The new President and CEO of the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau is optimistic about the tourism and convention business in our area, and Miami Beach in particular. Looking back at the number of events held at the Miami Beach Convention Center since it reopened after it closed due to the pandemic and heavy domestic travel, David Whitaker said he was surprised by the recovery as well as the venue and the people The city’s capabilities are convincing to assert its position as one of the top travel destinations in the district.
Whitaker was named to the helm of the GMCVB in July, replacing Bill Talbert, who was retiring. It’s kind of homecoming for Whitaker, who spent 17 years with the organization from 1990 to 2007. He left his last position as Executive Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer there to become President & CEO of Tourism Toronto (now known as Destination Toronto). For the past five years, he was President and CEO of Choose Chicago, the destination marketing organization for Chicago, “where he was responsible for promoting and selling the largest convention center in the United States, McCormick Place” upon his appointment.
RE: MiamiBeach sat down with Whitaker and Freddie Peterson, General Manager of the Convention Center, to hear their thoughts on the state of the industry.
Whitaker said he “grew up here as a young professional” and was blessed to watch the destination develop in the early 1990s and Ocean Drive and Lincoln Road. “
“What’s different and most exciting,” he said, is the new Miami Beach Convention Center, valued at $ 620 million. What was once just a “trade fair building” [that] didn’t have many hotel products “is now” one of the highest quality convention centers in North America. It opens the door for us as a destination and as a tourism association to invite really big partners. “
Looking at the state of the tourism and convention markets after the COVID shutdown and now with the pent-up travel demand, Whitaker said there were both challenges and opportunities.
“It’s a combination. There are challenges on the work front when it comes to getting staff back to our hotels, back to our restaurants, challenges getting crossings for visitors, but then there are also tremendous opportunities. ”Given the obvious, the warm weather and The impact of Florida being one of the more open states during the pandemic, he said our area benefited from “lots of visitors coming here, lots of domestic visitors who would have left”. the Caribbean went to Canada, went to Europe, Mexico. ”Domestic visitors only fell 10 percent from their 2019 high, which no one would have predicted twelve months ago, he said.
“But it’s a false sense of security,” said Whitaker, as many of these visitors may be returning to other destinations soon.
It is important to get to a point where international visitors are returning, he said. “International visitors make up around 30 percent of all our visitors,” almost 6 million people per year. “They stay longer and spend twice as much and we need them back.”
“We have every inclination that they will come,” he said, adding, “American Airlines has operated even more flights to South America knowing that there is some catching up to do.” International visitors not only go on vacation, but also attend congresses, he said.
When asked by the city that the GMCVB is focusing more on Miami Beach as part of the city’s contract with the Bureau, Whitaker replied, “Miami Beach has always been a priority for the Greater Miami Convention and Visitor’s Bureau … That’s the lure. South Beach is the global brand everyone knows. As a result, I sometimes worry when Miami Beach isn’t given enough attention. That said, it’s one of our biggest partners … Miami Beach is a huge partner. We can’t be successful as a travel destination, as a county, we cannot be successful as a travel destination without Miami Beach being successful, so anything that doesn’t help Miami Beach won’t help us. “
“The one thing we look forward to most is this [Convention Center] and sell that product and asset in the future, ”he added.
Whitaker was amazed that the venue has hosted five medical conventions in the past eight months. “That’s unbelievable and we wouldn’t have had that ten years ago, right?” He asked.
Next year’s Bitcoin conference at the Convention Center is expected to attract over 35,000 delegates, he said based on hotel negotiations.
“We have a healthy list of trade shows, consumer shows, Art Basel and the iconic events we’ve always had,” he noted. “We now have a growing list of medical events, a growing list of tech events. The sky is the limit. Really, the sky is the limit and we want to be bullish. We have great confidence that we now have a product. And the reactions and the results so far are very encouraging, great interest. “
“Miami and Miami Beach have always been very successful, always in the top 5 in terms of occupancy points, growth in demand, ADR [Average Daily Rate], “he said.” You can fill a hotel at 80% off or $ 50 off room rates, so you need to have a healthy balance of both demand and traffic and rate to attract a demanding, dynamic visitor market … We’ve been there always leading nationally as a city and district in terms of the average daily rate and occupancy. “
The weather is of course a draw, but also the recognition of the city as an art and culture destination, said Whitaker. The recent announcement that Michelin will begin producing a restaurant guide for the Miami area “gives some of our best restaurants a degree of seriousness and recognition. We have some great restaurants here including Miami Beach. Just think about some of the new places you hear so much about. That is an addition. “
“Ten or fifteen years ago, tourism funding wasn’t really focused on celebrity chefs and restaurants,” he said. “Now it’s one of the biggest sectors where people are literally going to places because it’s a food city or a food destination. We know how important it is to the congress delegate. [For them, it’s] not just the building and a great event here, but also a private company dinner, a customer sponsored event and just plain entertainment. “
Freddie Peterson is with Spectra, the operator of the convention center. As general manager for the past three years, he has spent more than a third of his tenure managing a global pandemic, but the city and GMCVB’s efforts to deal with COVID enabled the convention center team to “educate visitors”. “To help them feel safe when traveling locally and domestically.
Now the location is in great demand. “Since [last] October and through this weekend, “he said, there were 21 events including the five medical events. “The number of participants is probably over 150,000 visitors to these 21 events” and the number of exhibitors was “several thousand”.
He admitted what he called “a little break” due to COVID, “but this trust in everything that we as a team have done together here on the beach, and of course with the” [GMCVB] gave people this ability to come, be comfortable, gather, meet, have fun while on the beach and look forward to rebooking a lot of different events. “
Visitors are important not only to the convention center, but also to the local economy, Peterson said. Speaking to members of the city council, he remarked: “One of the things we would like to see more often is a sea of people with ID cards not only walking around the convention center and campus in the city center, but of course, around great places to visit like Lincoln Road, Lincoln Eatery, etc. “
Anecdotally, he said, the Lincoln Eatery Food Hall on Thursday “was completely crammed with people wearing these credentials and badges, and you know it’s part of what we’re doing here, in partnership with the CVB, is that economic impact. ” The conventions that the venue attracts are those that attract attendees from other parts of the US or the world, rather than the trade shows that previously drew in attendees from the local area who jumped in their cars and drove here, causing heavy traffic and Lack of parking led. Peterson notes that the convention goers fly in, take ridesharing, and walk around town while they’re here.
Whitaker adds: “This delegate lives in a hotel, also generates tourist taxes for the community, employs people, [and] they also have dinner [out]… so it goes well beyond these four halls, if you will. “The business in the convention center, hotel stays and restaurants:” It’s all part of the equation. “
“We’re talking about the visitor base,” Peterson said, but less about the exhibitor base, exhibitors, hundreds of them who come here. They also stay a lot longer. Some stay up to nine days if you think about moving in, the days of the event and moving out. “
The economic impact continues with job opportunities, Peterson added. “It is very important to us and of course to the City of Miami Beach that hundreds of thousands of full and part-time employees can benefit from the venue and what it does here.”
When asked what the return of Art Basel means for the convention center after it was canceled last year due to the pandemic, Peterson said. “I don’t even have the words to describe it in any way. Enthusiastic. Upset. Over the moon. “
“Having her back is just invigorating, energizing and just absolutely fantastic,” he enthused. With the load-in for the event, which starts next week after more than a year of planning, Peterson is looking forward to “the great influence that you are sure to have on the venue and of course on the goal, so really, really excited” . . “
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