While memories of the holiday party slowly fade and spring gradually stretches out its feelers, we start longing for mild summer nights and unforgettable summer celebrations. So you can already look forward to it, and your summer corporate party turns into a full success, we've put together plenty of helpful tips on planning and organizing your summer party.

Whether you're looking for classic grill catering, an unusual event location for summer, or still need ideas for your garden party, the heycater! team is here for you!

9 ideas for your summer party, from garden party to beach vibes

You can never start brainstorming ideas for your summer celebration too early. As inspiration, we've put together our favorite ideas for your company summer party. From well-known, tried-and-tested themes and ideas to unusual arrangements, from formal to casual.

#1 The classic: barbecue

Grilling and summer just go together! That's exactly why grill catering is, and remains, the most popular classic at summer parties. The 2023 trend: smoker catering. In a smoker, meat is cooked especially gently, becoming not just wonderfully tender but taking on a smoky, spiced aroma. You can hold your BBQ summer party anywhere. There's just one condition: it has to be outdoors.

Depending on the setting, a barbecue can also work for a slightly more formal summer celebration, though it generally leans more casual. Grilling also fits wonderfully with a family-style company garden party.

Many of our customers love a good BBQ but don't enjoy grilling themselves. As delicious as the food is, cleaning up afterward is that much more unpleasant, and finding volunteers to man the grill can be tricky. That's exactly why heycater! exists, since we're the ones who can get you a full worry-free package for your corporate BBQ. We take care of your next business event, so you can have the perfect barbecue experience.

We support you at every step, from building a menu and selecting meat, fish, and meat alternatives, all the way to entertainment for your guests. We at heycater! are happy to advise and assist you. Whether a grill buffet with a wide selection of regional or international dishes, American BBQ catering, or even a fully plant-based grill for your summer party, no problem, we can fulfill every grilling fantasy you and your teammates have! Learn more about grill catering here.

A BBQ buffet is also always very versatile. However demanding your guests may be, a grill buffet has something for everyone. Everything gets a nice finish with a lovely salad bar or a dessert. We also have plenty of choice for evening treats in our portfolio. Ice cream catering? Cocktail catering? Or even cocktails on a stick?

You'll find plenty more ideas for a successful corporate grill event here.

#2 Surprising: themes for your company summer party

Whether the '90s, a vintage circus, or Pirates of the Caribbean, themed parties let you slip into entirely new roles and escape the everyday. A location decorated to match, food and drinks tailored to the theme, and unusual costumes and accessories round out the concept.

Short on theme ideas? Here are some of our favorites:

• A specific decade: the '80s, '90s, or flower power? Maybe a party imagining the future? Or a historical era? A medieval feast can be very appealing in summer too.
• A specific region or country: Mexico, Hawaii, Thailand, Italy, or Mallorca's Ballermann? Maybe a Swedish midsummer party?
• A movie theme: pirates, James Bond, or Star Wars?

#3 Summer in the city: rooftop party

Above the rooftops of your city, unexpected party location highlights often hide. There are cozy rooftop terraces perfect for sipping an Aperol Spritz, and spots offering a sensational view over the city. A panoramic view of the illuminated city and its landmarks makes your event unforgettable. Or how about a rooftop pool for that summer feeling?

Maybe your company building has a spacious rooftop terrace? Order a summery buffet or BBQ catering along with a mobile cocktail bar, and your summer party is ready to begin!

#4 Caribbean summer vibes: the beach party

Of course, beaches aren't only found in the Caribbean, but there's good reason why palm trees, plenty of fresh fruit, and exotic cocktails instantly put many people in a summer mood. Maybe there's a fitting location in your city you can book for the celebration, or you can transform the office into a Caribbean dream. If palm trees and real sand aren't an option, flower and pineapple decorations create that southern flair.

For catering, cocktails and a buffet with fresh fruit are a natural fit, and barbecue works well too. Maybe you'll even find a live band playing, say, salsa or reggaetón. Anyone brave enough is welcome to dance along!

As an alternative to the Caribbean theme, a Mediterranean country also works well as a theme for a beach party, serve tapas or pizza, prepared right on the spot in a pizza truck, for example.

#5 A real eye-catcher: the summer street food market

Food trucks aren't popular for nothing: they look great and serve freshly prepared food from burgers to schnitzel, from vegan fast food to light summer cuisine. If enough space is available, for example in your company courtyard, a food truck is a great choice. By the way, there are also ice cream trucks for a refreshing summer treat. For larger summer parties with many guests, you might need several trucks, feel free to ask us for advice!

Our insider tip for your summer party is market stalls! The smaller sibling of the food truck combines its culinary variety with show cooking and turns your summer party catering into a truly unique experience. Their advantage: they need very little space, so they work in pretty much any location. Our caterers offer a wide selection of international dishes for this. Whether a DIY bowl station or small stalls with different delicacies from around the world!

#6 A summer day dream: the garden party

There's nothing nicer than spending sunny days and warm summer nights out in the fresh air. Away from the hustle and bustle of the city, you can relax at a picnic or a seated dinner and enjoy the atmosphere of your summer party, or treat yourselves to an idyllic family-style dinner at a beautifully laid table outdoors. Lanterns and string lights create a cozy atmosphere in the dark of a mild summer night, and many an exciting story gets told around the campfire. You can give your garden party a theme too, there's almost no limit to your imagination.

#7 Learning and enjoying together: the cocktail party with a cocktail class

Learning something new together brings teams closer and creates new experiences. And expanding your horizons is known to have a positive effect on work performance. Why not take part in a cocktail class as a team, and then enjoy your own creations together afterward? This also works virtually, or for hybrid summer parties, when your remote team needs to be included. With the help of an online cocktail class and a box that ships all the necessary ingredients straight to your home, your own kitchen or living room table turns into a cocktail bar. Fun and enjoyment included!

Too warm to learn and mix your own drinks? How about a mobile cocktail bar that mixes delicious alcoholic and alcohol-free cocktails and serves them right at your table?

#8 A summer party for active teams: sporty challenges

Is your company a sporty one, with very active employees? Maybe sports are even part of your industry. Then a summer party combined with a sporty activity is a great fit. One advantage: your program is sorted. It also brings teams closer together, mastering shared challenges.

Examples of sporty summer parties could be:

• raft building
• an outdoor rally
• a climbing park
• archery
• a table tennis or foosball tournament
• canoeing
• sailing
• disc golf

Of course, especially at sporty summer parties, enough drinks and food should be planned in. Drinks can always be provided via a mobile bar, everyone can help themselves to a snack buffet in between, and as a finale, a large menu or a barbecue awaits as a reward.

#9 A breath of fresh air: summer party on a boat

Who doesn't love spending time by or on the water? Boat tours are hugely popular as a team event and also work wonderfully as a summer celebration. From a raft for very small companies to a large party boat, there's a wide range of options. Food and drinks obviously shouldn't be missing on board. If you rent a boat with its own bar, thirst quenchers are taken care of. Maybe a buffet or a set menu gets offered too. Some boats can also be rented with a DJ for musical accompaniment.

For more ideas, get inspired by our event concepts and menu ideas.

The planning: 10 steps to the perfect company summer party

Planning your summer party for the first time, or looking for new ideas this year? If your company summer party has always been a corporate barbecue in previous years, a beach party, for example, is a welcome change. Our experienced event planners have put together our best tips for you, so planning goes stress-free and you get to share an unforgettable celebration together.

#1 Start planning in good time

To secure your favorite venue, the best catering, and your preferred date, it's important to plan your summer party early. Since many companies already reach out to locations and caterers four months before the celebration, it's a good idea to start planning as early as possible too. For short-notice requests, our heycater! experts are of course happy to help you too, and thanks to their overview of remaining capacity and available dates, they can quickly help you find something fitting for your summer party.

#2 Determine your guest count

Think about who's invited to the summer party: is the event only for employees? Can a plus-one come along? Should you even invite business partners and clients? Keep in mind that your guest selection affects your budget, as well as the size of the location, the program, and the catering.

To answer this question, it can also help to define a goal for your summer party in advance: is it just about the team building aspect, or should new connections be made and strengthened? Is fun the main focus, or should milestones, successes, new products, or other company news be highlighted and celebrated too? Of course, your available budget can also determine how large the summer celebration can be.

#3 Find the right date

The earlier you set the date for your summer party and inform everyone invited, the greater the chance that as many people as possible can attend. Some times work better than others: pay particular attention to peak periods within the company or vacation periods.

For many employees, it's helpful to be informed about the summer party in advance with a "save the date" email. Depending on headcount, you can also start a Doodle survey to find a suitable date. Ideally, choose two or three alternative dates in addition to your preferred one before reaching out to your service providers. At this step, you should also think about what time the corporate party should take place, how long the event should last, and roughly how it should unfold.

#4 Set the budget

Once you know how many people will attend your company summer party and roughly how long it should last, the next step is defining the budget for your celebration. Ideally, think about how much you have available per person and calculate the total budget accordingly. From there, you'll know how much you have available for catering and any service providers for the program, as well as the location.

Quick tip: expenses for company celebrations remain tax-free up to a limit of 110 euros per employee.

#5 Choose a fitting theme

The basic parameters for your summer party are set, now it's finally time for organization! To guarantee an unforgettable event, it helps to first choose a theme that runs through the entire event. This can be a motto, like "The Great Gatsby," "midsummer," or "beach party," or simply a culinary style like grill catering or street food including a food truck.

By the way: from here on, the heycater! team is happy to take over organizing your summer party and suggest various themes, matching locations, and delicious menus.

#6 Find a location for your summer party

The range of locations for company summer parties is huge: from a light-flooded loft with a rooftop terrace, to beach clubs, restaurants in green surroundings, all the way to party boats, there's virtually no limit to your creativity. What matters is that the location fits all your guests, while not being so large it feels empty. Since summer weather in Germany isn't always reliable, it's also a good idea to think about a bad-weather alternative.

Here too, heycater's experienced event experts are happy to help: we suggest various venues, explain their unique features, and visit your favorite locations together with you, so you can get a feel for the space and its surroundings. If a location works for you, we're happy to reserve it for you and take care of everything else.

#7 Find the right catering

Delicious food and tasty drinks are the highlight of every company summer party. From finger food to market stalls to grill catering or food trucks, various options are available to delight your guests. Here too, the heycater! team is happy to help: from our more than 300 caterers, we select the right ones for you and put together individual menus tailored exactly to your wishes, and to your theme and location. Popular catering options for summer parties include a professional smoker barbecue, a summery cold buffet, maybe even with finger food, or a food truck with delicious street food. Of course, things can be a bit more formal too, maybe fine dining for your garden party? If families with children are invited, an ice cream truck is also a great addition.

Of course, we're happy to accommodate all your guests' special needs, including vegetarian, vegan, or gluten-free dishes. (By the way, it's a good idea to ask in advance about allergies or dietary preferences, to estimate what share of the catering needs to be, for example, vegan, vegetarian, halal, lactose-free, or gluten-free.) All offers are completely transparent, so you can easily compare prices between different caterers.

#8 Take care of the details

Once the location and catering are set, the next step is your program and decoration. Do you need a DJ or a photo booth to entertain your guests? Are you planning special surprises? Which decoration elements support the theme of your event? Are there special requirements from the venue? Have you created a floor plan and know what should go where? Do you need any technical equipment?

Here too, our event team has plenty of ideas and tips from years of experience, ready to give your summer celebration that special something. We also know great musicians, bands, and entertainers who'd love to come to your summer party.

#9 Build anticipation

A few weeks before the event, guests should receive their invitations with all the important information. Alongside location, date, and time, your invitation should mention whether a plus-one is welcome or allowed, and whether there's a dress code. If the celebration has a theme, you should also let guests know so they can prepare. A rough overview of the program is helpful too.

Noting that allergies and dietary needs are taken into account in the catering also reassures guests who might be unsure whether they'll find enough food that suits their needs.

#10 Make sure everything runs as planned

Coordinate with your caterer, venue, and other service providers and brief everyone involved in good time, so your summer celebration runs as planned. Make sure you've considered every detail: can catering and decoration be delivered smoothly? At what times will which service providers be on-site?

Of course, you're also welcome to simply hand over the entire planning of your summer party, and thus the coordination of all service providers, to us, and we'll take care of everything for you. Here's a glimpse into our ideas:

Games for your summer party

As icebreakers or for the entertainment program, party games are hugely popular at casual, family-style summer celebrations.

We've put together a few ideas for you:

• hula hoop contest
• darts, with an outdoor dartboard or as balloon darts
• treasure hunt or rally
• mini golf
• tug of war
• three-legged race
• soccer target shooting
• bean bag toss
• slacklining

And if there's a pool available and usable, classics like water polo or water basketball are a great fit.

The summer party as a team building measure and a sign of appreciation

It's well known that teams who get along well work more effectively and come to work with more enthusiasm. There are always good reasons to celebrate together, company successes, a successfully completed project, progress over the past years, or overcoming crises and challenges (surviving a pandemic that brought many companies to their knees, or a difficult situation within your own industry, for example).

A summer party can also be a great opportunity to better integrate new employees into the team, get to know colleagues better, or show employees that they matter to their managers and the company. For employee motivation, it's important that employees feel appreciated. Positive feedback and trust in daily work are an important measure, but rewards like a team meal or corporate events also have a positive effect. So why not create another event during the year alongside the obligatory holiday party, and hold a summer celebration for all employees (and their families)?

By the way, it's also a great opportunity to invite important business partners and clients and strengthen your relationship with them in a relaxed setting.

Event catering for your summer party with heycater!

heycater! makes your company summer party something special: with our event concepts and the delicious catering from our partners, you'll make sure your celebration is remembered for a long time. Whether a food truck or fine dining, a finger food buffet or barbecue, we have the right event catering for you, your team, and your guests.