Lunar New Year 2027 begins on Saturday 6 February, welcoming the Year of the Goat, a sign associated with kindness, peace and inner strength. Because the day itself falls on a weekend, the week after, 8 to 12 February, is the natural moment for a workplace celebration.
February feels a long way off in November. But the offices that celebrate Lunar New Year well are always the ones that planned it before Christmas swallowed the diary. Here is what works.
A hand-painted fu character, fresh from the workshop.
Dumplings are the heart of it
Dumplings are traditional Lunar New Year food, shaped like old silver ingots and eaten for prosperity. A dumpling making workshop turns that tradition into the celebration itself: everyone folds, cooks and eats together, and the symbolism explains itself over the steamer. Honestly, it is one of the most reliably joyful formats we run.
Calligraphy and lanterns make it visible
A calligraphy session, writing fu characters for good fortune, or a lantern painting workshop gives the team something beautiful to make and keep. Red and gold decorations made by the team will always mean more than decorations bought for them, and the office keeps a little of the festival after the day.
Lantern painting in progress around the table.
Remember it is many festivals, not one
Lunar New Year is celebrated across China, Vietnam, Korea, Singapore, Malaysia and beyond, and each place has its own dishes and customs. If you have colleagues who celebrate, ask them what home looks like. Earlier this year we celebrated the Year of the Horse with London’s ESEA community, and the best moments came straight from the community itself.
Dumplings pan-frying, ready for the table.
We run dumpling making, calligraphy and lantern workshops for Lunar New Year, led by chefs and makers celebrating their own festival. February dates are open now.
