Travel + Leisure “World’s Best Summit”
Billed as the premier event for all things hospitality, the Travel + Leisure World’s Best Summit brought together the brightest minds in travel, hotels, luxury experiences, and dining for two days of dynamic conversation and industry-defining insights. And who better to bring this visionary event to life than Empire? As the production partner behind the summit, we transformed Dotdash Meredith’s headquarters into a high-impact stage for thought leadership, storytelling, and connection—delivering a seamless, immersive experience worthy of the World’s Best name.
To reflect the evolving landscape of travel, a simple theater was reimagined as a dynamic forum, welcoming over 300 attendees. Discussions tackled everything from sustainability and family travel to the future of air travel, the power of cultural events, and how AI and social media are reshaping the industry.
The summit kicked off with a fireside chat between T+L Editor-in-Chief Jacqui Gifford and Dotdash Meredith CEO Neil Vogel, setting the stage for thought-provoking discussions featuring panelists like Amanda Kloots (The Talk), Andy Krantz (CEO, Paravel), Paul Tumpowsky (Founder, New Yonder), and Christine Vinesse Thomas (VP, Global Brand Leader, Hyatt). Concluding day-one with a vibrant cocktail reception, where we transformed the space with bold, branded visuals that brought the World’s Best Summit identity to life.
Day two kept the momentum going with panels on delivering unparalleled guest experiences, the growing importance of wellness, and the influence of social media on modern travel. Featured panelists included renowned chef and restaurateur Daniel Boulud and Jack Ezon (Founder and CEO, Embark Beyond), who shared their expertise on crafting exceptional hospitality experiences. The program wrapped up with an engaging and often humorous conversation between Jacqui Gifford and Bobbi Brown, who discussed her journey from cosmetics mogul to boutique hotel owner.
The summit was a true celebration of the industry’s future and was a resounding success, with attendees praising the experience as “thoughtful and special” and recognizing the T+L team for their “warm hospitality and expert planning.” We’re proud to have played a role in bringing this extraordinary gathering to life.
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Guests received their first taste of technological innovation at registration, where they were welcomed by name on a reactive LED screen installation covering the full width of the entry wall. A large lunch café was created with a décor scheme that incorporated custom-built, ceiling-high steel LED frames draped with foliage to create smaller, intimate restaurant-style spaces that displayed both technology and nature.
A series of breakout sessions presented content targeted to attendees’ varied interests, while imagery displayed throughout the venue showcased real-life applications of how products designed to empower developers help to unleash the power of data and reimagine possibilities that will improve our world.
Every element of Microsoft Connect(); from registration, breakfast and keynote, to lunch and evening cocktails, were custom-designed to communicate exacting brand messaging and to deliver a high-touch guest experience to this important audience. The keynote and breakout sessions were livestreamed through an onsite studio built for this purpose and content was watched online by millions around the world.
Empire is proud to collaborate with Microsoft on this annual, top-tier business communication event.
To view excerpts of Connect(); 2017, please visit https://www.microsoft.com/connectevent
