Venues of Excellence, the consortium for conferences, training, meetings and events, has been acquired by Mandy Jennings, Director of Paje Consultancy.
Jennings has been involved with Conference Centres of Excellence since 2015, leading the consortium and members through a major rebrand in 2016 to Venues of Excellence, growing the consortium membership and taking it from strength to strength, becoming a credible leading voice to the hospitality industry, and being awarded Best UK Representation Company at the CHS Awards 2020.
Appointed as Executive Director to the consortium in 2018, Jennings has worked with a dedicated team of professionals to deliver sales, marketing, social media, training and membership services to Venues of Excellence, also managing the Venue Find Team who work with clients to place business within member venues and UK venues. The business saw a 60% financial growth over the previous five years, surpassing projected membership figures ahead of plan.
When the pandemic hit in March 2020, Jennings and the Board of Venues of Excellence quickly adapted their strategic approach to maintain their voice in the industry and support members through this time. Key wins have included delivery of 70 ‘Zoom to Boom’ sessions with industry experts and taking the Learning Development Academy online, with the creation of comprehensive virtual Sales & Marketing learning packages.
As the events industry begins its journey on the road to recovery, the Board was determined the consortium had a future post lockdown that would still meet its members’ needs, specifically national marketing and sales representation, industry profile, providing sales leads and enquiries, best practice, engagement with other independent venues and being part of the UK’s leading conference venue portfolio.
Ivor Turner, Chairman said: “The Board’s key focus is what is best for the longevity of Venues of Excellence and, most importantly, its members in the future and wanted to shore up its financial security in these unprecedented times. We discussed a number of options and came to a decision which takes all of these needs into consideration. Mandy and her colleagues, who have been the linchpin of the organisation provided the Board with the most comprehensive business solution to acquire the assets and continue to run and operate Venues of Excellence. With a long-established relationship with the consortium, she will continue to give confidence, continuity and innovation that surrounds the success of Venues of Excellence.”
The official handover takes place by the end of May 2021, when Jennings will take the helm, with support over the next 12 months and beyond of key Board members. She offered: “The team and I are extremely proud of our achievements working with Venues of Excellence for the past six years and we truly believe we are ready to take on this exciting challenge. With the support of the board and our members we feel well equipped to do this. As we are sure you would agree all great organisations need to keep evolving and keep achieving excellent results, and we will support our members to be ready to return to the market with renewed vigour and positivity.”
