Houston’s convention, tourism industry bracing for robust remainder of 2021
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Conventions making a comeback in Houston
HOUSTON – The Anime Matsuri 2021 Convention in Houston this past weekend was the biggest and the best in the show’s history.
The city is now preparing to host “Comicpalooza” next weekend, and bracing for what’s expected to be a record-breaking August.
It’s all in stark contrast to 2020 when practically all conventions and live events were canceled due to the pandemic.
“We’re really preparing for a robust last half of this year,” said Michael Heckman, acting president & CEO of Houston First Corporation.
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“Our message for a while now has been that Houston is open for business,” said Michael Heckman, acting president and CEO of Houston First Corporation. “We’ve been able to balance public health, while also being able to move the city forward. We see an increased desire not only for leisure travel, but also for convention business.”
Indeed, Houston has managed to continue hosting events through some of the most difficult times of Covid-19, through a mix of fortune, planning, and investment. Through industry-wide initiatives such as Houston Clean whereby hotels, attractions, and public spaces across the city committed to enhanced health precautions and the new integrated viral protection system at Houston’s George R. Brown Convention Center, Houston was one of the safest places in the country to continue holding events. Further, the city sought GBAC STAR cleaning, disinfection, and viral contagion accreditation for many locations and installed a new virtual studio
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On Wednesday’s Houston Matters: The state s COVID-19 hospitalization rate has dropped under 4,000 its lowest number since October. Has Houston s hospitalization rate dropped too? We hear from local health officials.
Also this hour: We discuss the latest news in our weekly political roundup.
Then, Houston s annual comic convention, Comicpalooza, will be returning in July this year after having to cancel in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. It s one of a small but growing number of examples of events trying to navigate the pandemic and hoping that vaccine distribution will reduce cases to the point that everyone can enjoy their event in person if in still some limited numbers and possibly still masked. Michael Heckman of Houston First explains how they hope to pull this off.
March 17, 2021
Consumer show producer Marketplace Events is growing its Texas footprint with the launch of two annual home and garden shows in Houston. Set to debut Feb. 11-13 and Oct. 21-23, 2022 at NRG Park, the new Houston Home + Garden Shows will join MPE’s three Austin and two San Antonio home improvement events as the company continues a multi-year effort to become the preeminent home show producer in the Lone Star State.
“As we begin to see light at the end of a dark COVID tunnel, the time is now for our industry to look forward to what can be gained, not backward to what was lost,” said Tom Baugh, CEO of Marketplace Events. “Our commitment to launching new, upgraded home shows at NRG Park in 2022 is the first of many steps Marketplace Events is taking across North America to do exactly that.”
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