Fall 2023 | I ignitemag.ca | 47 GET IT IN WRITING Protect yourself and your event with these tips about negotiating convention centre contracts What aspects often get overlooked in contract negotiations? A planner needs to know the worst-case sce- nario: it could be construction or an area under repair or critical pieces of infrastructure being inoperable, such as escalators. Having to use stairs could be a real incumbrance—planners need to know that before signing the contract. Convention centres have a number of rights, the group also has rights and access to reme- dies if those rights are not met. If your group is materially affected, there needs to be a remedy for that situation. Any new hidden costs that you’ve noticed that planners should be aware of? Hidden fees is a term that’s used a lot—meaning they come out of left field—but that’s putting our venue partners on the defense. I don’t see them as hidden costs, I see them as costs we haven’t asked about. They may be costs we don’t want to pay for, but if we don’t know to ask, that’s on us, not on the venue. Planners need to be asking for full disclosure of ancillary fees, potential fees and fees for using outside contractors. We need to be going into a venue contract with our eyes wide open. Have you seen any trends lately that are popping up in contracts? One trend I just got an email about concerned access times to a convention centre space to set up. If you were booking a conference space five years ago and you booked from Tuesday to Friday, your service providers, like AV, exhibi- tions or decor came in on Monday to set up. Prior to COVID, often the space was comped or at less cost. Now, that kind of accessibility is not available. Venues are getting strict about set up and tear down. That time needs to be contracted. Planners are noticing the trend of last-minute registration. Does fluctuating attendance numbers affect a contract? The venue looks very closely at what damages they are going to charge if the planner does not meet expectations. The amount of people coming to an event needs to be part of the discussion. There should be terms about when headcounts are re-evaluated and so on. As a planner, I need to negotiate for underperform- ing or overperforming on my contract. What about service levels— is that something that is coming up in contracts? If there are expectations around the quality of service, that needs to be addressed in the contract. If the group wants to leverage under- performance from the venue, let’s say it does not live up to the timeliness of F&B service or the number of items offered—they need to pro- actively negotiate those expectations or they don’t have anything to fall back on. One of the first lawyers I worked with many years ago said, “Before a contract, it’s called negotiation, after the contract is signed it’s called begging.” Particularly for third-party planners, the market is looking for us to be experts around contracts. There are aspects of contracts that should be reviewed by legal counsel, but a planner has to know those core pieces of knowledge to communicate with their clients. Some planners don’t understand the severity of what a poor contract can do to their reputation. COVID was a real test of our Canadian part- ners, specifically hotels, convention centres and AV associates. They were incredibly kind when COVID initially came around, but I would say when planners are negotiating contracts now, that kind of generosity may not be there again. My gut feeling is that contracts are going to be upheld to the letter of the law more so than in the past. A contract takes a lot of time and effort and requires a lot of focus. Planners are tapped out—it’s not a quick process and they need to plan for it. Disclaimer: Heather Reid is not a lawyer and advises that planners should always seek advice from professional legal counsel. Due diligence, knowing what questions to ask and keeping your clients top of mind are essen- tial components to negotiating a good contract with convention centres for large events. “We are in a relationship industry, there is a per- ceived trust, but we need an agreement that puts that into words, because a relationship can go sideways quickly if there’s a problem. Part of our role as planners is to minimize harm and risk, and having clear, robust contracts that do that gives us protection and peace of mind,” says Heather Reid, ARCT, MSc, DES, CEO and found- er of Planner Protect based in London, Ont. We talked to Reid about how to do just that. Are there any unique challenges with convention centre contracts? One of the things I’m constantly advocating for in convention centre contracts is a cancellation by venue clause. Cancellation by a convention centre venue is very rare, but when you’re dealing with an event that warrants a conven- tion centre it’s usually because of its size. If the planner has to recreate that event elsewhere, the costs are going to be significant. If the group wants to cancel the event there are very clear terms from the convention centre as to what the remedy is, but when the tables are turned, that’s another matter. I know of a situation where it took a number of requests to get the clause included. You either get the protection or you understand what will happen if you don’t get that written in the contract. And you will need to explain to your client what risks they are taking. 2023 CONVENTIONS + EXHIBITIONS REPORT
