Conference Centers Expect 9 Percent Rise in 2005 Occupancy

Conference centers in the United States rebounded with a 7.5 percent revenue increase year over year in 2004 after three consecutive years of declining profits, according to hospitality specialists PKF Consulting in their 2005 edition of Trends in the Conference Center Industry, released today and published in conjunction with the International Association of Conference Centers. The rebound is expected to continue this year, with conference centers in the survey budgeting for an average increase in occupancy of 9 percent in 2005, matched by a 4 percent increase in package pricing.

"Operating under fairly austere conditions after three years of declining revenue, center managers were able to convert the gain in revenue into a 25.3 percent boost to the bottom-line in 2004," said David Arnold, eastern regional chief executive officer of San Francisco-based PKF Consulting in a company release. Arnold is an advisor to the IACC board of directors.

"It is the return of this 'core' conference demand segment that gives center managers the confidence to raise rates in 2005," Arnold added.

According to the survey, 47.5 percent of all conference center groups met in 2004 for the purpose of training or continuing education. Other meetings focused on management planning (20.4 percent) or professional/technical conferences (18.2 percent). Arnold said the number of meetings booked from regional or national sources grew by 2.4 percent in 2004.