Seven attempts after the original spring 2020 opening date, we were elated to finally unveil The Londoner in September 2021.
Of course, these stop/start setbacks were not unique to us. Hoteliers around the world were forced to rethink opening schedules and staffing during this period. But it was particularly challenging for urban markets or properties focused on driving demand for meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions [MICE] or larger events.
Having to postpone the opening of the hotel by a year did, however, create valuable time and space to reflect on evolving guest expectations and the real-time changes happening across the industry. We were able to turn a disadvantage into an advantage for creating flexible programming and procedures that complemented, rather than compromised, aspects of the hotel’s design features, curated facilities and guest experiences we had worked so hard to create.
And this leads me to hosting corporate groups and events. With the rise in popularity of virtual conferences, hybrid meetings and executive retreats now long-term outcomes rather than stopgap solutions, we had to consider several factors. Would an 850-person capacity ballroom be considered surplus to the needs and preferences of future meeting planners? Would it be necessary to think about the space differently before launching? And if so, how could we ensure that it still fulfilled its potential, bringing people together and connecting them to the city?
Instead of scaling back on meetings and events facilities, we further enhanced the offering, keeping our ballroom front and center as the engine of our hotel and developing more opportunities for planners to reinvent the space, from product launches to weddings and award ceremonies, despite the segment returning at a much slower pace than leisure travel.
As such, we expanded our events management team in 2020 to include group salespeople, negotiators and advanced planning specialists. The team worked around the clock to secure valuable business months and weeks ahead of the opening.
That said, we are a long way from optimizing event revenue. Like so many urban MICE-focused hotels, international bookings are few and far between, but we are preparing for a significant uptick in 2022 and 2023. London is still the preferred European destination for event planners — particularly those based in the United States — and we are ready to welcome and wow them with the scope and scale of our offering, which is entirely appropriate after a long two years of virtual meetings!
In preparation, our team will continue to focus and expand on the following actions.
Prioritizing Pre-Conference Meetings
For larger events, pre-conference meetings are crucial, even if they cannot be done in person. Our events management team typically handles the beginning of the process online, which involves production and load-in and load-out schedules, before arranging on-site meetings for walk-throughs and final negotiations.
In 2021, our events team was able to secure several advanced bookings with price tags of $250,000 or more, excluding accommodation costs, by ensuring that detailed pre-cons were carried out months in advance and, whenever possible, followed up with a hard hat tour so that decision-makers had an opportunity to visualize their event.
Welcome All Shapes and Sizes
Focusing on confirmations up to a year before the grand opening proved to be a valuable strategy, but our team also worked hard to secure last-minute events — sometimes within days of the desired date.
A flexible, can-do attitude helped us to scoop up business from other properties that had to cancel, including overseas venues that had been booked for destination weddings. Recently, The Londoner provided a local alternative to a couple who had previously organized a destination wedding for 300 guests with just 10 days’ notice. The day was flawless, and as a result, we were able to showcase our ability to accommodate micro weddings and sequel weddings with venue options ranging from a signature suite to The Ballroom.
Team Building
Maintaining good staffing levels has been an industrywide challenge over the past two years, so it is important to find an inspirational leader who can put together and retain a passionate and loyal team committed to success.
We hired our Director of Meetings and Events Jason Kitt in 2019 and since then he has brought in a group of talented negotiators, planners and salespeople who are laser-focused on creating events that will be remembered. Walpole, an organization that represents 270 of the most prestigious British brands, held their annual summit with us in January with 300 guests attending in person and 200 more that joined online. We will be welcoming them again in June.
Client Taste Is Changing and It’s No Longer Formulaic
Marketing packages do not cut it in today’s market! Luxury planners, especially, are seeking tailored and individualized events that can only be created for them. To better accommodate each concept, food and beverage with plant-based options, sustainable meeting solutions and best-in-class technology are all shrewd hotel investments. We offer the same audio system as London’s O2 Arena for well-connected hybrid events and West End theater scale productions, an artificial intelligence chatbot that can identify more than 1,600 requests in different languages, and The Londoner app for guests that enables check-in and check-out and other conveniences from their phone for frictionless stays.
Opening or re-opening a hotel is a mammoth task at the best of times, but in the current climate, MICE-focused hotels in urban settings have faced the brunt of it. As we approach the close of the first quarter, I am confident that we will all see a meaningful rebound for international MICE travel in 2022, and I personally look forward to welcoming guests from across the pond.
Charles Oak is Hotel Director of The Londoner, a member of the Preferred Hotels & Resorts Legend Collection.
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