The Rhode Island Convention Center is already looking toward solidifying its
calendar for the close of 2005 even before the full slate of events scheduled
for the close of this year gets under way.
A number of familiar groups will hold their annual events at the center, from the Rhode Island Dental Association’s annual meeting in September to Textron Inc.’s holiday party in December.
ISO 9001:2026: A Practical Opportunity to Build for What’s Next
For Rhode Island manufacturers, ISO 9001 has been much more than a certificate on the…
Learn More
James McCarvill, executive director of the Rhode Island Convention Center Authority, said the center is looking ahead to a good fiscal year that will begin in July 2005. He said revenues are expected to increase slightly over the current year with a more full slate of event bookings, over the 350 events that the center will host in 2004.
He estimated that rental revenues will be up by about 5 percent, or an additional $100,000. Including services beyond the space itself, such as catering, total revenues will be up about $300,000.
McCarvill said business has held fairly steady at the state’s convention center in recent years, with the one exception being the 2002 season, following the Sept. 11 attacks. That year was the worst for businesses citywide and bookings and attendance for events at the convention center were not an exception. For the most part, he said, bookings at the center remain mostly the same year after year, with the same groups returning for annual meetings or events.
“It’s mostly about retaining existing clients,” McCarvill said. “When a new group comes in, it’s really due to a proactive sale. Most people who come to us with an event come due to marketing and sales activity.”
Two of the new groups who will be holding meetings at the convention center this fall will see their events overlap the last weekend in October. The National Land Trust Rally, which McCarvill said is expected to be a high-visibility event, and Kids Tech Central, an education and technology event, are both scheduled for Oct. 29 to 31. The estimated attendance for the rally is 1,600 and the public tech event expects to draw about 3,000 people.
A third new event, the 81st Annual American Rabbit Breeders Association Convention, will be held from Nov. 14 to 18. The association itself is based in Bloomington, Ill., but the event’s general chairman is based in Norton, Mass. McCarvill said about 2,000 participants are expected for the convention and word is that the rabbits in attendance will outnumber the people.
This fall’s largest event at the convention center, NBC-10’s two-day Health Fit Expo, already wrapped itself up on Sept. 12 and was expected to draw close to 50,000 people. Linda Carter of Network Events Inc., who works out of a New Hampshire office, handles event planning for NBC affiliates in the Northeast. She said the third year of WJAR’s expo is expected to grow again. Last year’s event drew more than 40,000 people and this year’s event was another full show with 100 exhibitors booked well in advance of the weekend. Carter said the Rhode Island Convention Center is the only place considered when booking the local affiliate’s big annual event.
“Every year a few more people come and we hold on to a few more people from the previous year,” Carter said. “And the on-air broadcasting sticks in a few more people’s minds.”
She said as for venues, the convention center is a good size and is convenient to the downtown area. Other facilities she deals with often have parking issues, which is never a problem in Providence, she said.
When it comes to selling the site, McCarvill agreed, and said the key point remains the convention center’s location. He noted that Providence is a high-population area not far from a number of key markets, namely Boston and New York City, and that the center is small enough that it can offer high-service levels to smaller events.
McCarvill said a smaller group of a few thousand, which could possibly be swallowed up within a larger city, often finds that their gathering is treated like a big event in Providence and the possibility exists to own the city.
“People who come to us, no matter how big their group, are treated with the proper value,” McCarvill said. “Really, for us, it comes down to a question of selling the location and the quality. And we can offer a really great package in a small package.”
