Going With the Overflow
Lisa Plummer -- Tradeshow Week, 9/12/2008 11:15:00 AM
Gavin Mealiffe knows hotels. As executive director of sales at the Las Vegas Hilton, the 18-year hospitality veteran claims that a strong desire to be in the industry from an early age inspired him to take the plunge after his freshman year of college. Beginning with Hilton Hotels as a college recruitment liaison, Mealiffe held numerous sales positions with several major hotels, including the Beverly Hilton, Mirage Casino-Hotel and the Las Vegas Hilton Hotel, where he’s spent most of the last 16 years.
In overseeing convention sales and marketing, Mealiffe also works with the neighboring Las Vegas Convention Center, whose largest tradeshows often use the Hilton’s 200,000 square feet of convention space for overflow. Contributing Editor Lisa Plummer asked him how this relationship works.
Question: How long have the LV Hilton and the LVCC worked together on conventions?
Answer: Ever since our building was erected (in 1969) and ever since the two facilities have been next to one another, there's always been a relationship between the two.
Q: What are the logistics of working with shows at the LVCC that use your venue as overflow?
A: All of our sales people at the LV Hilton work very closely with the sales executives that work for the convention center. Obviously, we share a lot of customers, and there are a lot of customers that use our building and their building at the same time.
Q: Do you supply a lot of room blocks for convention groups?
A: We are to some degree involved in just about every show next door at the LVCC. For most of (them), we're a headquarters of sorts.
Q: What do you think about the LVCC expansion project?
A: We're always thrilled about anything the LVCC does with enhancements and expansions. Anything that benefits the entire city and their building, especially the customers we share, is a great thing for both of us. We need to make sure that Las Vegas is up to speed technologically, and I think that's really part of what they're doing.
Q: How is the slow economy affecting the hospitality industry?
A: The current challenges with the economy will affect everybody in the hospitality and meetings business, and Las Vegas is not immune to that. It's no surprise that a lot of individuals are watching their expenses. Everybody's looking for deals. Airlines cutting back on flights have an effect on visitor volume, and that obviously trickles down to the meetings business. We're all very hopeful that we're going to see a turn-around for the city, especially with all the growth in the next three years.
Q: What has the fallout at your property been?
A: Certainly with a lot of the larger shows, what you’d consider citywides, we've seen people shortening lengths of stays and companies not sending as many people out. I think a lot of shows are seeing a slight downturn in their registration numbers.
Q: In light of all the new properties coming online in Las Vegas over the next few years, how is the LV Hilton going to stay competitive?
A: We're constantly investing in the property … in the guest rooms or the meeting space. A lot of the hotels coming online are going toward the upper sector of the meetings business, the corporate side of life. Our primary focus has been the association market and small corporate meetings. We know our niche, we know where we fit within the city, we know what our customer base is and we stick to it.
Q: What’s your favorite convention?
A: Probably Intl. CES. … I'm kind of a gadget geek. It's certainly one of the biggest, which is always exciting. It gets the city buzzing and kicks the year off. It's just a fun show.
Q: And least favorite?
A: Would it be too PC to say I like them all?
