Mitie’s landscaping team has been hard at work over the past three weeks decking out over 600 Christmas trees across the country. The tallest tree installed by Mitie is a Norway Spruce tree measuring a sky-scraping 30 feet, compared to the smallest sparkly shrub which measured up at just two feet.
150 Mitie staff have been working round the clock to ensure clients are Christmas ready, hanging over 100,000 baubles, which is the equivalent to the weight of 12 polar bears. The team has also installed almost 40km of fairy lights which is enough to dress the UK’s tallest building, The Shard, from top to bottom 122 times.
Festive fashion has also shifted back to the more traditional colours of red, green and gold compared to last year’s demand for gold, silver and glitter. A star is also the clear tree topping of choice whilst tinsel is a big no this year. More clients are also opting for artificial – just one in five trees installed are real.
Ahead of installation Mitie holds Christmas tree masterclasses to ensure the team are up to speed with the latest in lighting trends and learnings on prolonging the life of living trees.
One key tradition is broken in the business of corporate Christmas trees – everything is typically taken down between Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve, bending the rules of the twelfth night superstition. The team are tasked with dismantling the decorations within three days, before people to return to work in the New Year.
For Mitie, it isn’t long before the cycle starts again. Materials will be sourced in January to supply corporate Christmas trees for the 2019 festivities.
Tim Howell, Managing Director of Specialist Services, said:
“We have thoroughly enjoyed delivering Christmas trees to offices across the country, bringing festive cheer to our clients in line with the latest trends. Magic elves do not make Christmas trees appear overnight, and the team has worked incredibly hard to bring these decorations to life. Now we’re getting ready to whip them down again in just 72 hours in time for the New Year.”
Notes to editors
About Mitie
Founded in 1987, Mitie is the UK’s leading facilities management and professional services company. It offers a range of specialist services including Security, Engineering Services, Catering, Cleaning Landscaping, Energy and Property Consultancy, Property Maintenance, and Custody Support Services.
Mitie employs 54,000 people across the country, looking after a large, diverse, blue-chip customer base, from banks and retailers, to hospitals, schools and government offices. It takes care of its customers’ people and buildings, by delivering the basics brilliantly and by deploying advanced technology. It is pioneering the Connected Workspace, using smart analytics to provide valuable insight and deliver efficiencies to create outstanding work environments for customers.
