Miranda Martin, Event Director, Independent Hotel Show

Posted in Events, News, People on 10 September, 2018

Ahead of this autumn’s Independent Hotel Show, the SPACE team had a catch up with Event Director, Miranda Martin…

Why is the Independent Hotel Show an important event on the hospitality industry’s calendar?

We strive to support independent hoteliers by delivering visionary insight to enhance the guest experience whilst optimising profitability and efficiency.

We do this by bringing together 350 of the most relevant market leading suppliers from across the hotel chain and facilitating the opportunity for hoteliers to see the latest and best products and do business.

Consumer demand changes at a rapid pace and so must the hotel industry if it wishes to keep up. The Independent Hotel Show offers rich and current content and an annual touch point where hoteliers can network with likeminded people and hear future forecasts and trends in expert-led seminars.

It’s the industry’s best-loved show. It’s a relevant and dedicated show. It’s a great opportunity.

What do you look for as a main focus point for the show each year?

Design and innovation are at the core of every Independent Hotel Show. Simply take a look at the brilliant line-up of curated exhibitors, from furniture, tech and wellbeing, to F&B, marketing,finance andmore. Every year, we work with amazing design partners who create special spaces for people to conduct meetings and network, and every year, a fantastic programme of seminars delivers sharp insight into trends and practical solutions.

In what way is the Independent Hotel Show unique to other industry events?

The Independent Hotel is a two-day show. It’s intimate, carefully-curated and focused. It is tuned into what hoteliers are looking for which is why so many return year after year, and the reason why a high number of exhibitors sign up for the following year on the spot. We work with fabulous partners who echo our ethos to be creative and inspirational. This year sofa.com will incorporate tactile velvets and metallic accents in to the design for the Business Theatre, whilst Elli Pop will use tropical murals and clever colour palettes to design the Innovation Stage. We are constantly innovating to keep content fresh and interesting. Our seminar programme tackles industry-relevant topics discussed by thought leaders, and our exclusive Power Breakfast on the second day of the show provides a forum for hoteliers to listen to a well-known media personality.

What do you think is the importance and relevance of networking in the hospitality industry?

You never know what connections you could make in a face-to-face environment which is why facilitating networking is a key objective, from both design and functional perspectives.

A brilliant new feature for this year is The Meeting Space, designed by Galapagos. Not only for meetings but also where facilitated ‘speed networking’ events will take place, with complimentary drinks. These will be held throughout the show to help hoteliers engage with industry peers and build relationships. There will be specific sessions for groups, such as young hoteliers and women entrepreneurs, plus targeted workshops for areas such as finance and regional businesses.

The Lobby, designed by Cappellini, will be ‘somewhere between imagination and reality’ and provide and stimulating environment for networking or making new contacts, whilst The Suite will be a tranquil space, designed by Valdivian, for VIP hoteliers, speakers, Show partners and their guests.

What’s got your attention/what should we be looking out for at this year’s IHS?

A focus for this year is technology, which will be conveyed via the IHTech Quest. Appreciating the intrinsic need for today’s hoteliers to pre-empt the needs of tomorrow’s guests, the IHTechQuest, powered by NewBook, is an innovative campaign designed to connect tech-hungry hoteliers with premium solution providers, pre-, during and post-show.

The IHTechQuest will showcase a line-up of tech solutions for in-room experiences, smarter marketing, concierge, mini-bar, back of house efficiency, increasing profitability and more.

The IHTechQuest will also reveal this year’s key attraction, The Hotel Room of the Future. Designed by Two’s Company Interior Design this exciting installation incorporates in-room tech products and experiences that could become a reality in the next decade. A report compiled from roundtables with industry and consumer experts will reveal deeper detail on how the industry is forecast to evolve. We highly recommend that hoteliers attend the expert-led tech talks at the show which promise to deliver the cutting edge on how to make your business stand out.

Where can we keep up to date with the latest from IHS?

Keep looking at the website, independenthotelshow.co.uk for the latest developments at the show as well as industry-related news.