Writer: Ryan Gandolfo
2 min read November 2022 — With its bevy of industries, opportunities and investment, Palm Beach County has become a top destination for the convention business.
The county is well positioned as a mid-sized market to meet the growing demand of an industry that is increasingly factoring in entertainment and destination appeal when deciding where to host events. “For several years, mid-sized markets have become more attractive for events. It is amazing to see what these markets are doing from a development standpoint. They are building housing, commercial and office development, but also conference centers, convention centers and even creating entertainment districts,” Palm Beach County Convention Center General Manager Dave Anderson told Invest:.
Palm Beach County is becoming a greater player in the business conference and event space as the county has attached a local approach to assist event organizers in a smooth operation. “If someone comes in for a healthcare medical conference, we can leverage what’s happening in the community. We had a local thought leader Ellen Latham, president and founder of Orangetheory Fitness, speak to an organization as we’re seeing wellness becoming really important,” Discover The Palm Beaches Chief Sales Officer Kelly Cavers told Invest:.
Cavers noted that the growth in demand for meetings and events has seen a significant rebound compared to pre-pandemic levels. “We’re close to about 80% of where we were in 2019, but the actual opportunities, or leads, coming in are at 150% from what we’ve seen before the pandemic,” said Cavers. “The size of the events aren’t as large as we’ve seen but the number of events are growing.”
When looking at the demand for conferences and events in Palm Beach, there’s no singular industry that seems to be at the forefront. “Our event growth is taking place in sectors all across the board, which is great. We are seeing specific growth in medical, pharma, tech, crypto, sports and on the corporate side. We do not want one sector or one piece of business to represent too high of a percentage of our annual revenue stream, so we try to stay as diverse as possible with our event mix,” Anderson said.
One of the key challenges Anderson’s team and convention centers across the country continue to face is the labor shortage. “Business has ramped up everywhere at an amazing rate, but not staffing levels. We are running with 25% less staff, but still are posting amazing numbers, but this is not sustainable. There is a great deal of pressure on my team, which is doing an amazing job, to uphold the highest levels of service all while we manage through these staffing challenges,” Anderson pointed out.
Another conversation that continues to take place in Palm Beach is in regards to the infrastructure and capacity to host larger events. “We had a cryptocurrency conference that came in, and it took 22 hotels to bring in this size group. When it comes to contracting these hotels, we realize we were the perfect destination, but they want to see more hotel products within the walkable areas of West Palm Beach,” said Anderson.
In March 2022, Related Companies revived plans to build another hotel at the convention center, which would double the hotel room count available for conventions and turn the center into a regional meeting destination, as cited by Palm Beach Post.
Those plans are likely to receive strong consideration by county officials, especially as the event pipeline continues to grow.
“As we end 2022 and head into 2023, we are running at full capacity with clients looking to book as far out as 2026. There is no question that in-person meetings are back and better than ever,” said Anderson.
For more information, visit:
https://www.pbconventioncenter.com/
