Party goers attend an event at the Calgary Stampede president’s dinner in July, 2012. While corporate parties used to be lavish affairs, in recent years, they have become smaller and more thoughtful.Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press
It's not as glum as it was in 2016. However, this year's corporate celebrations for the Calgary Stampede are still restrained given the persistently low oil prices and thousands of white-collar workers grappling with long-term unemployment.
For ordinary folk, the 105-year-old Calgary Stampede is about midway rides, community pancake breakfasts and nightly Saddledome fireworks. But oil and gas companies, law firms and real estate brokers have developed separate, parallel festivities over the past two decades, with parties designed to reward customers and forge new business relationships. Dozens of invitation-only soirées concentrated on the sidelines of the show are now as much a part of the Stampede scene as cowboy hats and belt buckles.
The state of downtown Calgary's corporate fetes at this time of year are a window into the industry's frame of mind. In a hunt for positive signs, party goers point to increased oil and natural gas drilling activity this year in the same breath as noting the return of investment bank Peters & Co. Ltd.'s Firewater Friday – a decades-old, marquee annual event for movers and shakers that was cancelled for 2016.
But prices for crude were stronger early this year, when much of the Stampede event-planning took place. Now, they are stuck below the threshold $50 (U.S.) a barrel. And even as the pace of layoffs has slackened, Calgary's unemployment rate is still above 9 per cent, the highest of any major Canadian city. Future uncertainty about global oil demand, the construction of heavy-oil pipelines, or any international investment in the Canadian oil sands has prompted a more thoughtful approach to the celebrations.
"Some people who were out of a job last year are still out of a job," prominent Calgary recruiter Catherine Brownlee said. "There's a lot of heartache in this town."
Parties costing hundreds of thousands of dollars – in years when commodity prices were ratcheting up and the oil sands were a hot draw of international investment – are a distant and sometimes uncomfortable memory given the industry's current stresses. Events today are smaller, invitations are more select, and the food and drink offerings are pared down. Many Stampede events now include major charitable elements.
"The trend would be, 'How do we raise money for charity while everybody still gets a chance to have a few laughs together?'" said Rene Amirault, president and chief executive officer of Secure Energy Services Inc.
Secure, an oil-field services firm, provided an open bar for clients and business associates at its annual Stampede parties before the downturn. Now, the event provides each guest two drink tickets for the cash bar, and suggests a $100 at-the-door donation to go toward Providence, a charity for children with disabilities.
"It's a lot more grown-up," Mr. Amirault said. "I think this is a lot better way to go."
Field Law LLP's highly anticipated pre-Stampede party has held the line on expenses over the past two years, while maintaining its community philanthropy focus, managing partner Doreen Saunderson said. On the lawn of the private Ranchmen's Club on Wednesday evening, about 500 party goers dined on baked beans, barbecued chicken and burgers.
"Even in tough economic times, it's important for those of us who are continuing in business to recognize and appreciate our clients, who help us to continue to succeed in this economy," Ms. Saunderson said.
"But we have simplified the party a little bit. Our entertainment, for example, has shifted more towards up-and-coming Canadian country music acts rather than well-known artists, like Jim Cuddy – who we had for a couple of years."
Given the difficult economic climate, some companies are holding joint parties. Genesis Aviation, a charter company, joined forces with three other aviation firms to host a no-alcohol Stampede breakfast featuring apple-cinnamon pancakes and Calgary-made Spolumbo's sausages for staff and clients.
"Aviation itself is a huge part of the oil and gas industry that people don't even think about," general manager Heather Genesis said.
She added that there are signs that more drilling and other activity is under way in Western Canada.
"We definitely are seeing a mood change from our end," Ms. Genesis said.
"We've hit our low and we're coming up."
Kelly Cryderman