Congratulations to our media partner, Conran PR, and The Alfond Inn for their 2014 Gold Adrian Award in the New Hotel Opening Category. Out of 1,200 entries submitted this year, our work was judged by The Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association (HSMAI) Board of Directors and the Adrian Awards Advisory Committee to be exceptional. Judges were asked to evaluate each entry based on its own merit and success in achieving its objectives.
Coverage was secured in The New York Times, Travel + Leisure, Celebrated Living, Huffington Post, The Boston Globe, Food Arts, Atlanta Magazine, Spirit Magazine, Global Traveler, Fodors.com, Forbes.com and Hotel Chatter. Regional coverage included The Orlando Sentinel, Orlando Business Journal, Orlando Magazine, The Miami Herald, The Palm Beach Post, Fox TV, Orlando NBC Channel 2, WUCF PBS and Winter Park Magazine. Trade included Travel Weekly, Elite Meetings, Smart Meetings and Successful Meetings. The coverage reached millions of readers and viewers, while the ad equivalency of our placements was near $1 million. The hotel was awarded AAA Four Diamond status eight months after opening and quickly became very profitable; earning more than twice what was expected. The projected net operating income for the first year will generate more than three million dollars for The Alfond Scholars program.