Meeting a Need at the Hilton Garden Inn Albany
Tuesday, October 25th, 2011
In spite of the slow economy, Hilton Garden Inn Albany has experienced growth in its catering sales and event business in 2011. Within the positive sales numbers lies a healthy mix of social and corporate events and strong repeat business.
“We have 13,000 square feet of customizable meeting and catering space that enables us to handle day meetings, classes, multi-day conferences, banquets, weddings and holiday parties. I think our flexibility and our location downtown has a lot to do with our growth,” said Erin Whatley, catering sales manager for the Hilton Garden Inn Albany.
Located on South Front Street, the Hilton Garden Inn Albany has 122 guest rooms and the Albany Conference Center, which is part of the hotel property. In addition, the hotel is next to the James H. Gray Sr. Civic Center. Its location in the downtown district is convenient to local businesses, universities and leisure activities such as the Flint RiverQuarium, sporting events at Albany State University and shopping at the Albany Mall.
Benefitting From Downtown Growth
The Hilton Garden Inn is the only hotel in the downtown district. It opened six years ago and according to Whatley, the hotel has been through a lot in that time.
“We definitely notice an improvement in the area. Aaron Blair, the new downtown manager, has brought a lot of knowledge and experience to his position but most importantly, he’s delivered results. The growth in downtown festivals and events has been a positive for us,” Whatley explained.
As new businesses have opened downtown, the Hilton Garden Inn has benefited from larger lunch crowds at the hotel’s restaurant, The Great American Grill. The restaurant offers a variety of menu options priced below $10.00, tailored to appeal to business clientele.
“The Great American Grill aims to provide quick service for lunch guests while enjoying a very satisfying and affordable meal,” she continued.
Facilitating Meetings, Large and Small
With the Albany Conference Center, the Hilton Garden Inn has the facilities and services to host large and small events. According to Whatley, the catering staff has reworked the menu with new, more attractive pricing. The hotel also offers incentives to repeat customers.
“We are fortunate to have a loyal client base hosting their meetings and parties at Hilton Garden Inn Albany to treat their staff to a day outside of the office. We’ve also seen a growth in business from companies from outside of the Albany area thanks to excellent work by the Chamber of Commerce and Convention and Visitors Bureau,” Whatley explained.
“Word of mouth also helps; with our repeat customers often referring new clients to us. And much of our social business for parties, dinners and weddings comes from our corporate business. This is why it is so important that we offer high quality service and build lasting relationships with every client.”
While the hotel hosts many events that don’t involve food, the catering menu offers flexibility to create all types of events from formal to casual. More information on the Hilton Garden Inn Albany is available at www.albany.hgi.com, or contact Erin Whatley at (229) 888-1590 or [email protected].
