Spring 2019

  • General Information
  • Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center

 

ALL EYES ON COLUMBIA

 

BY THE NUMBERS

The CMCC hosted 92 events this past quarter with 48,106 unique attendees and more than 10,000 total room nights, while the sales team booked a total of 82 future events this past quarter that are expected to welcome about 55,518 attendees using an estimated 4,367 hotel room nights.

 

 

FIRST TIMERS

  • We welcomed 2,500 attendees to South Carolina Green Industry Association’s annual conference for the second time, resulting in 850 room nights. For the first time, however, we hosted their Oyster Roast, typically an offsite event, on the CMCC loading dock. We dressed the space up with greenery and café lights.
  • SC Music Educators Association held their seventh event with us February 7 – 9, with 1,000 attendees using 835 room nights. As a special treat this year, we installed sheet music of “Don’t Stop Believing” as window clings. The attendees were invited to guess the song, answer via twitter and win a prize.
  • For the first time in six years, the South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism held the 2019 SC Governor’s Conference on Tourism & Travel with us February 17 – 20. About 450 industry colleagues from across the state attended the event, generating 350 total room nights. 

 

FUTURE BOOKINGS

  • Colonial Life signed a multi-year contract with us for their All Employee Meeting every year from 2020 – 2025, with almost 1,500 expected attendees and 50 room nights. 
  • SC State Firefighters Association Fire Rescue Conference contracted to return for their second conference in Columbia June 24 – 29, 2019, with 5,000 forecasted attendees and 1,000 total room nights.
  • BAPS Swanminarayan Sanstha is a spiritual, volunteer-driven organization dedicated to improving society through individual growth by fostering the Hindu ideals of faith, unity, and selfless service. This group is meeting with us for the first time August 15 – 17, 2019, with 700 attendees and 225 room nights.
  • SC Funeral Directors Association will be returning for their 17th consecutive year February 1 – 3, 2021, with 300 attendees and 260 room nights.

 

FAN FEST SUCCESS 

In conjunction with the 2019 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament held at Colonial Life Arena in March, the CMCC team hosted the Segra Fan Fest Experience on March 21 and 22. After months of planning, we welcomed more than 5,000 attendees from all over the country to this free, open to the public event that included more than 25 vendors, a variety of activities and hourly, interactive basketball-related contests. This event was the first-ever CMCC-produced event that was open to the public and we look forward to hosting the next one we’ve planned for June (more details on this below). 

 

ON THE ROAD

In an effort to meet with planners of prospective new business, as well as further our professional development, convention center staff attended the following trade shows and conferences this past quarter: 

  • SCSAE Trade Show in Columbia, SC
  • RCMA Emerge Conference in Greensboro, NC
  • Destination Showcase in Washington, DC
  • HelmsBriscoe Eastern Region Partner Exchange in Atlanta, GA
  • Connect Chicago in Chicago, IL
  • ConferenceDirect Annual Partner Meeting in Atlanta, GA
  • PCMA Convening Leaders Conference in Pittsburgh, PA
  • Academy for Venue Safety and Security in San Diego, CA