The Southern Berkshires are a Destination for NYC Businesses, in the New Landscape of Corporate Retreats

SHEFFIELD, Mass. - Feb. 28, 2015 - PRLog -- Most retreat venues and HR Directors remember the heyday of corporate retreats: somewhere between 2005 and 2008, six-figure trips with five-figure food-and-beverage bills came standard in any public company’s annual budget. Well, we know what happened there…evaporating revenue (or was it public scrutiny?) put a hasty stop to over-the-top retreats, right around the same time that keywords like authenticity, transparency and flexibility entered the corporate lexicon.

Now that Start-ups are as sexy as the Fortune 100, and corporate budgets are reflecting a “spend it, don’t burn it” mentality, we’re seeing a new trend of Corporate Retreats swiftly gaining popularity. These “mini-retreats” reflect the values, goals and interests of younger, smaller, creative and innovative teams. Hedonism and hypocrisy is out; traditional retreats touted work-life balance while taking employees away from their personal lives for a full week or more. The new retreat model encourages 3-4 day trips, traveling with families, and activities that integrate professional responsibilities with team members’ ‘passion projects’. Even “stress management” has a new meaning: step away from the golf course and the partying. Put down the phone and allow yourself a “digital detox.” Today’s retreats are shorter, more convenient, and focused on effective use of time, whether that’s strategy planning fireside, creative development in a hammock, or a brainstorming session with beer and popcorn on a porch.

In the Southern Berkshires, Race Brook Lodge’s Director of Vibe Control (and CEO) Casey Meade understands what his New York City and Boston neighbors want—and that’s why he’s excited to take the reigns from the last successful CEO: his father, Dave.  Some things won’t change, like no TVs or landline phones in the rooms, a hearty communal breakfast and help-yourself “Honor Bar.” What has changed is high-speed internet throughout the property, additional on-site Facilitators and activities like thought leadership programs, skiing, yoga, massages and packed swing dance parties in the “Barnspace.” Now with a new Chef running the on-property restaurant, The Stagecoach Tavern, plus organic ingredients coming from Race Brook’s on-site organic farm, the cuisine is as much of a draw as the “Camp for Adults” vibe (according to Boston Magazine and Guest of a Guest).

With four distinct event spaces on the property, rooms and cottages for groups of up to fifty, as well as the private Zen-like Race Mountain House, the Lodge is already wildly popular with urbanites, bloggers and academic groups. Busses and trains come direct from NYC, which has fostered more art, sports and entertainment venues than you can shake a laptop at. With these elements coming together just as the business world figures out how to get all of the benefits of retreats, without the waste, Race Brook has the Berkshires sitting pretty as the destination for the new zeitgeist of authentic, chintz-free company getaways.