THE MOSCONE CENTER BREAKS A VENUE RECORD GENERATING $20 MILLION IN FOOD AND BEVERAGE REVENUE IN 30 DAYS
Sustainability, Local Sourcing and Creativity Take Center Stage at Bay Area’s Biggest Conventions
(SAN FRANCISCO – Oct 16, 2023) – ASM Global, the world’s leading venue-management company and producer of live-event experiences, has announced that The Moscone Center, San Francisco’s premier convention venue, generated more than $20 million in food and beverage revenue in 30 days, breaking the record for the most successful month for food and beverage in its history.
2023 is also predicted to be The Moscone Center’s best year for food and beverage revenue since the pandemic forced closures worldwide, totaling more than $51 million.
The driving force behind the achievement, The Moscone Center hosted the technology industry’s most anticipated “mega conferences” back-to-back in September, including the 40,000-guest Dreamforce, billed as the “world’s largest AI event,” which brought in more than $90 million in economic impact for the city of San Francisco, and capped off the month with the heavily attended Workday Rising 2023 event. Other notable events hosted by The Moscone Center in 2023 included Google Cloud Next, TechCrunch Disrupt, RSA Conference, Config and Game Developers Conference, among others.
“The Moscone Center continues to draw record-breaking attendance numbers for both IT and association conferences,” said Ken Bukowski, director of convention facilities for the City and County of San Francisco. “This most recent success in part demonstrates the positive impact from our new clean, safe and welcoming initiatives that make San Francisco the best place to hold a conference.”
Not only did the mega conferences produce top revenues for the venue but they also had a significant impact on the local economy, from local sourcing of food and beverages to an increase in employment opportunities.
Of the more than 2,000 jobs needed to successfully run these events, priority was placed on hiring extra staff members for the culinary team to help develop unique and sustainable food options and manage execution and presentation of the meals. SAVOR, the culinary division of ASM Global, added more than 120 staff members, including over 30 chefs, to its team to be able to produce and serve the 100,000+ meals needed over the course of the month.
Workday Rising 2023 alone required food and staff for more than 13,500 guests and 20,000 lunches each day, served in creative, food truck-style façades. Similarly, Dreamforce required box lunches, daily buffets and dinner receptions for more than 12,000 guests as well as food and beverage services for an impromptu concert by pop star Demi Lovato.
Committed to the communities in which it serves, SAVOR also tapped into several locally owned food and beverage businesses to be partners for the conventions. The company estimates that the company spent 10% of its total event costs toward purchases from locally owned and minority-owned businesses, including fresh produce, unique desserts, fun cotton candy stands and various others.
The culinary team at SAVOR also developed menus focusing on sustainability, offering only climate-friendly options, including plant-based; fish and poultry dishes; and completely avoiding any items containing shellfish, pork, beef and almonds, estimated to have conserved millions of gallons of water. Sustainable menu selections also joined other environment-focused efforts to reduce carbon footprint at the LEED-Certified Moscone Center, like compostable packaging, waste diversion, recycling, donation programs and use of water stations.
“From vegan options, passed hors d'oeuvres, food truck menus and grazing tables, the team at The Moscone Center honed their creativity and developed some dishes that are unmatched in terms of sustainability, uniqueness and quantity,” said Shaun Beard, SAVOR’s senior vice president of food and beverage. “We are confident that the presentation, food choices and overall team effort was not only appreciated by the clients but by the thousands of guests in attendance over the course of these events. A major part of the success of these events is truly owed to the culinary team.”
“This is an exciting time for The Moscone Center and the city of San Francisco, as we are constantly looking to revolutionize our offerings and take our events to the next level,” said Leonie Patrick, general manager of The Moscone Center. “With the addition of our executive chef, Roxanne Galang, adding delicious local flavor to her menus, we are confident that together the teams at The Moscone Center, SAVOR, ASM Global and the city of San Francisco have found the formula for success; and we can continue to positively impact this region for years to come.”
The Moscone Center featured a full calendar in 2023, hosting more than 38 total events and welcoming more than 500,000 guests. The Moscone Center hopes to continue the momentum into the next year, starting off 2024 with 23 booked events.
For more information, visit moscone.com.