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Planner's Perspective

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Peter Shelly
Executive Vice President
HelmsBriscoe
Scottsdale, Ariz.


Describe your event.

Our event, held June 20-23, was HelmsBriscoe’s annual business conference that brought over 1,400 attendees to Houston.

Why did you decide to host the meeting in Houston?
The outreach that the Houston CVB provided was enticement enough. Their level of support and commitment to our program was sufficient for our decision to convene in that city. In addition, the facilities of the George R. Brown Convention Center were excellent, providing the right venue for our program.

What surprised you the most about Houston?
Local partners and suppliers and how they all worked together to assist in the seamless execution of our program. Part of our program called for a street party that involved privatizing a city block, which included the buyout of six separate restaurants, coordinating staging and entertainment on the street, and arranging for the services of the Houston Police Department and Emergency Medical Services. All worked in concert for a fantastic evening.

What did your attendees seem to enjoy the most?
The genuine hospitality was No. 1, but the George R. Brown Convention Center, the Hobby Theater for Performing Arts and the two host hotels, the Hilton Americas Houston and the Hyatt Regency Houston, rolled out the red carpet.

Was anybody particularly helpful?
At the outset, Wayne Chappell and Sara McPhillips at the Houston CVB, together with Bobby Balsam and Art Zehnder at the George R. Brown Convention Center were particularly helpful.

What other types of groups would fit well with the property?
Both the Hilton Americas Houston and the Hyatt Regency Houston are excellent properties and can accommodate and handle an array of meetings and conventions.

How does Houston compare to other cities where you have hosted meetings?
We have most recently met in New York (2006), Las Vegas (2005) and Palm Springs, Calif. (2004), and the Houston CVB together with the local businesses were the easiest to work with. The creativity and support of the city made our 2007 annual conference the best in our company’s history.

Would you return?
Absolutely!