How to organise an office party with delicious treats

How to organise an office party - our top tips for 2025!‍

Office parties are a great way to step away from the daily grind for a moment and spend some time as a team celebrating the amazing things in our busy lives.

Is there a new baby on the horizon? Is one of your favourite colleagues moving onto something new? A milestone birthday to celebrate?

Maybe it’s none of those occasions, and instead you’re just looking for a way to boost morale and connect your colleagues on a personal level!

If this is happening in your office soon, then what better way is there to celebrate than through a fun-filled party and celebrating over delicious cupcakes, cookies and cakes (spoiler alert… there is no better way!).

We’re here to provide our top tips for organising an office party, with the help of Candy’s Cupcakes, the family-run bakery that are delivering mouth-watering baked goods to teams all over the UK!

Say hello to Candy’s Cupcakes

Let’s start with Candy’s Cupcakes, the family-run bakery (and fellow Greater Manchester brand!) that are taking the UK’s sweet treats scene by storm.

Owned by Candice Bannister and Oliver Bannister, the brand launched in 2011 when Candice began making cupcakes and cakes as a hobby from her home kitchen.

Fast-forward to 2025 and they’ve built a team of 22 people, delivering their sweet treats nationwide and they even count The Voice judge will.i.am as one of their famous clients!

As well as their range of products being incredible (don’t just take our word for it - their website had us drooling!), all of their cake boxes are custom made and beautifully presented, offering the ultimate unboxing experience.

If you’re celebrating an occasion in the office, they make the perfect choice and if you order before 3pm Monday-Friday, you’ll have the cupcakes delivered the next day by their courier - what’s not to love!

They say ‘a party without cake is just a meeting’, so make sure you celebrate your next office event in style with the help of Candy’s Cupcakes.

How to plan an office party‍

So now we’ve met the team who we’re sure will be providing the treats, here’s some of our handy tips to help you organise the next office party/celebration/shindig (whatever you want to call it!).

1. Let people know the occasion

Sounds obvious, right? But you’d be surprised how often this seemingly basic part of the event is missed.

Is this a celebration of a colleague who’s about to leave on maternity/paternity? A farewell for a cherished colleague? Is it a seasonal bash, or just a morale-boosting event to bring the team together after all of the hard work you put in?

Make sure people know nice and early, and most importantly if this is going to be a surprise for the person you’re celebrating then make sure everyone involved knows (no one wants to be that person in the office who ruins the surprise!).

2. Set the date and time (the earlier the better!)

When are your colleagues most likely to attend and enjoy themselves without clock-watching or dropping out at the very last minute? Mid-week afternoons usually work well for a quick pick-me-up to motivate them throughout the week, while Friday afternoons are often great for more relaxed, slightly longer events (that can quite easily end up moving onto somewhere outside the office - your favourite food spot or nearby bar is calling!).

Try and avoid busy periods like month-end or major project deadlines. The best way to make sure as many people can be there as possible, is to send out a ‘save the date’ email well in advance, ideally 3-4 weeks at least, and even block the time out in people’s calendars if you want to really make sure.

(ps - a couple of friendly reminders in the build-up to the event are usually well received!)‍

3. Choose your venue

We know we’ve called it an ‘office party’ 100 times already, but sometimes it can make for a better event by opting for a change in scenery and booking a local venue (whether it’s a pub, restaurant, coffee house etc).

We’re all for supporting local businesses and there’s always plenty of them out there that would love to bring you into their space to host your company party!

Not only does this free up your own time by not having to think about getting the space ready, or making sure you’ve covered everyone’s different preferences when it comes to drinks - instead, you can hand this over to the professionals and let them do their thing.

It’s a great way to fully switch off from the day job, take in the company of your colleagues in a different environment and enjoy what your local town/city has to offer!

4. Set the theme!

This one takes a bit more effort from everyone (how much effort depends on the theme!), but if you’re looking to make this party a little bit more memorable and add a splash of character to proceedings, then set a theme.

Whether it’s ‘Back to the 80’s/90’s’, ‘Hollywood Oscars Night’ or just a simple summer theme, the key to this being a success comes back to our second point - let people know well in advance!

For this one you’ll want to consider your team's interests and preferences. Get other people involved in the decision making process, float different ideas and get input from as many people as possible, and land on a theme that resonates with your colleagues and their personalities.

5. Bring the party to life with Candy’s Cupcakes

Finally, we had to come back to the star of your next office party - Candy’s Cupcakes!

Not only are their cupcakes a delicious treat, but they even offer branded cupcakes with your company logo printed on them. It’s the perfect addition to any party, especially if you’re celebrating a big milestone or treating clients!

If you order before 3pm Monday-Friday, you’ll have the cupcakes delivered the next day by their courier, straight to your office or event location.

Don’t just take our word for it - you can join the likes of BBC, ITV, British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Amazon and lots more, who’ve all worked with Candy’s Cupcakes to bring their mouth-watering range of products into their events!

‍How to collect money for an office party?‍

We know that being the organiser in the workplace can be a thankless task at times. Things seem to always find their way onto your lap and nothing happens unless you’re the one to initiate it (and we know that you’ve likely found yourself out of pocket at some point!).

‍Enter Collctiv 👋‍

We’ve created a free to use app which is the quickest, easiest way to collect money from your colleagues. No more sharing bank details by email with the whole company (eek!) or chasing the brown envelope around the office.

Instead, set up a Collctiv pot in seconds, share the link to pay and watch the payments start rolling in. None of your colleagues need to sign up for an account to pay either. It’s that simple!

Get started today and join over 1.7million people who’ve already used Collctiv in 175 countries to collect money for gifts, organise special events, raise funds for their chosen charities, and lots more.

Start your office collection today

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