The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) made the first stop of its 2025 regional event series at The Ritz-Carlton in Atlanta on February 12, 2025.
Brought to you by the American Hotel & Lodging Association, Hotel Management, and Georgia Hotel & Lodging Association, The Hospitality Show: Georgia gathered hoteliers from across the state for an afternoon of networking and discussions on pressing policy issues affecting the hospitality industry. The event was extremely well organized, with each presentation/panel discussion lasting less than 20 minutes, which was the perfect amount of time to keep the attendees interested and engaged and allow for networking breaks.
Event Highlights:
- Welcome Address: Kevin Carey, AHLA’s Chief Operating Officer and Senior Executive Vice President, commenced the event with opening remarks.
- Keynote Speech: Georgia State Senator John Albers delivered the keynote address, emphasizing legislative matters pertinent to the state’s hospitality sector like the Innkeeper Reform Act (House Bill 183) which aims to close a loophole in Georgia’s squatter laws that has allowed long-term hotel guests to claim tenant rights and resist removal.
- Policy Updates: Jim Sprouse, Executive Director of the Georgia Hotel & Lodging Association (GHLA), and Jay Morgan, GHLA’s Chief Lobbyist, provided insights into current policy developments and their implications for local hoteliers.
- AHLA Advocacy and Trends: Kevin Carey discussed AHLA’s advocacy efforts, emerging industry trends, and the association’s strategic vision for the future.
- Sustainability Focus: A spotlight session on AHLA Responsible Stay highlighted actionable sustainability practices, underscoring the industry’s commitment to environmental responsibility including Green Key Global, a sustainability process and practice certification for the hotel and lodging industry.
- Fireside Chat: Kevin Carey and Chris Dunne, the Chief Financial Officer of Atrium Hospitality, engaged in an engaging conversation that delved into financial strategies and operational insights.
- Panel Discussion: Industry experts, including Kevin Carr (Vice President of Sales, Hospitality Cloud at Cvent), Bill Jeu de Vine (Area Vice President, Strategic Account Sales at Agilysys), Nic Jones (Vice President of Sales – Americas at Unifocus), and Brian Riley (Senior Analyst at STR), participated in a panel moderated by Robert Stuckey (Vice President of Strategic Partnerships and Business Development at AHLA). The discussion centered on leveraging data and technology to unlock new revenue streams, enhance operational efficiency and improve the guest experience.
- The Next Chapter: Trends Shaping Hotel Operations: Ryan NeGron, Vice President- Sales and Marketing, SOARR and Kat Blue, Principal, Blue Lantern Studios discussed various topics from the F&B popup revenue opportunities of hotel spaces to the importance of balancing high service and high tech in the session moderated by John Jarrard, Director, State and Local Government Affairs, AHLA.
- Policy in Motion: A Dialogue with Your State Legislators: Mitch Patel, Founder & CEO, Vision Hospitality Group, Inc. and AHLA Board Chair held an engaging discussion with Senator Derek Mallow, Georgia State Senator, District 2 who shared his views on policy issues impacting the hospitality industry as well as several excellent leadership insights.
Exhibitors and Sponsors:
The event was supported by several key AHLA partners, including:
- Encore: A global leader in event technology and production services, offering comprehensive solutions for in-person, virtual, and hybrid events at over 2,100 venues worldwide.
- SOARR Services: Specializes in OTA revenue recovery audits, helping hotels reclaim unclaimed funds from online travel agency bookings.
- BMS CAT: Provides comprehensive disaster recovery and restoration services for hotels, including fire and water damage recovery, mold remediation, and document restoration.
- Nextera Energy Services: Delivers full-service energy solutions to optimize your energy strategy.
- Avendra: Provides a wide range of procurement solutions to hospitality-related businesses.
- Southeastern Laundry Equipment Sales: Provides stress-free commercial laundry management with hotel laundry equipment, leasing and service.
- Going Green NRG: Offers state-of-the-art turnkey energy solutions in multiple efficiency categories including electricity conservation, water conservation, lighting and smart technologies.
- Yellowstone Landscape: With more than 70 locations across the United States serving over 7500 properties, Yellowstone Landscape provides several customized services to ensure your property is looking its best at all times.
- Flock Safety: Helps strengthen your brand’s reputation by reducing workplace violence and increasing guest safety with a virtual security perimeter.
- Hireology: Provides hotel staffing solutions technology.
- Brand USA: Is the destination marketing organization for the United States.
- Unifocus: Delivers intelligent workforce management software designed for hotels.
- Walmart Business: helps you save time, save money and stay stocked up.
- HeartoftheHouse: employee owned providing hospitality staffing solutions nationwide.
These partners played a pivotal role in the success of The Hospitality Show: Georgia, offering attendees access to cutting-edge products and services tailored to the hospitality industry.
The Hospitality Show: Georgia is part of AHLA’s regional event series, designed to unite hospitality professionals for collaborative learning and growth. The Georgia event definitely met that goal.
For more details on upcoming regional events, visit The Hospitality Show Regional Events official website.
For more information on hospitality shows, conferences and events in 2025, download the IHS guide.
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