A Deep Dive Into ILC's Fresh Take on Events for Independent Hotels with Founder and Chairman Andrew Benioff - By Alan Young

If I were asked to compile a list of the most prominent figures currently influencing the trajectory of the independent lodging industry, Andrew Benioff, the Founder and Chairman of the Independent Lodging Congress would undoubtedly be included. As a tenured hospitality professional, I’ve been given the opportunity to connect with countless thought leaders in the space – many of whom exhibit a seemingly unquenchable appetite for innovation and growth – and Benioff is no exception.

Coming to the table with 15 years of experience in the operation and management of luxury hotels, in addition to hospitality management experience, Benioff has been an active player in the industry through its many iterations over the last two decades. Benioff pairs this experience with insights from his time working in mortgage banking and capital markets for commercial real estate, as well as his role as Founder and Managing Partner of Llenrock Realty Partners and Founder and Chairman of the Philadelphia Real Estate Council. Recently, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Benioff to discuss the evolution of his career, his idea to start a hospitality event focused explicitly on independent hotels, and the triumphs and challenges encountered while connecting visionaries and thought leaders inside (and outside) the independent lodging sector.

Benioff began his career in hotel operations and finances, leading him into the world of mortgage banking and capital markets for commercial real estate transactions, including hotels. “I had left a previous mortgage banking shop and started my own firm on the first day of 2008,” Benioff shares. “But after the first few months of that year, we entered a very serious financial downturn. This was an undeniably difficult period, inspiring me to consider what else I could be doing.” Around this time, Benioff found himself ruminating on the importance of gathering people together; specifically, creating events/environments for people to have meaningful conversations. “Throughout my career, I have attended so many hospitality and commercial real estate conferences, but to be frank, I never thought the content was that great,” Benioff admits. “A lot of people would gather at these events, and they would be great places to meet, but the content often fell flat. Perhaps I could do a better job creating industry-specific events that gave attendees something to truly write home about, both in terms of connection opportunities and tangible education.”

Benioff started this chapter of his career in Philadelphia by curating events centered around commercial real estate. “I established a bit of a reputation for hosting some really interesting events for that sector,” Benioff shares. “But after a few years, someone suggested that I leverage my hospitality background – one of my great loves – to do an event around hospitality.” At that time, the hospitality market in Philadelphia wasn’t particularly vibrant, Benioff notes. “We had enough hotels and some really great restaurants, and there is no denying that. But the local hotels were mostly branded and offered nothing unique or bespoke like what you might find in New York, LA, Tokyo, Paris, or Lonon. So at the time, I wasn’t sure if there was anything to be done. If it’s not adding to the industry in a new and exciting way, you aren’t breaking new ground. And I was only interested in breaking new ground.”

According to Benioff, he put the thought aside entirely until he woke up in the middle of the night with an “Oh my god, this is it” idea a few weeks later. “I literally shot up in bed and nearly gave my wife a heart attack,” he shares, chuckling at the memory. “But it occurred to me that I could do an event focused on independent hotels. It hadn’t been done, and I felt like this was the corner of the industry where I could break some new ground.”

Initially, Benioff hoped to model his event similarly to the NYU Hospitality Investment Conference. While he felt there were areas it could be improved upon (specifically, the content), the conference is an industry staple – and a place you have to be if you are involved in hospitality investment. “You can meet everyone who's anyone in one or two days. It’s an incredible networking opportunity that is known for forging connections. So I thought, maybe I could do that for independents – and that’s how it all began.”

Today, ILC offers four main events: INDIE Cultivate (once a year), INDIE Confab (twice a year), and INDIE Congress (once a year). “Confabs are an exploration of a certain city or geography, while the Cultivate events are an exploration of innovation and startups in hospitality and travel,” Benioff elaborates. “They are very tech-focused, addressing what’s new in the industry and, more importantly, factors and trends that will change how we look at things. Congress is our largest and most popular event, focused on hospitality through meaningful panels and sessions led by industry visionaries. It’s also our longest event, spanning two and a half days.”

Benioff’s idea began as an investment conference for independents, but today, it’s much more. The recipe, he explains, is something of a mash-up between NYU Hospitality Investment Conference and ALIS Conference, a hospitality design conference, and an ideas conference like TED or South by Southwest, where new ideas are being thrown out that may not always deal exclusively with hospitality or hotels.

“We explore investment development, adaptive reuse, capital markets, how you get a deal done, what the returns on the deal are, and where the capital is coming from. But we also get into the design side, including the insights of designers, architects, and construction experts. We discuss the design process and the various pieces that come into play when you’re developing or investing in an indie hotel,” Benioff notes. “And then we get into the idea side – even the far-out ideas that aren’t necessarily specific to our industry can be useful. We have to think of indie hotels as a painting; you’re bringing in all these different elements, and each owner and developer will paint in a different way. So we try to balance these three types of conferences and amalgamate their magic into one exceptional event, which is INDIE Congress.”

Since 2019, ILC has generated impressive momentum until in-person events were taken off the table due to the pandemic. “I think people are finally becoming more comfortable traveling and getting back out there again, which is fantastic, and our attendee numbers are beginning to reflect this renewed appetite for events. We are also lucky to have an incredibly loyal group of people who continue to seek out our events while we work to grow our community,” notes Benioff. “Our events range from 250 attendees to 350 attendees at our Congress events, which we hope to increase to 500. However, we don’t want to become as large as some other conferences that attract thousands of people per event, as we feel that would inadvertently dilute the quality of experience had and the strength of connections forged.”

Having attended the last ILC event, I can personally attest to the sense of community which Benioff has worked hard to cultivate. Something about my first ILC Confab event in Denver felt different than the countless other events I’ve attended. Ultimately, the event left me feeling that we were all driving towards the same goal – better knowledge and innovative ways of doing business – and I can’t wait to tap into that again at ILC’s next event.

About Alan Young

Alan E. Young is the Co-Founder and President of Puzzle Partner, the leading marketing agency focused exclusively on the complex B2B initiatives of technology innovators across industries including hospitality, travel, healthcare, life sciences, pharma, media, and entertainment. He is also the Tourism and Hospitality Program Professor at Georgian College. Previously, Alan has held executive-level positions with start-up companies such as Newtrade Technologies (acquired by Expedia), Hotel Booking Solutions (acquired by IBS Software) and TrustYou. Alan is past Chair of The Board of Directors of The OpenTravel Alliance and been very involved with other industry associations most notably AHLA, HEDNA, and HTNG. With over two decades of experience in the travel and hospitality technology world, Alan specializes in helping innovative companies achieve winning performance and dramatic growth.

About Puzzle Partner

Puzzle Partner Ltd. is a marketing agency focused exclusively on complex B2B initiatives for the travel and hospitality technology industry. We are experts at combining strategy and tactical execution in a way that doesn't just maximize a company's potential; it redefines it. By delivering influential content, marketing services, and public relations rooted in the skills of our team and tested through real-world experience, we help our clients gain visibility, raise their profile and ultimately increase their sales revenues. We incorporate a holistic blend of paid, earned and owned media, along with creative services, into an integrated communications strategy to drive brand awareness ahead of competitors and deliver impactful business results. To learn more, visit puzzlepartner.co.