May Fair's Meeting Plan

Design innovations that drive meetings business are opening up substantial revenues for repositioned hotels such as London's May Fair.

By Mary Scoviak -- HOTELS Magazine, 4/1/2007

Design innovations that drive meetings business are opening up substantial revenues for repositioned hotels such as London's May Fair. That is why a substantive focus of this 5-star's US$145 "re-invention" centered on delivering meeting spaces that could "rock the capital." 

Michael Attenborough, head of design for Radisson Edwardian Hotels, and his team took notes and ideas from key meetings clients directly to the drawing board. Flexibility, space and efficiency all ranked high among the planners' priorities. They allocated more open space around the meeting/function rooms to accommodate hospitality desks for client registration. Addressing the space race, they gave planners the showcase Crystal Room, which can seat 180 for dinner or 250 theater style, the Danziger Suite, which seats up to 150 for dinner and 200 theater-style, as well as London's largest theater and 11 inter-linked meeting rooms. 

According to Attenborough, security is a hot topic-not only physical security but security of intellectual property as well. His team's layout allows entire sections of the conference and meeting facilities to be segregated easily from the rest of the hotel, a direct response to meeting planners' security concerns. The major rooms also have separate entrances (other than the main hotel entrance) to facilitate ease of use, create an efficient traffic flow and enhance security.

Design options for inter-connecting or separating the meeting rooms is another major advantage, especially with target clients such as pharmaceutical companies, according to Charles Oak, general manager. "Each company builds their own regulators out of the Pharma code, both by company and by region. What is so important is that the sales and operations teams are aware of each company's regulations and can ensure compliance. And, yes, we have changed the way we do business with the pharmaceutical industry," he says.