NEW YORK — The International Hotel, Motel + Restaurant Show® (IHMRS) won’t take place here next month.
That’s because the show will be unveiling a new brand and style for its centennial edition, Nov. 8-10, at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center—HX: The Hotel Experience: Rooms to Restaurants (HX).
“Making this enormous change at our 100-year juncture is exciting,” says Anthony G. Mangano, president of Syramada Hotel Corp. and chairman of the board for HX 2015. “These are not tweaks or modest improvements. HX 2015 is an entirely new show.”
HX will still be co-located with the Boutique Design New York (BDNY) trade fair.
TIME FOR A CHANGE
Mangano says the change began with conversations with vendors and attendees at the show. Show officials got input into what the vendors and attendees were getting out of the show and what they were looking for.
“We make small changes every year to the show. Sometimes, they’re noticeable, sometimes, they’re not,” says Mangano. “We really thought it was time for a big, significant change that was much more noticeable, not only when you walk in, the whole look and feel of it, but what the agenda entails and the types of displays we have on the floor and the attendee base, things like that.”
He also notes that world changes contributed to the show change.
“There are a lot of different things happening in the world, and it seems like the pace is getting much, much quicker, so the show is recognizing that and keeping up with the times and trying to stay ahead of it,” says Mangano.
The name change to HX was made with a purpose. Mangano says show officials want people to talk about the experience they have at the show.
“The people who are on the event board are all hospitality executives and professionals and we work really hard every day in our hotels and in our businesses to create an experience for our guests. So we took that concept and applied it to the trade show business model,” he says.
“We want the attendees to come and have an experience where not only do they see the newest and latest and greatest, physically touch it, feel it, look at it, kick it, but also the opportunities, the learning experiences and the experiences of meeting the leaders in the field and talking to the thought leaders and those who are changing things, getting that whole experience, too.
“That’s where the experience part of it came from.”
NEW SHOW FLOOR AND EDUCATION OPPORTUNITIES
To create that new experience, show officials decided to redo everything associated with it, from the floor to the education opportunities.
“From a big-picture strategy, we’re redesigning the trade show floor and providing a more fresh education strategy all designed to bring more value to the attendee, more reason to spend more time on the trade show floor,” says Phil Robinson, event director with Hospitality Media Group (HMG).
He says that the show floor has been “remerchandised” into five categories. There will be a rooms division area, a services area, a technology area, a food and beverage area and a kitchen design area. Those are the five core areas of the show floor, productwise. The complete list of exhibitors—including those of special interest to laundry and linen managers—is available at www.thehotelexperience.us.
On the floor around the product areas, Robinson says there will be five branded ancillary activity areas that will provide both educational and networking opportunities. HX Onstage, both in the Hotel area and the Restaurant area, will host all of the educational sessions, presented in theaters on the show floor.
“A lot of them will be serious content, future trends, marketing, communications, strategy, but there will also be some that are fun,” says Robinson. “We’ve created a foodservice IQ game, which is a Jeopardy-like game where we’ll have teams of kitchen design consultants and equipment dealers and distributors on teams competing for cash prizes.”
Many of the educational programs include industry partners, says Robinson. In addition, exhibitors will present “Product Spotlights.” These will be 20-minute presentations in the show floor theaters where Robinson says exhibitors can demonstrate the new products they brought to market.
Another area, HX Tech, will be devoted exclusively to technology. Here, there will be exhibitor- and attendee-generated content, along with expert technology content, Robinson says.
“It will also provide the opportunity for attendees who are looking for specific service areas with an opportunity to source through that,” he says. “So, if an attendee is looking for a property management system, we’ll offer concierge service that will give them some tips about property management systems, but it will also point them to vendors on the show floor that provide that specific product or service.”
The fourth area is called HX Studio. Robinson says it will be a TV production studio where industry leaders, from among vendors and attendees, will be interviewed.
“There will be TED-style type talks. Sometimes a panel,” says Robinson. “We’ll produce that content for use throughout the year, providing that information for the hospitality community. It’s really a forum to present the hospitality innovators and the up-and-coming stars of the industry.”
The fifth area on the show floor will be HX Connect. Robinson describes this area in this way: The show wants to try to extend the same amenity services that the hoteliers do to a guest.
“It will be a networking space where attendees can refresh, recharge, connect, meet colleagues,” he says. “It will also be where our three sponsor associations [American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA), the Hotel Association of New York City Inc. (HANYC), and the New York State Hospitality & Tourism Association (NYSH&TA)] will be housed. This is designed to be a significant network space on the show floor.”
SOCIAL EVENTS
While the show is undergoing a transformation, its popular evening social events remain in place. Now in its 35th year, HX: The Hotel Experience’s Gold Key Award recognizes the most influential and innovative design work in every sector of the hospitality industry.
Finalists in 18 categories were announced in August, and winners will be revealed at the Gold Key Awards Gala, cocktail reception and dinner, Monday, Nov. 9, at the Waldorf Astoria in conjunction with BDNY and HX. The Designer of the Year will also be honored at this event.
On Nov. 7, join fellow hoteliers and industry suppliers for an evening of dinner and dancing at the JW Marriott Essex House, hosted by HANYC, prior to the opening of HX with entertainment by The Starlight Orchestra.
This event is a black-tie affair, and tickets are in high demand. Show officials recommend purchasing tickets early in order to reserve a seat or table.
EARLY RESPONSE
Both Mangano and Robinson say that early response to the rebranded show has been positive.
“I talked to a colleague in Buffalo who said he likes coming to the show, but this year he’s really excited to see what the changes are and have [a] new experience,” says Mangano. “He says that he thinks this year, he’s going to stay longer to see more of it. It feels like this year, the show’s going to have more.”
Mangano says that attendees are going to see some things that are just coming out of the gate that might not change a business’ work structure this month or this quarter or next year. But, in a year or two, it will be a trend that’s going to continue and is going to change the way business is done.
“It’s a lot of services and amenities that will bring the experience to fruition on the show floor,” Robinson says. “We think these will help generate more people to come and more reason for those people to stay longer when they come. All of this will produce better interaction between exhibitors and attendees.”
Have a question or comment? E-mail our editor Matt Poe at [email protected].