New industry insights from the venue and hospitality group – which has been family owned and operated since 1973 – reveals businesses are increasingly seeking expansive outdoor settings and grand venues for their events, prioritising immersive experiences and lifestyle-focused elements over traditional corporate gatherings held within enclosed spaces.

Navarra also reveals its business events clients have an increasing appetite for diverse and customisable menu offerings.

“Italian-inspired dishes will always feature on our menus – not just because we’re so proficient in Italian flavours, given our heritage, but because Italian food is so popular and there’s no indication of a decrease in its popularity,” says Sal Navarra, CEO, Navarra Venues.

“However, business event clients today expect more. They expect all the staples for a great business event – which includes access to a full suite of cutting-edge technology and artificial intelligence tools – and they expect to be able to customise their event.

“They expect more variety, more uniqueness, more sustainability and more diverse menu offerings.

“Navarra is actively staying on top of food trends with menu tasting dinners and guest chef pop-ups for menu development to deliver on this demand to ensure the team can make every event request a possibility.”

Navarra’s revamped catering packages for business clients include live cooking stations and food theatrics; business cooking classes; social-media-friendly food with highly visual wow-factor; sustainable food with minimal waste; paddock-to-plate offerings with premium quality and locally sourced ingredients; and customisable menus.

Navarra also donates 200-400 meals per week to charity partners across its venues.

“We’re noticing a huge increase in demand for customisable menus, which may put added pressure on our chefs and staff, however catering to growing demand for customisation is a must in modern business events,” says Sal Navarra.

“Beyond basic modifications, such as vegetarian alternatives, business clients today have more dietary-specific demands than ever before and expect premium quality in these alternative dishes that are dairy-free, nut-free or gluten-free.

“We’re finding it’s not uncommon for up to 40 per cent of an event’s guests to have specific dietary requirements so we’ve implemented best-practice procedures to fulfil this efficiently and to premium standards.”

Navarra has invested several million dollars within the past year on upgrading all its venues to deliver impactful, experience-driven business events across its Sydney-based portfolio of venues and its soon-to-open first regional venue, Villa Navarra, in the NSW Southern Highlands (pictured, at top).

Villa Navarra is a Tuscan-style luxury estate on 116 acres, with stables, olive vineyards, a Victorian-style gazebo, a $2 million marquee and gardens. It is set to open in June 2025.

“The changing face of the corporate events market – which has grown bored of traditional and clinical business event spaces – is one of the chief reasons we opted to purchase the estate,” says Sal Navarra.

“Villa Navarra presents country luxury … from business conferences and fashion shows, to photoshoots, parties, seminars and awards ceremonies, it transforms guests to a world of enchantment.

“It’s within reasonable distance of Sydney, too, making it an ideal setting for contemporary business events.

“It’s a venue that’s perfectly suited to satisfy the business event market’s appetite for paddock-to-plate, high-end catering.”

Navarra’s Sydney venues include Le Montage, Oatlands Estate, Curzon Hall castle and Conca D’oro – the latter which opened in southwest Sydney in 1973.

“We have more than 50 years of event expertise, inimitable styling, event planning services, high-quality catering and grand venues with terraces, water views, gardens and natural light, which are all in high demand,” says Sal Navarra.

“As businesses rethink how they bring people together, we are committed to offering innovative and flexible solutions that align with emerging trends of the market.”

Navarra Venues has hosted more than 24 million guests since 1973, tendered to by more than 30,000 staff at more than 350,000 events, where more than 17 million main courses have been served.