Seattle: connecting to corporates

CVB Visit Seattle says a large share of the city’s event bookings come from medical, scientific, educational, and technology associations and, increasingly, corporate groups. Seattle is built on a history of innovation and entrepreneurship and the opening of Seattle Convention Center’s Summit building has doubled capacity – crucial to a city seeking to attract more corporate groups. Previously, the Center’s space would often be booked by associations before corporate planners were ready to secure space. In August 2024 Seattle hosted the Corporate Event Marketing Association’s CEMA Summit which drew 600 meeting professionals. “Given our geographic location, we are an ideal meeting destination for groups with significant attendee bases travelling from Europe and Asia, and SEA Airport’s new International Arrivals Facility seeks to enhance the delegate experience from the moment they touch down in Seattle,” the bureau tells CMW. In 2023, the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI) met at Seattle Convention Center’s Summit building and, in 2023, Seattle hosted the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation’s Senior Officials Meeting. That brought 6,000 delegates from 21 member economies. Visit Seattle says it is now common for sustainability to be mentioned in the RFP process with groups asking not just about the host facility, but also about local suppliers. “Most commonly, we have groups asking about local food sourcing, energy procurement, and establishing a positive community impact. Seattle excels in these areas,” the bureau reports. Seattle Convention Center has two LEED-certified buildings and a waste diversion rate of 78%. Despite this, the bureau notes budget still dictates exactly how a group will ultimately incorporate such aspects into their final programme.