2017 ANNUAL BUSINESS
Review VISITBUFFALONIAGARA.COM
Dear friends in tourism, Few periods have been as exciting or rewarding
officials from across the United States. And thanks
in my 25-year destination marketing career as
to the hard work of the Buffalo Niagara Sports
my tenure at Visit Buffalo Niagara. The region has
Commission, the region further cemented its
transformed in profound ways since my arrival
growing reputation as a first-tier destination for
four years ago, from repurposed waterfront grain
college and amateur athletics. Thousands of fans
silos hosting rock climbing and zip lining to former
experienced Buffalo’s renaissance thanks to the
mansions, office buildings and a hospital finding
return of signature athletic events like the NCAA
new life as boutique hotels. Projects 20 years in
Men’s Basketball Tournament and the World Junior
the making, like the restoration of Frank Lloyd
Hockey Championship, as well as the first-ever
Wright’s Martin House Complex and Graycliff Estate,
Gaelic Athletic Association Continental Youth
are finally coming to fruition, and new public art,
Championships played here.
restaurants, breweries and distilleries can be found in now resurgent neighborhoods. Visit Buffalo Niagara left no stone unturned in 2017 to promote this renaissance to consumers, travel media,
Our new Unexpected Buffalo marketing campaign introduced visitors to Buffalo’s transformation
VBN also pushed for improvements to the Buffalo visitor experience through our advocacy for ridesharing in New York State and partnering with Erie County to evaluate the future of the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center.
meeting planners, group tour operators and sports
Our efforts gained state and national recognition
tournament organizers.
in 2017: the U.S. Travel Association recognized
Our new Unexpected Buffalo marketing campaign
our Girlfriend Getaways Marketing Initiative with
introduced hundreds of thousands of prospective
a Destiny Award at the ESTO conference last
visitors within key drive markets to Buffalo’s
August, while the New York State Tourism Industry
transformation through print, television, digital
Association lauded us for the Buffalo Niagara Garden
and out-of-home advertising. VBN also set a new
Tourism Initiative and our Visit Buffalo Niagara
media relations record, hosting 45 travel journalists
University program.
and securing over 125 stories worth more than $5
Developments like the Lipsey Architecture Center of
million in ad equivalency value in outlets like USA
Buffalo and the Explore and More Children’s Museum
TODAY, The Globe and Mail, the Toronto Star and
at Canalside will give our team new stories to tell in
the Cleveland Plain Dealer. We remained on the
the year ahead. Our team and our region reached
cutting edge of social media, launching the first DMO
new heights in 2017, and the best is yet to come.
chatbot on Facebook Messenger. And our AfricanAmerican Heritage Initiative commemorated the
Very truly yours,
100th anniversary of the Colored Musicians Club Union through a targeted print campaign in nearby drive markets. We continued to build buzz about Buffalo by organizing a travel industry summit last fall that showcased our destination to top tourism
PATRICK J. KALER President and CEO Visit Buffalo Niagara
JUST THE FACTS: 2017 AT A GLANCE
VBN CONVENTION, SPORTS & GROUP TOUR SALES
$154 million Future economic impact
451
Conventions, meetings, amateur athletic events or group tours booked
252,721 People attended events at the Convention Center
181,261
715
sales leads
Hotel room nights booked
BUFFALO NIAGARA CONVENTION CENTER
148 Events hosted
281
Days the Center was occupied
BUFFALO NIAGARA SPORTS COMMISSION
Attendance
85
102,511
Amateur sporting events serviced in 2017
Hotel room nights
VBN MARKETING
$5.4
million Media value of out-of-town media coverage
130
Out-of-town media placements
82,902
Facebook followers
975,846 Unique visits to the website
25,770
Twitter followers
45
press visits
23,634
Instagram followers
3
VISITBUFFALONIAGARA.COM
126,871
31,620
Hotel room nights utilized due to events at the Center
2017 ANNUAL BUSINESS REVIEW
Visit Buffalo Niagara spared no effort to promote the transformation of Buffalo to leisure travelers, meeting planners, group tour operators, sports tournament organizers and the media in 2017. VBN’s media relations team broke records in 2017 by pitching and facilitating over 125 stories worth more than $5 million and hosting nearly four dozen writers and bloggers. VBN’s social media pages added thousands of new followers in 2017, while the sales team and Buffalo Niagara Sports Commission continued to play an integral role in Buffalo’s renaissance by booking and servicing hundreds of meetings, conventions and athletic events.
4
“The Unexpected Buffalo is a home run!” Visit Buffalo Niagara launched a new marketing
“The Unexpected Buffalo is a home run.” The study
campaign in nearby drive markets last spring.
showed a high degree of awareness in the markets
The Unexpected Buffalo campaign, made possible
targeted by the campaign and an increased likelihood
through a partnership with the Seneca Gaming
among consumers to travel to Buffalo. Nearly 37
Corp. and the City of Buffalo, highlighted Buffalo’s
percent of the study respondents made at least
resurgence to consumers in Toronto, Rochester,
one trip to Buffalo in the last year. Of that total,
Erie, Pittsburgh and Cleveland through a television
12 percent reported they were heavily influenced
commercial and print, digital and transit advertising.
by the advertising they recalled.
Focus group response and anecdotal feedback to the
According to the Texas A&M study, more than 105,000
Unexpected Buffalo creative, which showed a buffalo enjoying the unexpected attractions and amenities of our destination, was enthusiastic and encouraging.
visitor parties spent $1,029 on average per visitor party for a total incremental visitor spend of $108 million. For every $1 VBN invested in outreach, we
To gain further insight into consumer response and
returned $84 in economic impact to the community.
behavior, Visit Buffalo Niagara commissioned an
Television and video ads placed online were the most
awareness study through our digital agency, Street
influential media identified by consumers. VBN intends
Sense, and their colleagues at Texas A&M University.
to produce a second Unexpected Buffalo commercial in
The results are in – and in the words of Street Sense,
2018 and continue the campaign.
BUILDING THE BUFFALO BUZZ
TIME TO #TRAVELBUF
User-generated content continued to play an important role in promoting Buffalo in 2017. VBN encourages its nearly 25,000 Instagram followers to snap beautiful photos of Buffalo using #travelBUF; our fans responded in 2017 by submitting nearly 20,000 images to that hashtag, spreading images of Buffalo’s renaissance far beyond VBN’s page and following. We then repurposed these beautiful, user-generated photos across our social media channels, in our touring guide and our annual #TravelBUF compilation video. This campaign has resulted in thousands of new images of Buffalo being disseminated online.
2017 ANNUAL BUSINESS REVIEW
Visit Buffalo Niagara’s media relations efforts achieved new records in 2017. VBN hosted an all-time high 45 travel writers, bloggers and influencers in 2017 and helped facilitate over 125 articles and blogs in out-oftown media outlets across North America and overseas worth $5.4 million in ad equivalency value, another record. Some of the notable coverage VBN assisted with appeared in USA TODAY and other Gannett outlets nationwide, The Globe and Mail, The Toronto Star, The UK’s Daily Express and the Cleveland Plain Dealer. VBN attended the Travel Media Association of Canada conference in Quebec City and the Society of American Travel Writers in Oregon last year to forge new relationships with travel media and continue to build the Buffalo buzz in the years to come.
5
VISITBUFFALONIAGARA.COM
Finding The Next Generation Of Visitors Millenials in Ontario do not have the same negative stereotypes about Buffalo as previous generations, according to research VBN completed in 2016. That conclusion spurred VBN to launch a Millennial marketing campaign, called “Find the Unexpected,” in Toronto from August – September 2017. The campaign aimed to generate intrigue, curiosity and awareness of Buffalo among the 25-34 age
demographic in Toronto and included ad buys on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and BlogTO as well as posters placed within city restaurants and on building walls. “Find The Unexpected” also featured six 15-second commercials that highlighted experiences appealing to millennials. The videos generated 266,000 views over the course of the campaign and attracted over 7,100 visits to findtheunexpected.com.
ASK THE UNEXPECTED BUFFALO 6
Visit Buffalo Niagara has made it easier than ever for
which will automatically reply to them with information
visitors to access information about Buffalo on their
on upcoming events, restaurants and things to see and
smartphones. In July, VBN launched the first chat bot
do. In the eight months since launch, the Unexpected
by a destination marketing organization in the United
Buffalo Bot has provided information to over 500 unique
States, “Ask the Unexpected Buffalo,” which is housed
visitors. Visit Buffalo Niagara presented about this
on Facebook Messenger. Visitors can send a private
innovative tool at the etourism Summit in San Francisco
message to Visit Buffalo Niagara’s Facebook page,
in October 2017.
Lights, Camera... Videos played a growing role in Visit Buffalo Niagara’s content strategy in 2017. VBN’s staff created and produced more in-house videos in 2017 than any previous year. These videos included “Buffalo Live” interviews at popular attractions broadcast directly via mobile device to our 87,000+ Facebook followers, 30-second commercials shared on social media about top Buffalo events, Instagram Stories, and longer-form professional productions highlighting the people and places that make Buffalo a special destination. These videos received high levels of engagement as audiences increasingly spend more time consuming video on social media.
State and National Recognition Visit Buffalo Niagara garnered
targeted, specific audience
state and national acclaim for its
identified by research,” the
work in 2017.
U.S.travel judges noted. “The final
U.S. Travel presented a Destiny
result that didn’t measure just soft
Award for niche marketing to VBN for its Girlfriend Getaway
tourism dollars, stood out from the other entries.”
ESTO Conference last
In addition, the New
summer. VBN, which
York State Tourism
collaborated with
Industry Association
Destination Niagara
presented VBN with
USA on the campaign,
a Tourism Excellence
beat out other finalists
Award for Visitor
in the niche marketing
Service last fall for
category from Travel
its Visit Buffalo
Portland (Ore.) and
Niagara University
Visit Kansas City.
program, featuring a
U.S. Travel lauded
variety of seminars
VBN for the skillful
and informative
implementation of the
programming to keep members of the local tourism
multi-faceted approach of printed
industry connected, learning
collateral, digital marketing and
and collaborating. NYSTIA also
broadcast advertising to promote
awarded VBN a regional level
travel experiences in the area aimed
Tourism Excellence Award for
at women in Southern Ontario.
Tourism Marketing for its Buffalo
“From the start, they had a
Niagara Garden Tourism Initiative.
Blogging About Buffalo Visit Buffalo Niagara has created one of the top digital storytelling platforms in Buffalo. VBN publishes several new blog articles every week on its website, authored by staff and a team of contributing local writers, about the destination’s dining, sightseeing, art, architecture and other amenities. Staff then shares these blogs to VBN’s Facebook and Twitter followers. Blogging has become one of the primary tools VBN uses to spread the word about the destination’s transformation.
promote Girlfriend Getaways to the Southern Ontario market. The campaign featured e-newsletter distribution to 30,000 Canadian subscribers, attendance at the National Women’s Show in Toronto, Facebook advertising and relevant content on visitbuffaloniagara. com. We also created a custom collateral piece to use as a handout at the National Women’s Show that highlighted 10 reasons why Buffalo Niagara makes for the perfect girlfriend getaway. This piece was a collaboration between VBN and Destination Niagara USA that highlighted experiences such as boutique shopping, Broadway shows, distinctive dining and one-
7
of-a-kind accommodations.
African American Heritage Funds from a Market NY grant were used to run a targeted print campaign in Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Colored Musicians Club Union.
VISITBUFFALONIAGARA.COM
2015-2016 campaign, which used a
Visit Buffalo Niagara continued to
2017 ANNUAL BUSINESS REVIEW
Marketing Campaign at its annual
metrics, but rather hard-earned
Girlfriend Getaways
A Record Setting Year Buffalo’s hotel industry had one its strongest years ever,
MONTHLY OCCUPANCY PERCENTAGE, 2017
according to key indicators compiled by Smith Travel Research. The average daily rate of $104.32 and the total
90%
revenue at hotels countywide ( $249,243,982) both set all-time records.
SMITH TRAVEL RESEARCH ERIE COUNTY HOTEL REPORT OCCUPANCY
81.8
80%
AVERAGE RATE
2017 63.7% $104.32
70% 60%
HOTEL REVENUES
50%
$249,243,982
2016 61.7%
$102.74
$239,710,239
2015 62.2%
$101.23
$235,913,402
2014 64.1%
$99.56
$228,301,134
40%
75.2 61.7
66.4
54.0 40.3
73.1
67.0
73.1
70.2
66.0
68.1
56.2
80.5
74.4
70.2
68.8 68.6 57.9
58.1
58.0 54.0 53.8
48.3
JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC
ERIE COUNTY
NATIONAL AVERAGE
Making Inroads Overseas Visit Buffalo Niagara continues to implement its strategy to bring more international visitors to the region. In 2017, VBN participated in sales missions to Ireland, Scotland, Germany and
8
Switzerland targeting markets for both groups and independent travelers. Several key global receptive operators visited Buffalo on a FAM tour and site inspections helped spur additional opportunities. There are now over 25 bookable packages available to Buffalo from tour operators in the UK, Ireland, Scotland, Germany, France, Italy, Australia, China and Japan.
VP of Sales Mike Even and Director of Tourism Sales Leah Mueller promoting Buffalo to German tour operators
TOP MEETINGS & CONVENTIONS IN BUFFALO Below are major conventions and events that came to Buffalo in 2017, in order of the most significant economic impact. NAME
ESTIMATED ECONOMIC IMPACT DATE
ROOM NIGHTS ATTENDEES
New York State Board of Law Examiners
$3.9 million
July 23
5,900
3,000
National Homeland Security Association
$2.3 million
June 5
3,600
1,200
National Association for Campus Activities
$2.1 million
October 10
1,000
1,200
Gauverband Nordamerika
$2.1 million
June 28
1,800
850
New York State Board of Law Examiners
$1.9 million
February 19
3,800
1,800
Church of God and Saints of Christ
$1.9 million
April 9
1,435
700
National Veterans Creative Arts Festival
$1.9 million
October 22
1,400
1,000
Niagara Frontier Automobile Dealers Association
$1.8 million
February 6
600
4,000
Institute of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas
$1.8 million
June 17
UB Dental
$1.6 million
October 9
American Association of Airport Executives
$1.5 million
Garden Writers Association
$1.3 million
Harley-Davidson Motorcycle Company
$1.2 million
DeMolay International
$1.2 million
2,580
375
560
2,000
April 21
1,325
400
August 3
1,005
600
April 4
853
850
June 11
1,424
700
Sowing the Seeds of Rebirth Buffalo became the center of the gardening world last August as it hosted the Association for Garden Communicators conference. Nearly 350 garden writers and bloggers attended the economic impact and showcased some of the city’s top gardens, the Olmsted Park system and the Buffalo & Erie County Botanical Gardens. The GWA’s decision to host its conference here
Members of the Association for Garden Communicators explore Buffalo during their meeting in August
was validation of the investment Buffalo has made in gardening and landscape architecture over more than 20 years. VBN assisted with the logistical details of the conference, assembled a press kit for the writers and sponsored a grab-and-go breakfast as the garden media toured the Elmwood Village.
CONGRATULATIONS!
2017 ANNUAL BUSINESS REVIEW
conference, which generated $1.4 million in
Visit Buffalo Niagara hired two new staff members and promoted a third employee within its sales department
9
in 2017. Jennifer Gregory and Jenilyn Mescall are VBN’s new national sales managers, while Dionne Williamson, a 13-year employee, was promoted to national sales director. All three work to bring additional convention business to Buffalo and Erie County. Williamson’s new markets include corporate and national associations such as education, environmental and multicultural groups. Mescall’s market segments include fraternal, heritage, patriotic, Jenilyn Mescall
veterans, hobby and vocational, military reunion and religious groups. Gregory focuses on attracting conventions for government, health and medical, manufacturing/distribution, scientific, engineering, technical, labor union, trade, commercial and business groups.
SHOWING OFF BUFFALO Visit Buffalo Niagara hosted 15 out-of-town meeting planners and group tour operators in September who had the potential to bring future conventions, meetings and group tours to Buffalo. The group participated in a multi-day familiarization tour that included stops at Frank Lloyd Wright’s Martin House Complex, the Albright-Knox Art Gallery and Niagara Falls. VBN also treated the attendees to a theatrical presentation on a double decker bus tour that acquainted them with the city. Opportunities such as these help make the right impression and are critical for ensuring future success in generating
Dionne Williamson
sales activity.
VISITBUFFALONIAGARA.COM
Jennifer Gregory
NCAA MEN’S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT
AN AMATEUR SPORTS MECCA 10
Buffalo hosted a series of major athletic events in 2017,
since 2010. The core group of teams from Canada,
elevating its reputation as a first-tier destination for
Finland, Denmark, Slovakia, Belarus, Russia, Sweden,
college and amateur sports.
Denmark and the U.S., as well as team and tournament
KeyBank Center hosted rounds one and two of
officials, generated $7 million in economic impact and
the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament in March,
occupied 7,300 hotel room nights.
bringing thousands of visitors to downtown Buffalo
The Buffalo Niagara Sports Commission was integral to
and generating $8 million in economic impact. In July,
each event and dozens of other smaller competitions
the Gaelic Athletic Association’s Continental Youth
throughout 2017, working behind the scenes to ensure
Championships took center center stage, filling a total
tournament teams and visitors had a great stay
of nearly 5,000 hotel room nights, drawing teams and
and coordinating volunteer efforts. BNSC staff and
visitors from as far away as Ireland and generating
volunteers implemented a “Random Acts of Kindness”
$3 million for the local economy. The organization is
program during the NCAA tournament that took care
already planning on returning to Buffalo.
of the dinner bill for pleasantly surprised visitors at
And in December, the World Junior Hockey
restaurants near KeyBank Center.
Championships returned to Buffalo for the first time GAA CONTINENTAL YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIPS
WORLD JUNIOR HOCKEY CHAMPIONSHIPS
P R E S E N T E D
TO
B Y
The 2017 Beacon Award recipients were: OUTSTANDING LODGING EMPLOYEE OF THE YEAR
OUTSTANDING TOURISM VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR
Sina Razavi Buffalo Niagara Marriott
Chuck LaChiusa
OUTSTANDING LODGING MANAGER OF THE YEAR
OUTSTANDING TOURISM EXECUTIVE OF THE YEAR
Michael Kucinski, Millennium Buffalo
Verity Folan Grayline Tours
OUTSTANDING LODGING G.M. OF THE YEAR
OUTSTANDING TOURISM INITIATIVE OF THE YEAR
Huseyin Taran Buffalo Marriott HarborCenter
World’s Largest Disco
OUTSTANDING TOURISM EMPLOYEE OF THE YEAR
Shirley Landsittel Penn Dixie
Explore Buffalo Tours
BRING IT HOME AWARD – SPORTS
Rick Zacher The Cup North American Championship BRING IT HOME AWARD – CONVENTIONS
Steve Eden Delaware North RESTAURANT OF THE YEAR (TIE)
BUFFALO AMBASSADOR OF THE YEAR
Dan Garvey Roycroft Inn Jay Manno Soho Burger Bar & Frankie Primos +39
2017 ANNUAL BUSINESS REVIEW
Working with the former WNY Hospitality Association, we continued the Hospitality Scholarship – the 2017 recipient was Kaitlyn Norsen, a graduate of Depew High School, attending the Russell J. Salvatore School of Hospitality at Trocaire.
TRAV EL
In May, we celebrated National Travel and Tourism Week, bringing attention to the economic impact of tourism in Erie County. Activities included our 7th annual Beacon Awards luncheon, attended by a record 600+ industry partners, elected officials, volunteers and local vendors.
&
ISM UR
A Beacon of Excellence
11
Buffalo Place Rangers
VISITBUFFALONIAGARA.COM
Showcasing Buffalo’s Transformation Tourism and hospitality leaders from across the United States experienced the rebirth of Buffalo firsthand at Visit Buffalo Niagara’s Travel Industry Summit on October 18 and 19. The summit, the first of its kind held in Buffalo, provided an opportunity for leading travel experts to witness our transformation and provide feedback to the local tourism industry on positioning Buffalo for continued growth as a leisure, convention and amateur
Catherine Prather from National Tour Association answers a question at the Travel Industry Summit
sports destination. Our guests – including officials from the U.S. Travel Association, Destinations International, The American Society of Association Executives, the National Tour Association and the National Association of Sports Commissions – left here energized and ready to spread the word about our destination’s exciting resurgence to their networks across the United States. VBN conceived of the summit during the development of its last five-year strategic plan.
Educating Our Partners Visit Buffalo Niagara University, launched in 2017,
recommendations for things to do is approaching 700,
is a comprehensive training and educational program
and 1,700 partners subscribe to Travel Pulse, a monthly
for our industry partners designed to enhance a
report of metrics impacting tourism. Our two visitor
visitor’s experience at every opportunity. The program
centers also provided 43,152 referrals to nearly 83,000
provides our partner hotels, attractions, restaurants
visitors, an increase of nearly six percent over 2016.
and volunteers with information on new developments
We also introduced Delila, our Destination Extranet
in our destination, resources to better assist our guests, and best-practice training in customer service through a
for Leads, Information, Listings and Activities portal, in
series of e-communications, industry
their listing to our website, adding
gatherings, familiarization tours and
photography and video, linking
subject-specific training sessions.
to Trip Advisor, social media and
VBN University’s inaugural year
giving access to VBN’s website event
was a success. Attendance at VBN’s
calendar which, in 2017, included over
15 industry meetings, front line training sessions, Beacon Awards,
U N I V E R S I T Y
Travel Industry Summit and an all-time high of 1,468 in 2017.
de
Subscribers to Buffalo Niagara This Week, a weekly email with
1,000 local events from which visitors could choose to attend. VBN University received the 2017
familiarization field trips reached
12
2017. Delila allows partners to update
delila
Tourism Excellence Award for Visitor Service from the New York State Tourism Industry Association.
THE CENTER OF IT ALL
d
The Buffalo Niagara Convention Center (BNCC) had another successful year as Buffalo’s most expansive conference and event space. More than 250,000 people attended 148 different events and occupied the center on 281 days in 2017. These events contributed more than $34 million to the local economy, based on the Association of Venue Managers calculator. Among the notable events hosted at the Center were the U.S. Sales Kickoff for Ingram Micro, Gaufest, and the Garden Writers Association Annual Conference & Expo. Collectively, these events led to 31,620 room night bookings at surrounding hotels. The BNCC had another stellar year of service, too, earning an impressive average score of 4.72/5 on their Guest Satisfaction Surveys.
252,721 148 people attended
different events
Top Events of 2018
}C osta FLW Series – July 26-28 » Buffalo will welcome approximately 150 boats and 350 anglers and staff to compete in the FLW (Fishing League Worldwide) Series. The series is expected to generate approximately 1,200 hotel room nights and produce more than $800,000 in economic impact. }2 018 National Softball Association Girls Fast Pitch World Series B Division – July 23-28 » Buffalo will become softball central this July, as the National Softball Association Girls
Fast Pitch World Series at the Amherst Audubon Recreation Complex and West Seneca’s Sunshine Park will bring in 150 teams from across the country. The series will generate $3 million in economic impact and fill 5,000 hotel room nights. }T he Marine Corps League – August 10-18 This military reunion will draw more than 800 attendees over an entire week, fill 3,000 room nights in downtown Buffalo and generate over $2 million in economic impact. } EO NERVE – September 12-14 » The Entrepreneurs’ Organization’s annual East Region Conference will draw over 500 attendees, fill over 400 room nights and generate more than $500,000 for the economy. EO is a global business network of over 12,000 leading entrepreneurs in 170 chapters and 53 countries. }T he American Wine Association Society – November 8-11 Wine connoisseurs from across the country will converge on the Queen City, attracting 650 attendees and generating 1,000 room nights and $1.4 million for the local economy.
2017 ANNUAL BUSINESS REVIEW
}H eartland Travel Showcase – February 16-18, 2018 North America’s largest regional motor coach trade show recently came to Buffalo, creating lasting benefits for the region’s tourism industry. The Heartland Travel Showcase pairs those who sell group travel experiences, such as bus travel, with local attractions. Tour operators had a firsthand look at Buffalo and its many attractions, positioning the city for bookings and future tours with busloads of visitors. Heartland Travel Showcase generated $1 million in economic impact for the region, and the group tours booked in Buffalo as a result of the conference may bring in millions more in the years to come.
2017 VISIT BUFFALO NIAGARA BOARD OF DIRECTORS Law Offices of Francis A. Letro
Minesh Patel
Adam’s Mark Hotel & Event Center
Donald K. Boswell
WNY Public Broadcasting Association
Edward A. Rath, III
Erie County Legislature
Steve Boyd, Esq.
Steve Boyd, P.C.
Mary F. Roberts
Jonathan A. Dandes
Rich Baseball Operations
Martin House Restoration Corporation
Brent Rossi
Pegula Sports & Entertainment
James T. Sandoro
The Buffalo Transportation Pierce Arrow Museum
Paul Snyder, III
Snyder Corporation
Donald Spasiano
Trocaire College School of Hospitality and Business
Huseyin Taran
Buffalo Marriott HARBORCENTER
Toni L. Vazquez
Urban Family Practice
Leslie H. Zemsky
Larkin Square
Dottie Gallagher-Cohen Buffalo Niagara Partnership Lesley Haynes
Erie County Legislature Appointment
Thomas R. Hersey, Jr Erie County Commissioner of Environment & Planning
Patrick J. Kaler
Visit Buffalo Niagara
Randall Kramer
MusicalFare Theatre
Dennis P. Murphy
InnVest Lodging Services, Inc.
Bridget Niland
Daemen College
2017 COMMITTEES Executive Committee CHAIR:
Jonathan A. Dandes
Rich Baseball Operations
TREASURER :
COMMITTEE MEMBERS CHAIR-ELECT:
Mary F. Roberts PRESIDENT & CEO:
Patrick Kaler
SECRETARY:
Toni L. Vazquez Cindy Abbott-Letro
Martin House Restoration Corp. Visit Buffalo Niagara
IMMEDIATE PAST CHAIR:
Dennis P. Murphy
Urban Family Practice Law Offices of Francis A. Letro InnVest Lodging Services, Inc.
13
VISITBUFFALONIAGARA.COM
Cindy Abbott-Letro
Budget/Finance/Audit Committee CHAIR:
Cindy Abbott-Letro
Law Offices of Francis A. Letro
STAFF: David Marzo
Chief Financial Officer
COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Steve Boyd, Esq.
Steve Boyd, P.C.
Donald Spasiano
Trocaire College School of Hospitality and Business
Toni L. Vazquez
Urban Family Practice
Sales Committee
14
CHAIR: Huseyin Taran Buffalo Marriott HARBORCENTER
Thomas Keane
Hart Hotels
STAFF: Mike Even VP of Sales
David Lacki
Ellicott Development
COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Kaila Kise
Hilton Garden Inn Buffalo Downtown
Clorissa Bapst
Buffalo Marriott HARBORCENTER
Russ Papia
The Westin Buffalo
Kim Bauer
Residence Inn Buffalo Amherst
Megan Porter
Hampton Inn & Suites Buffalo Airport
Britton Buczkowski Holiday Inn Buffalo Airport
Jeff Rapini
Millennium Hotel Buffalo
Melissa Burke
Buffalo Niagara Convention Center
Monica Rapini
Embassy Suites by Hilton Buffalo
Matt Carlucci
Garden Place Hotel
Edwin Shelp
Adam’s Mark Hotel & Events Center
Wendy Clubine
Buffalo Lodging
Matt Spencer
Holiday Inn Express & Suites Downtown
Joyce Curry
SpringHill Suites Buffalo Airport
Renee Stupski-Pundt Wyndham Garden Buffalo Downtown
Michael Dobell
Hyatt Regency Buffalo
AnnMarie Taft
Buffalo Niagara Marriott
Ann Dugan
Buffalo Lodging
LaToya Williams
Hyatt Place Buffalo/Amherst
Kelly Fox
Aloft Buffalo Airport
Marketing Committee CHAIR: Leslie Zemsky
Larkin Square
Katie McKenna
University at Buffalo
STAFF: Ed Healy
VP of Marketing
Diana Principe
The Mansion on Delaware Avenue
COMMITTEE MEMBERS
E. Frits Abell
Impact Industries
Jim Charlier
JCharlier Communication Design
Caitlin Deibel
Martin House Restoration Corp.
Nicholas Delmonte
Hart Hotels
Andrea Gallagher
Buffalo Museum of Science
Dora Kukuliatas- Wisniewski
Tom’s Restaurant
Erin Marra
Canalside Buffalo
Mary Roberts
Martin House Restoration Corporation
Kathleen Rooney
Kathleen Rooney Communications
James T. Sandoro Buffalo Transportation/ Pierce-Arrow Museum
Maria Scully-Morreale Albright-Knox Art Gallery Zach Specht
Pegula Sports & Entertainment
Sandy White
Freelance Writer
Destination Development Committee CHAIR: Randall Kramer MusicalFare Theatre
Brad Hahn
Explore Buffalo
STAFF: Cindy Kincaide D irector, Industry Relations &
Leslie Haynes
County of Erie Appointment
Lynn Marinelli
Empire State Development Corp.
Megan Porter
Hampton Inn & Suites Buffalo Airport
Destination Development
COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Constance Caldwell
Buffalo History Museum
Rob Free
Consumer’s Pub/NYS Restaurant Assn.
Dan Garvey
Roycroft Inn/NYS Restaurant Assn.
Todd Geise
Buffalo Zoo
Gary Praetzel Jen Swan
Arts Services Initiative
2017 BUFFALO NIAGARA SPORTS COMMISSION ADVISORY COUNCIL CHAIR: Bridget Niland Daemen College
COMMITTEE MEMBERS Russ Brandon
Rob Crean
Buffalo Bills & Buffalo Sabres Buffalo News Buffalo Bisons Niagara University Erie Canal Harbor Development Corp. D’Youville College National Buffalo Wing Festival HARBORCENTER Buffalo Sabres
Jonathan A. Dandes Rich Baseball Operations Therese Forton-Barnes Events to a Tee Sean Green Riverworks Kathleen Gregoire Skating Club of WNY Eric Guzdek Northtown Center at Amherst C. Douglas Hartmayer NFTA Thomas Hersey County of Erie
2017 VISIT BUFFALO NIAGARA STAFF Information Technology Manager Marketing Manager Accounting and Benefits Manager Industry Relations Assistant Convention Services Manager Visitor Center Manager Vice President of Sales & Services Director of Marketing Director of Sports Sales National Sales Manager Director of Sports Development Communications Manager
Patrick Kaler President & CEO Cindy Kincaide Director, Industry Relations and Destination Development
Tracy Martell David Marzo Jenilyn Mescall Leah Mueller Allison Pawarski Judy Smith Matt Steinberg Lauren Vargo Dionne Williamson
Convention Services Manager Chief Financial Officer National Sales Manager Tourism Sales Director Sports Sales and Services Manager Director of Administration Director of Creative Services Administrative Assistant Sales Director; Specialty Market
Vice President of Marketing
2017 BUFFALO NIAGARA CONVENTION CENTER STAFF Richard Arnold Sous Chef Melissa Bean Convention & Event Service Manager Tom Beiter Controller Melissa Burke Senior Director of Sales and Marketing Lorna Cullen Executive Assistant Susan Kimmins Sales & Catering Manager Eddie Krecisz Assistant Operations Manager MaryAnn Martin Accounting & Benefits Manager Paul Murphy Facility Director Terry O’Brien Director of Operations
Heather Petrino Keith Pitman Kenneth Sandford Paul Scime Raymond Thom Amy Trautman Lisa Vega Brooke Williams Raymond Williams Danielle Winiarski
15
Sales & Service Coordinator Electrician Chief Engineer Food & Beverage Manager Executive Chef Convention Sales Manager Lobby Receptionist Banquet Manager Timekeeper/Security Convention & Event Service Manager
VISITBUFFALONIAGARA.COM
Kathy Benzel Drew Brown Michele Butlak JoAnn Blatner Karen Cox Denise Drews Michael Even Karen Fashana Charles Giglia Jennifer Gregory Pete Harvey Brian Hayden Ed Healy
2017 ANNUAL BUSINESS REVIEW
Ann Brooker Mike Buczkowski Stephen Butler Chris Catanzaro Brian Cavanaugh Drew Cerza Christopher Ciamaga
Peter Jerebko Erie Community College Leo Kaminsky NYSPHSAA Tom Koller Buffalo State College John Lambert University at Buffalo Matt LaSota Canalside Buffalo Joe Lojacono Valmark Associates John Maddock Canisius College Bill Maher Canisius College Lynn Marinelli Empire State Development Corp. Ron Raccuia AdPro Team Sports Edward Rath, Jr. Erie County Legislature Nicholas Salvatore Salvatore’s Hospitality Bob Schell Amherst Youth Hockey Lisa Scherer Scherer Event Management Timm Slade Section VI Charles C. Swanekamp Bond, Schoeneck & King Kathleen Twist University at Buffalo Jennifer Van Rysdam Pegula Sports & Entertainment
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING ABOUT BUFFALO Buffalo is making a big comeback in large part by repurposing its historic buildings and long-dormant grain silos. Downtown Buffalo now buzzes with life thanks in part to the ever-expanding Canalside entertainment and recreation complex and a host of new dining and drinking establishments.
You will party harder, eat better, and make more new friends in a weekend, all for less money, than anywhere else in America. MATT MELTZER
THE NEW YORK TIMES, 52 PLACES TO GO IN 2018
THRILLIST.COM
Crazy about American architecture? This is where to see commercial, residential and institutional buildings by America’s most revered trio of architects –
H.H. Richardson, Louis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright. USA TODAY
TAKEN TOGETHER, THESE TWO VIEWS OF THE RICHARDSON COMPLEX – THE GLAMOROUS NEW HOTEL AND ITS ADJOINING, NEGLECTED BUILDINGS – MIGHT WELL REPRESENT BUFFALO AS A WHOLE:
HISTORIC, GRITTY, AND ON THE CUSP OF A RENAISSANCE.
CLEVELAND PLAIN DEALER
403 Main Street
»
Suite 630
»
Buffalo, New York 14203
VisitBuffaloNiagara.com
»
716.852.0511