Nandi Davis, co-owner of Bananas Party has a reputation for arranging elaborate gatherings.

Her last event, held at the Fairmont Hamilton Princess hosted 400 people and included a custom-designed waterfall.

“It was amazing,” said Ms Davis who runs the business with husband Brendon Outerbridge. “Many of our corporate clients want a lot of out-of-the-blue stuff. They want people to have an experience. It’s not just about attractive tablecloths and napkins.”

This month her flair for business won her the Bermuda Economic Development Corporation’s Business of the Year award at a special ceremony held at the Grotto Bay Resort in Hamilton parish.

Winning the accolade came as a complete surprise to her.

“Sometimes when you are in the day to day of your business, you do not get to see what other people see,” she said. “It just feels like another day on the job.”

She loves getting testimonials from satisfied clients.

One message on the Bananas Party website says: “Thank you! Thank you! This space is so beautiful and honestly, you have set a standard for our events that the public have come to expect. You never disappoint.”

Ms Davis became interested in events planning while working as treasurer at St Peter’s Church in St George. During her time there she saw many couples married at the Unfinished Church.

“It is a gorgeous location,” she said. “Being on-site and seeing how weddings and events worked was exciting and piqued my interest.”

Being both creative and organised, arranging parties suited her well.

She says the secret to a good party is forward planning.

“Many people think that stuff can just happen overnight,” she said. “Because Bermuda is so small, we have to import so many things, so being organised well in advance allows us the opportunity to get those things in early.”

Bananas Party was founded six years ago under the umbrella of the Bermuda Bridal Suite, an international wedding and event planning company.

“We primarily did weddings at that time, but then Covid-19 came,” Ms Davis said. “We quickly realised that with 90 per cent of our clients being international, we had to carry ourselves differently and switch gears in our marketing.”

Bananas Party was born out of the need to differentiate their brands.

They now work out of a warehouse on Woodlands Road in Pembroke.

Ms Davis did a stint as an OBA Member of Parliament back in 2012.

“My political career did not have much of an impact because it was mostly done when I opened,” she said. “There was always the worry that we might not get booked because people didn’t like our political affiliations, but that has not happened much.”

• For more information, seewww.bananaspartybda.com