Connect Will Launch Signature Conference In Puerto Rico Next Spring
September 13, 2021
Meetings, events, travel and tourism industry leader, Connect is gearing up to launch a second signature conference next year. Set for May 22-24, 2022 at the Puerto Rico Convention Center, Connect Puerto Rico will host more than 2,000 meeting and event professionals at a multi-track event designed to serve as a hub for networking and business development for corporate, association and sports planners. Connect will host a second large-scale conference in Detroit, Aug. 8-10.
The 2022 plans come on the heels of Connect’s successful 2021 marketplace in Tampa, Fla. Held Aug. 30-Sept. 1 at the Tampa Convention Center, Connect Tampa hosted roughly 2,500 corporate, association, sports and specialty event professionals. The event included a vibrant trade show with more than 100 booths, as well as featured keynote speakers such as world champion gymnast Simone Biles and storied former NFL wide receiver Jerry Rice to the delight of those in attendance.
Connect Puerto Rico will bear all the hallmarks of the company’s industry-leading conferences, including reverse-style one-on-one appointments and a bustling trade show. It will also serve as a destination showcase for the island of Puerto Rico, which recently completed Distrito T-Mobile, San Juan’s premier entertainment center offering a mix of hotels, restaurants, entertainment venues and retail stores just steps from the convention center.
“Connect is very excited to go to Puerto Rico next year,” said Connect President Chris Collinson. “It’s always been a great destination to bring events, but the addition of the Distrito T-Mobile takes it to a whole new level. We look forward to working together with Discover Puerto Rico to put on a great conference for 2,000 members of the best event professionals in the industry.”
With goals to generate more than 35,000 one-on-one, private and preset business appointments between meeting and hospitality professionals, Connect Puerto Rico will be home to some of Connect’s extensive repertoire of education and events, with specific tracks to include:
- Corporate: Financial, Insurance, Technology
- Association
- Diversity
- Sports, including Sports LGBTQ Summit and Women in Sports Forum
- Luxury and Incentive
- Citywide
In addition to hosting the conference, Discover Puerto Rico will surely be pulling out all the stops to create a memorable experience for planners, with pre- and post-event FAM trips in the planning stages that will provide event professionals with a full experience of the island, where natural beauty and attractions abound.
“This event will further elevate Puerto Rico as a world-class meetings destination and accelerate the recovery of our island by hosting key buyers and demonstrating the spectacular and one-of-a-kind experiences that Puerto Rico has to offer,” said Brad Dean, CEO of Discover Puerto Rico.
Encouraged by the Tampa conference’s showing and positive attendee feedback, Connect hopes to build off this momentum with its 2022 conferences, which include Connect Detroit. Set for Aug. 8-10 at TCF Center and occupying the traditional time frame that Connect attendees are accustomed to, the annual large-scale signature event is also expected to attract thousands of event professionals from across North America.
“If attendees liked 2021, they’re going to love 2022,” said Patrick Higgins, senior vice president of industry relations for Connect Meetings. “We’ve already gone to work on how we’re going to plan and put together the trade show floor. [At Connect Tampa] the trade show floor was a huge hit—nobody left that floor after their appointments, everybody stuck around, they gathered, they played, they ate together. We have some really fun stuff planned for next year!”
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Partner Voices
Every day, MGM Resorts hosts organizations and individuals from around the world with a diverse array of business purposes, needs and expectations. But they all have one thing in common—a host committed to making their meetings sustainable and unforgettable through close partnership and responsible meeting practices.
Harnessing the Sun
Meetings at MGM Resorts are predominantly powered by the sun, thanks to its innovative 100-megawatt solar array. As the largest directly sourced renewable electricity project in the hospitality industry, the solar array features 323,000 panels and produces up to 100% of MGM Resorts’ daytime power needs in Las Vegas.* Built in 2021, the solar array reduces the carbon footprint of meetings—and all of MGM Resorts—while still delivering an enlightening and electrifying guest experience.
Leading Water Stewardship
Knowing water is essential to operations, guests and employees, MGM Resorts has long employed various conservation measures and has doubled down on its commitment in recent years to become a leading corporate water steward. In 2022, MGM Resorts President and CEO Bill Hornbuckle signed the CEO Water Mandate, a United National Global Compact, becoming the first gaming company to endorse the initiative. The company replaced more than 200,000 square feet of real grass with drought-tolerant landscaping in Las Vegas and pledged to reduce water use by 33% by 2025 and by 35% by 2030. Between 2007 and 2022, MGM Resorts saved more than 6 billion gallons of water through water conservation.
Fostering Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
MGM Resorts serves a world of diverse people, perspectives and experiences by cultivating a workforce culture that embraces all of humanity. From mindful recruitment and hiring practices to meaningful social responsibility initiatives, MGM Resorts is a welcoming and inclusive space for veterans, individuals with disabilities, people from diverse backgrounds, LGBTQ+ community members and more. The company’s commitment to supplier diversity drives innovation by extending competitive opportunities to local and diverse-owned suppliers, while the MGM Resorts Supplier Diversity Mentorship Program provides diverse-owned businesses tools and resources to enhance and grow their businesses.
Paying it Forward
MGM Resorts knows that great companies must serve the greater good. That’s why paying it forward is part of its approach to meetings and events. Through the Feeding Forward Program, MGM Resorts collects and preserves unserved and untouched food from conventions held at its properties, then safely donates to food-insecure people through a partnership with Three Square, Southern Nevada’s primary food bank. Since 2016, MGM Resorts has donated more than 3.7 million meals, with a goal of 5 million meal donations by 2025. Donations include unserved perishable prepared foods from events, perishable unprepared food from MGM Resorts’ kitchens and nonperishable food items from minibars and warehouses.
From world-class venues and experiences to industry leading responsible meeting practices, MGM Resorts is proud to host meaningful and sustainable events.
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Comments
Had to miss Tampa- heard it…
Had to miss Tampa- heard it was over the top. Looking forward to more of the same. Good Luck! Edie
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