As we prepare to gather in Denver next month for the 50th edition of IPW—the most important event on the inbound tour and travel industry’s calendar—the INBOUND Report shares recollections of and about the event from those who have been a part of IPW (formerly Pow Wow) over the years. This week, we feature the recollections of two veteran tour and travel industry professionals:Jackie Ennis, head of international marketing for the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism, and Jorge Franz, vice president of international sales and tourism at the Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Jackie Ennis: “IPW in Las Vegas. I had never been to Las Vegas before. As I stepped into the elevator from my hotel to go down to the show, a nicely dressed woman came out of the elevator and proceeded to vomit into her hands. Horrified, I ran back to the room to get the poor girl a towel and I got the elevator, the door clicked shut and I missed the moment.” Welcome to Las Vegas.
Jorge Franz: “Ten years ago, I was so desperate to get CityPass to choose Houston as their next city, I followed Mike Gallagher (co-chairman and co-founder of CityPass) into a bathroom and said ‘You need to come to Houston to check us out’ He said, ‘If I go will you leave me alone?’ And he finally came. The results have exceeded our wildest expectations.”
I can go back to my first Pow Wow in 1975,Boston. Allied Tours was introducing its Experience America escorted Tours program. The symbol on our brochure cover was a cowboy hat. So we had the idea to bring about 100 real Stetson hats to give out. It would be great to have the delegates walking around with our hats.
So we shipped a few boxes to the Convention Center and had them stored behind the booth, ready to give out the next day. When we arrived the next morning, they were all gone, and I am sure I saw a few of the convention workers strolling around like cowboys.
Every other Pow Wow has some unique memory and looking forward to the next ones in Denver.