“As an association, MPI’s focus is on ensuring the long-term and sustainable financial health of the events industry, and raising the professionalism of those who work in it,” he said. MPI has about 2,000 members who are third-party planners. Paul Van Deventer, president and CEO of Meeting Professionals International, issued a statement. To my knowledge, I have not seen or heard from anyone that supports this.”Ĭalls to Marriott for additional comment Friday were not returned. When a Marriott property is the right choice, we will have to find a way to make up the loss in our revenues. Sourcing the right destination/hotel is vital to the success of a program and must be valued as such. “As for what will happen to third parties, somebody has to do the work and corporate America does not want to staff enough planners to do all the sourcing. We will look to source hotels that will offer full commissions while offering our clients the same, if not better accommodations, locations and service. “For many associations who depend on those commissions, Marriott is making it very difficult to choose them. “I think they we are going to see other hotel brands start to offer increased commissions to third parties in an effort to guide business their way,” Gillikin said. He said that, from what he understands, Marriott “is only trying to squeeze the smaller agencies out” to make room for agencies to which Marriott has given a certain annual reprieve. “Sure, the rumors have been flying even before the acquisition of Starwood by Marriott, but the end result shows their perception of a true partnership.” “My position is that this move by Marriott is a slap in the face to the thousands of agencies that have been loyal to the brand and put hundreds of thousands of dollars in room revenue, F&B revenue and ancillary revenue into their annual bottom line,” said Carvie Gillikin, vice president of Fourth Wall Events in New York City and former president of the MPI Greater New York Chapter. “The current business model and environment, however, present significant obstacles to making the investments needed to deliver a world-class experience for customers.”īut some third-party planners are saying that this is not a smart move and could have negative implications for clients. “At Marriott International, meetings and events represent a critical part of our business as well as an opportunity to drive innovation and win with customers,” Marriott said in a statement. Marriott sent a letter from Tammy Routh, vice president of global sales, to third-party planners earlier this week, saying that while “group intermediaries play an important role in the marketplace, costs for our North American hotels and owners are growing at a faster pace than group revenue, which impacts hotel profitability.” and Canada has raised significant concerns in all corners of the meeting, event and hospitality industry. Marriott International’s announcement that it will cut commissions paid to third-party meeting planners to 7 percent from 10 percent at all of its properties in the U.S.
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