do build-a-bear with Canadian animals, like moose, raccoons, or beavers. Or just regular teddy bears with red and white costumes. We can also set up a mini paddle decoration station for the kids. The kids will love little paddles with their names on them.
Also, who doesn’t love maple taffy pops and s’mores? The whole thing is just so cute and cozy!
What’s the special sauce that makes Pop Events the best choice for corporate event planning in Toronto and the GTA?
Dima: It’s our customer service. We have lightning-fast response times, and we always provide a quick turnaround on quotes. Even if I don’t have an answer for someone right away, I’ll always say, “Hi, got your email, I’ll get back to you as soon as possible.”
Again, communication has always been our strong suit. No matter who you’re talking to in the company, whether sales or marketing or operations, we’re all quick and communicate consistently. This ensures everyone’s on the same page at all times.
Customer service is also about how much energy, time, money we invest in making sure that our event staff are comprehensively trained. This allows us to provide the same high level of service with every single event we produce.
We’ve never used staffing agencies, and we never will! That’s part of what makes us different.
Dawne: I agree with Dima. I’d also say it’s our battle-tested process and years of experience.
At a high level, we call it Integrated Event Management. It’s our unique process for ensuring successful events while delivering maximum value to our clients.
We bring together the logistical capabilities of an event management company with a carefully curated inventory of uniquely designed rentals and activities. This gives us endless tools at our disposal to create incredible experiences for our clients!
As a result, we’re the single point of contact for their every need, ensuring our clients experience nothing but fun and excitement from beginning to end.
Experience the Pop Events Difference at Your Next Event
Successful events need strong building blocks.
At Pop Events, we have mastered every single aspect of producing successful events. Our Integrated Event Management process has been battle-tested through decades of experience, allowing us to cut through the chaos and execute with exceptional speed, strength, and precision.
The result? Incredible experiences with minimal stress and maximum POP!
If you’re ready to take the stress out of planning your next corporate event, request a quote today.