You’re sitting quietly in your favourite restaurant, enjoying the same mushroom risotto you always have and then suddenly your waiter starts tapping his foot lightly and begins to whistles the intro to “La Love You”, by the Pixies, and before you know it, all the other waiters join in. BOOM! You’re in the middle of a flash mob.
This was the scene at Rucoletta, a popular Italian restaurant near St. Paul’s Cathedral, last week when it was overrun with undercover dancers in an effort to surprise 40-year-old Anna Devos on her birthday – a loving gesture funded by her husband, Andrew Devos. The entire event was organised by Club Mob, a company based in London and Manchester, which performs all over the UK at private and corporate events, weddings and festivals.
While most unsuspecting people in such situations would turn into self-conscious shells of themselves, for 30-year-old Alexandra Evans, a flash mob is where she feels most like herself.
The young entrepreneur founded Club Mob in 2014, and with the help of a few friends, started delivering creative performances to a few friends who would hire them – a proposal here and a birthday there. But, after a series of high profile clients like Red Bull and Guinness World Record, the company took off and Alex never looked back.
“I wasn’t very good at school and my family was struggling, so when I quit my shop assistant job to start Club Mob, I invested all my time and energy in it.”
The modest Croydon native was referring to her eight-year job at an Apple Genius Bar where she served as a technician. When both her parents lost their jobs, she started to look for opportunities so that her family could make mortgage payments. When Club Mob took off, she finally felt comfortable enough to leave the only career she had ever had.
Flash mobs first started in the US and have since spread all over the world and have been used for a variety of purposes. From campaigns to proposals, the UK has also had its fair share. London is home to at least four other flash mob businesses. As the company’s creative director, Alex insists on keeping her pool of talent small and selective so as to ensure that their performances are as tailored and bespoke as possible.
“A flash mob combines four of my favourite things: organising events, dancing, singing and most of all, surprising people. It’s entirely unexpected and yet you wouldn’t imagine the level of planning that goes into organising one – but it’s worth it at the end of the day – it brings so much energy, love and laughter to everyone in the vicinity.”
While a favourite with campaigners, flash mobs have been growing in popularity even among corporates. From energy drinks to car manufacturers, hiring energetic people to break out unexpectedly in song and dance appears to be a growing marketing tactic. Alex however, insists it’s the personal and intimate performances that she prefers.
How much did singing waiters set Andrew back?
“We try to be very competitive with our pricing. Four singing waiters would typically cost around £1,200, including all equipment,” said Alex.
Bigger surprises however, like extravagant proposals can cost anything upwards of £2,000. The most Alex has charged was a cool £12,000 for a proposal involving 500 hundred choreographed dancers and fireworks to boot.
With customers paying a pretty penny, Alex said it is absolutely catastrophic when things don’t go to plan.
“We were performing in Grosvenor Square – opposite the American Embassy. At the most crucial moment, park officials closed the park and chucked us out as President Obama was about to arrive.”
While Alex had manage to delay the group and the surprise went on, there were other times where she wasn’t so lucky.
“Auxiliary cables breaking right before a dance, sound systems failing, and of course, it’s extraordinarily awkward when at the end of a song and dance of Bruno Mars’ ‘Marry you’, the girl says ‘no.’”
Being in the flash mob business means high levels of stress at every point. But the people pleaser insists that this is her calling. As if being running a demanding flash mob business is not enough, the 30-year old is also a freelance actress and launched another business in 2015.
Being gluten intolerant, she co-founded Eat Safe, a mobile app that helps people with dietary requirements find appropriate restaurants and cafes, with delivering filtered menus.
“Club Mob is still my priority – what can I say? It’s a calling that just happened to work out really well.”
Alex plans on expanding Club Mob to other areas of the UK and hinted that residents of Birmingham could soon be witnessing unexpected performances before the New Year.
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