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Welcome: Hospitality Symposium Looks at Reinvention
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Hospitality trade leaders converge April 8 for the Hospitality Industry Symposium and Richard L. Swig Hospitality Leadership Luncheon. Photo by Genevieve Shiffrar. |
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The University of San Francisco School of Business and Management will host the 18th annual Hospitality Industry Symposium April 8, drawing trade leaders from around the region to explore ways the industry is reinventing itself by tapping into niche markets and specialized advertising campaigns.
Attendees will hear from experts on marketing success stories, finding and catering to niche clientele, and using promotions to connect with new customers. The day-long symposium will feature keynote speakers Oren Harari, USF professor of business and author of Break From the Pack: How to Compete in a Copycat Economy, and Eric Friedenwald-Fishman, an authority in cause-related marketing and author of Marketing that Matters: 10 Practices to Profit Your Business and Change the World.
"Hospitality is the number one industry in San Francisco, and we can see examples of both copycat and dominator companies all around us," said Tom Costello, associate professor and director of the USF Hospitality Industry Management Program.
The event aims to showcase successful industry professionals, as well as educate current and upcoming hospitality personnel - including those enrolled in area hospitality programs such as USF's. The symposium, which is expected to attracted about 150 industry executives and as many as 100 students to the San Francisco Hilton, is organized and run by USF hospitality event management students, Costello said.
As San Francisco's hospitality market matures and evolves, and guests become more educated and specific in their tourism choices, the marketing challenge is to find the next "great" something that will be different and better.
Guest panelist Robert Goldberg, chief operating officer for Australia-based Village Roadshow, will be among those addressing the subject of niche marketing. His company has embarked on an effort to expand America's movie market by offering a luxury cinema experience. Village Roadshow plans to open 30-40 cinema houses in metropolitan cities across the country over the next five years. The 40-seat theaters will feature valet parking, leather seats, wine tasting, and meals of sushi and duck prepared by a chef.
For more information visit: www.usfca.edu/hospitality. 
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