The 2009 After Conference Report

We are delighted to report that not only did everyone have a fabulous time at the B&B Fair for Fun and Profit in the Big Apple, but the bed and breakfast conference was greeted with beautiful Fall days and sixty degree evenings. The kickoff Saturday night, a wine tasting party and tea educational event was held in beautiful Chelsea Market Place with hostess Miriam Novalle - home of the Food Network. Our party was at the T-Salon and featured wine from Geerling and Wade. Those who went on to the Broadway Show "Wicked" said it was the most fun way to start off our bed and breakfast conference.

Sunday began our educational sessions at the Javit's center. Marie Lanier's keynote talk was well received by a big group of innkeepers who attended the bed and breakfast conference from many states. They were eager to soak up the latest in search engine optimization and destination specific travel marketing in Marie's straight forward, easy to understand style.

The exceptional exhibits on the Javit's show room floor were truly astounding in their variety and usefulness. "I wasn't sure if there would be anything that would pertain to our B&B at this show. To my amazement, we ended up buying very useful goods in five categories which we had never seen at any other bed and breakfast conference," said Carmela Turko of Caldwell House B&B and President of Empire State B&B Association. Amongst the showroom features was a wonderful display of confectionary masterpieces courtesy of the students at the Culinary Institute of America.

On Monday I had the pleasure to discuss "Easy Strategies for Incremental Profit to Boost your Bottom Line!" A room full of smart innkeepers got involved and shared their experiences. Monday afternoon we heard a rousing "PR for innkeepers" presentation by New York's own Ken Fleck at the bed and breakfast conference. We learned a whole lot about advances in bedding material from the folks at Perfect Fit Industries, where one lucky assistant innkeeper won the down alternative blanket. Our closing talk of the bed and breakfast conference given by innkeeper Diane Edwards from Wild Iris Inn in Maine gave everyone some concrete ways to green up their property and make a difference.

Following the education presentations, the bed and breakfast conference headed over to ACA Art Galleries in Chelsea for a very glamorous Wine and Cheese Party (attended by the New York Times Editor and CBS Producer) including a presentation by Matt Wood, one of the Napa Valley's foremost sommeliers. The New York cheeses were a lovely counter point. For dinner we had a tour of the brewery at nearby Chelsea Brewing Company and then dined on salmon and more, while watching the boats bob in the Hudson. The final event of our bed and breakfast conference on Tuesday morning was a tour of the extraordinary galleries at the Metropolitan Museum, followed by lunch.

We had a big contingent of inns from Maine, innkeepers from as far away as California and several family and friend reunions. Thanks to everyone who came and we look forward to seeing you at another bed and breakfast conference soon. To keep up to date on future bed and breakfast conferences click this link: http://www.lanierbb.com/innkeeperscorner/allevents.html. See you soon!