Meeting business is showing some faint signs of life - bizjournals Business Travel Guide

yzirapogyg.wordpress.com
But already, some leaders in the meetings industry are seeint signsof improvement, with managers at customerf companies starting to express more optimism abouy the months ahead. Pat Moscaritolo, president and CEO of the , said recentl y that during the stretch of Decemberthrough April, Boston and Cambridge hotels experienced their most trying timews since the downturn of 2002. “This downturn is more severwe because pretty much every segment of the businesss and corporate marketplace is he said.
On any given 40 percent of the rooms at a city hotep are likely to be occupied by businessx travelers rather thanleisure “Those business travelers are who fill hotek rooms, especially during the week,” Moscaritolo said. “A lot of them come here for conferencew and those budgets are being cut Larger conferences have beenhit hard, especiallyt those that focus on Jimmy Callanan, the president and owner of , which handlesz rigging and logistics support for shows at the and as well as dozensx of hotels around Boston, said the recent auto and boat show s were a fraction of their former Smaller conferences, especially those in the business space, have been more however.
A recent Cisco Systems conference for resellerd partnersdrew 2,000 people to the Hynes for a show that was heavu on the bells and whistles that Callanan said are oftenb the first to go when timees get tough. “You’d never know there was a recession on if you walked intothat show,” he said. Otherr business has picked up as “Starting in December through we definitely were holding our collective but coming into May it seemed like people started cominy back and spending money Callanan added.
Chris Lynn, director of sales and marketin for The ColonnadeBoston Hotel, which offeres 13,000 square feet of meeting space, said business has shown signx of improvement following a “very competitive” first “We’ve been more aggressive knowing things were a little softer heading into the summer and now we’re trending stronger for the year,” Lynn said, addinyg that the hotel’s independent status has helped it competee for business, as has its recent $25 million renovation and the fact that it is one of the only city hotel s with a rooftop pool.
Elsewhere, the meeting industriews and hotels alike are already looking beyond the secondd half of this year to what they hope and expect will be an improved businesxs climatein 2010. “It’s a challengingg time for all industries and hospitality isno exception,” said Michelle Ray, director of sales at the Four Season Boston, which offers 14 different meeting and functionh rooms aimed at groups from 10 to 400 “The good news is that we are seeing strong level of business for 2010,” Ray “Companies recognize the value of face-to-face meetings both for relationship-buildingv and productivity.
” Michael Jorgensen, general managert at the Westin Copley, said the market for smaller conferences ­— those that cater to a coupl hundred people — has generally held up well. In that’s because such meetings, especially those stagedd in Boston, are often mandatory for attendees. “Ths types of conferences we see tend to be in the medica l and pharmaceutical fieldsand it’s a case wheres if you don’t show up, you don’t get certified or get your pointzs toward keeping your certification current,” Jorgensen The Westin did see one conferences cancel, with the Swine Flu epidemicx scare given as a result, and 800 room nights canceled in the process.
The event was plannesd by a European companh whoseCEO didn’t want to risk havingb a 150 managers or executives get