COVID impacted nearly every market in Nevada, but few were hit as hard as the convention market. As medical experts and politicians preached the necessity of social distancing, the world entered a season “at home” where work and school were done remotely, and conventions became virtual at best or were cancelled entirely. The effect of cancelled conventions in Nevada impacted nearly every other business sector within the Silver State. Fewer conventions meant fewer airline tickets purchased, fewer cars reserved, less hotel nights booked, less entertainment venues visited, and so forth. And yet, in light of the recent pandemic, Nevada is moving forward and adjusting to a new normal. And with the lockdown in the rearview mirror, the health of the convention market is on its way up and as a result, so is business in Nevada.
Pandemic Recovery
“I think what we have seen is a dramatic change in things [post-pandemic] and we are turning more to the status quo,” said Patrick Flynn, Executive Director of Hotel Operations and Sales at the Peppermill Reno Resort. “There is not as much concern with COVID and things feel a lot more normal. Obviously, you still have the COVID element, but in terms of the concern with COVID itself, I think a lot of that has really dissipated. And you see less reluctance for group and conventions to commit to future dates, especially knowing that a lot of groups were really holding back on booking conventions until they were able to rectify groups that they were moving in.”
This shift back to the status quo is leading the convention market in Nevada towards pre-pandemic numbers. “The Las Vegas convention business is very healthy, and we continue to get better month after month as we get farther away from COVID,” said Lisa Messina, Chief Sales Officer for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. “Our visitation [in Las Vegas] through August is up about 27 percent. We are still lagging slightly in our convention attendance by about 11 percent [compared to before the pandemic], but business is good. Specifically, in the Las Vegas Convention Center, we’ve got about 87 trade shows and events booked for 22, and that represents about 1.2 million group room nights for the city. So, we are getting there, but it is very healthy. The city is doing well.”
Northern Nevada is also experiencing rapid recovery in conventions. “I think the convention market, at least here in Northern Nevada, remains strong,” said Charles Harris, President and CEO of the Reno-Sparks Convention Visitors Authority. “We are coming off a year where we set record revenues for tax collections, and certainly the convention market helped make up that. Nine of the twelve months we set individual records for those months. We exceeded our group room night goals for the second consecutive year and while it is still down from pre-COVID, the fact that we are exceeding those benchmarks and getting back to where we need to be in an efficient manner is important.”
Sports Industry
Nevada has become a destination spot for professional sports fans. Although once home for only a few professional sports teams including the Las Vegas Aviators, a professional baseball team established in 1983, Nevada now boasts several professional sports teams including the Raiders, Aces and the Golden Knights. The introduction of these sports teams into the market has had a significant impact on driving visitation to Nevada.
“Specific to conventions, there are three things that [the sports industry] helps drive,” said Messina. “The first one is this nature of leisure where you might have a convention here in Las Vegas, and you elect to tag on an additional night stay and enjoy what the city has to offer pre or post your convention. A lot of times, sports will drive that. [For example], maybe your team is playing the Las Vegas Raiders so you come in and enjoy a Sunday night stay and a game before your convention kicks off on Monday evening. [Secondly], convention attendees or planners can also utilize mid-week a lot of these facilities that have been built for special venues. As an example, an organizer that is having a meeting, event or convention here in town could have an offsite venue event at the Allegiant Stadium. There was even a large convention here this past summer that utilized the Allegiant Stadium for a concert specifically for their attendees. And then finally, with summer programming, it gives customers more options whether they want to put it in their budget or not. When the meeting is done at the end of the day, or the exhibition hall closes at 5:00 p.m., all these sports and entertainment options in the city give an enhanced experience to the convention attendee that the organizer of the event or convention doesn’t have to think about. They don’t have to program, they don’t have to worry about differentiating needs around what is valuable to an attendee at night, and then they don’t have to budget for it. It is really like our destination supports an entire experience that the convention attendee cannot find anywhere else.”
Northern Nevada conventions also benefit from the sports industry. “Sports play an important role overall in terms of visitation [in Northern Nevada],” said Harris. “One of the largest partners we have is the United States Bowling Congress. They come and have events in Northern Nevada frequently. We were able to sign a three-year extension with them, and we have a great partnership. The U.S. Open for bowling [one of five major tournaments in the Professional Bowlers Association] is coming back to Reno in 2023. We are expecting to have more than 35,000 people and 65,000 room nights around that. Typically, the sports groups and events that happen here take up probably a little bit more than half of our annual group room nights.”
Meeting In Person
Social distancing and remote work and learning became a new normal during the height of the pandemic and the effect on the convention market was temporarily debilitating. Still, in true Nevada fashion, the Silver State rolled with the punches and initiated virtual and hybrid conventions that were necessary at the time, but are quickly losing popularity. “A lot of the convention group business is returning to normal, and you are not really seeing a majority of the groups going virtual [with conventions],” said Flynn. “I think there is still a small portion of these groups that will probably always have the virtual component now, but it is not a big part of their conventions like it was a year ago.”
The shift back to in person meetings in Nevada is having a positive impact on nearly every other sector of business within the state. “There are a lot of indicators that suggest we are going in the right direction [in regard to attendance],” said Messina. “People are looking at the greater macroeconomics that impact travel, conventions and meetings in general and people are optimistic. They are just trying to do the best to get their businesses back in person, because that is where we thrive as an industry, is those in person marketplaces that you can’t get anywhere else. The networking, the learning, the education, that is what meetings and events are.”
Rapid Growth
Nevada is growing and the convention market is growing with it. “In general, Las Vegas continues to invest in new resorts, new entertainment and venue offerings,” said Messina. “At the Las Vegas Convention Center we are focused on the renovation of the rest of our hall and now that the West Hall expansion is complete, we are very focused on the Boring Project and the Vegas Loop. It has served our convention attendance well, operating here on the convention campus, and now it has a stop at the Resorts World and eventually we will have stops at other locations within the destination. Las Vegas continues to invest in visitation, convention meetings, and tourism because that drives a very large portion of our economic impact. It is really exciting to see all those things continuing to be invested in and there are many more things to come that should support our continuing health in the convention meetings industry.”
New business in Nevada is also strengthening the convention market. Harris said, “58 percent of our group room nights last year [that were contracted for future dates] was new business.” He added, “That is enabling us to talk about the evolution of Reno in Northern Nevada and what is happening here. Whether it is the infrastructure development of our Midtown or the reputation, the growth of the outdoor market plays a role. We are able to reach new folks, and our sales team has done a tremendous job in activating clients and introducing those to this market who maybe have not been here in a while or have never been here. That is really an opportunity that we are enjoying. I will say that our destination was named one of the best destinations in the country, and that is a first. Reno and Sparks and Northern Nevada is on the upswing, and it is great news, but it does not mean that we don’t still have work to do in order to get back to where we were pre-COVID.”
A Bright Future
Despite being hit hard by the pandemic, the convention market in Nevada is on its way up and that bodes well for businesses in the Silver State. “The convention industry in Nevada learned a lot through the pandemic and if groups and conventions are looking at coming to Nevada, they know they will be safe here,” said Flynn. “There is an understanding that COVID may be a component [moving forward], but life has to return to normal in some ways. I think a lot of groups have finally decided that they are moving forward and are leaving it up to their attendees to decide whether or not they feel it is safe to travel or not. It is good that a lot of people and groups conventions have decided that for the benefit and the success of their event, that it is time to really move forward. It’s a win-win for everybody.”
