An annual network convention brings together people who do not work for you: franchisees, dealers, distributors, independent agents. They come because the programme gives them something, not because they are told to. In Marrakech, the format that works runs over two days and two nights: a plenary where head office presents the year, workshops by trade or territory, a space for supplier partners, and an awards night. Using the model behind our budget calculator, that programme costs roughly €64,100 to €105,500 for 150 participants and €104,400 to €170,200 for 250, in a 4-star hotel, excluding flights, plenary staging and the awards themselves. Here is how to build it, what size to aim for and what moves the budget.
Planning your network’s convention? Our seminar and corporate events in Marrakech page sets out what we handle; for a first costing, request a free quote with your dates, headcount and plenary format, and we reply within two working days.
Network convention, sales kick-off or conference: what is different
A sales kick-off gathers your own sales force at the start of the year; our sales kick-off in Marrakech guide covers that programme. A conference of several hundred delegates is mostly about rooms and logistics, covered in our article on a convention for 300 to 1,000 delegates. A network convention has three features of its own.
- Participants run their own businesses. A franchisee rarely closes their outlet for three days without a reason: the programme must give them information they will not get elsewhere, such as the year’s offer, commercial terms, tools and network figures.
- The network is mixed. A franchisee with fifteen years behind them and a new joiner want different things, and the workshops should reflect that.
- There is often a third party: suppliers. They want to meet the network, and many brands offer them a presentation space or a sponsorship slot at the evening event.
If the trip is only for the network’s top performers, with no work content, it is a reward trip: see our guide to an incentive trip to Morocco.
A two-day, two-night programme
This outline assumes participants fly in on day one. Flights are booked by you, your travel agent or each participant. Morocco is on GMT all year round: level with London and Dublin in winter, one hour behind them in summer, and one hour behind Paris or Brussels in winter, two in summer.
Day 1: arrivals and opening
Arrivals in waves during the morning, transfers, lunch at the hotel. From 15:00 to 18:00, the opening plenary: the year in review, strategy and network figures. In the evening, dinner at the hotel with a seating plan that mixes regions and length of service.
Day 2: workshops, partners and the awards night
Parallel workshops in the morning: new range, local marketing, digital tools, recruitment, running the business. The workshops are what justify the trip for a franchisee, so give them at least an hour and a half each. The partner area runs over lunch and the breaks. A short plenary wrap-up in the afternoon, then free time or an activity, and the awards night in the evening, at the hotel or at an outside venue.
Day 3: departure
A one-hour closing session if return flights leave in the afternoon, then airport transfers. To add a day out, our guide to day trips from Marrakech for corporate groups gives distances and formats.
How many people, and where to hold the plenary?
This guide is aimed at networks of 80 to 400 participants, including partners and suppliers. The table matches each size to a type of venue; the room capacities published by the hotels and the Palais des Congrès are listed in our 300 to 1,000 delegates article.
| Participants | Plenary | Accommodation | Awards night |
|---|---|---|---|
| 80 to 150 | Ballroom of a 4 or 5-star hotel | One hotel, often the plenary hotel | Hotel, private riad or a venue in the Agafay desert |
| 150 to 300 | Large hotel ballroom (300 to 483 theatre-style, depending on the hotel) | One or two nearby hotels | Hotel or large reception venue, with shuttles |
| 300 to 400 and more | Palais des Congrès or the largest hotel rooms | Two to four hotels, shuttles at fixed times | Large reception venue, staggered returns |
Two traps specific to networks. Room capacity is quoted theatre-style, so round tables for workshops in the same room cut the numbers sharply. And the partner area belongs on the route between the plenary and the coffee breaks: a stand at the end of a corridor sees nobody.
What does a network convention in Marrakech cost?
The figures below come from the model in our seminar and team building budget calculator. They include two nights in single rooms, two working days (room, breaks, lunches), room AV with a technician, one hotel dinner, the awards night at the hotel with a DJ, airport transfers and, from 150 people, local shuttles, plus a 10% contingency.
| Participants and hotel | Total budget | Per participant |
|---|---|---|
| 80, 4-star hotel, no shuttles | €32,900 to €54,200 | €411 to €677 |
| 150, 4-star hotel | €64,100 to €105,500 | €428 to €703 |
| 250, 4-star hotel | €104,400 to €170,200 | €418 to €681 |
| 250, 5-star hotel | €156,600 to €255,400 | €627 to €1,022 |
| 400, 4-star hotel | €164,800 to €267,200 | €412 to €668 |
The cost per head barely moves with numbers because almost everything is charged per person: for 250 people, the two nights come to €40,000 to €65,000 and the two working days to €25,000 to €37,500 before contingency. Hotel category changes everything: moving from 4 to 5 stars adds about 50% to the total. Holding the awards night in a private riad with live musicians, for 150 participants and one working day, gives €58,400 to €98,700.
Not included, and quoted separately: stage and screens for a plenary of several hundred (our AV allowance is sized for a meeting room), filming, simultaneous interpreting, the trophies, decoration, partner stands, flights, alcohol, tourist tax and our fees. For a network that is already in Morocco, a working day followed by the evening event, with no overnight stay, comes to €21,400 to €35,100 for 150 people in the same model.
Who pays for what: settle it first
How costs are shared varies from brand to brand and should be stated in the invitation. Common set-ups are full funding by head office, a flat contribution from each franchisee or dealer, or a funded stay with flights paid by the participant. Supplier partners may fund part of the event in exchange for a presentation slot or visibility at the evening event. The accounting and tax treatment of these flows, and of hosting an independent business owner, is a matter for your accountant; we do not advise on it.
On the Moroccan side, services consumed locally (hotel, meals, transfers) carry Moroccan VAT whoever pays for them; our article on VAT on a company seminar in Morocco gives the rates.
Getting the awards right
- Categories that do not only reward size. The biggest turnover wins every year. Add growth, customer satisfaction, best new opening, local initiative and help given to other members.
- Six to eight awards, thirty minutes at most. Hold them early in the evening, before dinner or between courses, while the room is still listening.
- Proper stage kit. A wireless microphone, walk-up music, a screen for names and photos, a photographer. At an outside venue, check there is a stage or a clear area.
Our guide to a corporate gala dinner in Marrakech compares hotel, riad and desert venues. Amplified music in Marrakech usually stops between midnight and 1 am.
Timeline and formalities
- Six to nine months ahead: date, plenary venue and room blocks. High season, March to May and September to November, fills the large hotels.
- Four to six months ahead: invitation with the cost-sharing rules, call for partners, choice of awards venue.
- Three months ahead: attendee list, flights, workshop programme.
- One month ahead: an event of more than 100 people needs prefecture authorisation, requested 30 days before; 15 days below that.
Entry rules depend on nationality: ask each participant to check their own government’s travel advice for Morocco, and to travel on a passport valid for the whole stay. For flights, see our guide to group flights to Marrakech.
What Saphyyr Events does
We plan the convention with you from Paris; our Marrakech team then secures the room and hotel blocks, coordinates AV, transfers and staggered arrivals, meals and the awards night, and stays on site from the first day to the last. One point of contact for every supplier, in English or French, and an itemised quote. The content of the plenary and workshops stays yours.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a convention for 150 franchisees in Marrakech cost?
According to our calculator, about €64,100 to €105,500 for two nights in a 4-star hotel, two working days, room AV, one dinner, the awards night with a DJ, transfers and shuttles, or €428 to €703 per participant. Flights, staging, trophies and stands are extra.
How many days should we plan?
Two days and two nights: a plenary half-day on arrival, a day of workshops followed by the evening event, and departure on day three. One night leaves too little time for the workshops, which are why franchisees come.
Can supplier partners take part?
Yes. Put their presentation area on the route between the plenary and the breaks, and give them slots at breaks and lunch. Agree in writing, before the invitation goes out, what they contribute and what they get.
How far ahead should we book?
Six to nine months for 150 people or more, especially between March and May or September and November. Secure room blocks and the plenary room first.
Do we need a permit for the awards night?
For more than 100 people, prefecture authorisation must be requested 30 days before the event; 15 days below that. Ask for the quote to state who handles the request.
To take it further, see our seminar and convention planning in Marrakech, adjust the figures in the budget calculator, or request a free quote with your headcount, preferred dates, cost-sharing plan and the venue you have in mind for the awards night.