With an excited buzz in the air, guests gathered in anticipation, sipping on the 1659 Wine Collection, all whilst watching the sun set at the iconic rooftop Copper Bar in Bryanston; the venue for Steven Kitshoff aka “The Spicy Plum’s” 30th Birthday!”
"I have dreamt about throwing Steven a big party for his 30th, for nearly two years. It was definitely hard keeping the secret and I nearly let the cat out the bag a few times, so I'm very lucky that Stevi has been so distracted with such a busy season that he didn’t notice anything!” Aimee said.
What was meant to take place in Cape Town, turned into a whirlwind 2-week notice birthday party for The Spicy Plum, who was playing against rival team, the Lions, in Johannesburg that weekend.
"I started planning the party in Cape Town, but somehow I had an incorrect schedule that indicated that Steven would be off that specific weekend, but he was in fact playing up in Joburg. As soon as I heard he was playing in JHB I phoned my friends, Kirsty and Kerryn, at KDT Comms, to see if they could help me plan him an amazing surprise party and they were 100% on-board. I could not have done it without them! I also then reached out to the Stormers Manager, Mr. Chippie, to see if it was possible as the team would all be together. I then slowly started spreading the news as soon as I got the green light, to our nearest and dearest, and some of Steven's closest friends in the team, but I think most of the team were kept in the dark,” says Aimee.
With the team in on the secret, and a venue packed with his closest friends and family, Steven walked into what was a surprise of a lifetime! With a red, white and silver theme, inspired by “The Spicy Plum”, Aimee and her team sought the help of Lampyridae Lights and Die Balloon Salon to bring the whole party and concept together. DJ Rob Forbes set the tone for the evening, whilst guests snacked on 'beers, burgers and biltong', all of Steven’s favourite things.
Turning 30 comes with bigger dreams and bigger goals, but for the professional sportsmen "it’s still about playing great rugby and representing my teams well”. For someone who has experienced so much in their 20’s, he feels that it's "now about using that experience for the greater good."
"It was a huge surprise, I couldn't believe that there was a massive party that had been arranged for me - I thought we were all just going to the Copper Bar for a team dinner. I am very grateful to Aims, and all my friends and family, who made the trip up to Joburg to come and celebrate my 30th with me. Everyone was still speaking about the party when we got back to training on Monday. I had the absolute best time!” Steven said.
"Steven is such a down to earth guy and very happy with the simple things in life so It’s pretty easy to impress him. All I wanted for him, was to have a wonderful evening and realise how loved and appreciated he is by all his friends, family and team-mates and I think we achieved it 10 times over. It was a super special and fun night that Im sure he will treasure for a very long time,” Aimee ends off.
A birthday of a lifetime - here’s to the next 30!
Venue: Copper Bar Bryanston / https://copperbar.co.za Lights and Decor: Lampyridae Lights / https://marqueeletters.co.za Balloons: Die Ballon Salon / https://ballonsalon.co.za Wine: Deon Oosthuizen / 1659 Wine Collection DJ: Rob Forbes Cake: Sl.iced by Gaby Trachen / slicedbygaby@gmail.com Management Team: KDT Comms / www.kdtcomms.com Photography: Tamaryn Thomas