California Association of Bed & Breakfast Inns
Annual Conference
& Trade Show 2008
Sponsors
Take a Look Back
And be
InnSpired!
The 2009 InnSpire Conference and Trade Show
We are pleased to announce that the 2009 InnSpire Conference and Trade Show will take place February 1-3, 2009 at the Hyatt Regency Monterey. We hope to see you there!
Submit Your Ideas for a Workshop or Speaker for InnSpire 2009!
Do you have a great idea for an innkeeper workshop? Have you heard a great speaker that you think other innkeepers would like to learn from?
We are currently soliciting ideas for speakers or workshops for the 2009 InnSpire Conference and Trade Show.
If you are an innkeeper that has an idea for a workshop or a recommendation for a speaker, please send the information to jennifer@cabbi.com.
If you are a speaker that would like to submit a formal proposal to present a workshop at InnSpire 2009, please fill out the Workshop Speaker Proposal Submission Form. Please fax your completed form to Jennifer Flohr by August 1, 2008. If you have any questions, you can reach Jennifer Flohr directly at 916-554-2667.
InnSpire 2008 - Growing Stronger Together
Hyatt Vineyard Creek - Santa Rosa, California
InnSpire 2008 Highlights
The 2008 InnSpire Conference at the Hyatt Vineyard Creek in Santa Rosa was the California Association of Bed & Breakfast Inns' (CABBI) most successful conference to date. This marked the first InnSpire Conference since CABBI began its partnership with the California Hotel & Lodging Association (CH&LA). Attendees could really see for themselves and appreciate how we are Growing Stronger Together.
Attendees were treated to a three-day conference and trade show packed with educational workshops. The educational workshops covered a variety of topics including: marketing, conflict management, legal issues, the economy, the Internet, eco-tourism and green initiatives. Plus attendees enjoyed typical bed and breakfast workshop favorites including: centerpiece design, wine and cheese pairing, and a cooking demonstration.
InnSpire Conference attendees were wowed by keynote speaker Chip Conley, founder and CEO of Joie de Vivre Hospitality. Conley's enthusiastic and inspiring approach set the perfect tone for the conference. He brought immediate excitement and rejuvenation to the attendees who lined up to buy an autographed copy of Chip's book "PEAK: How Great Companies Get Their Mojo from Maslow."
Opening day general session speaker Judy King was another hit with her presentations on guest preference services and conflict management -- two topics that attendees found very informative and beneficial for their daily dealings with guests and staff.
And we had a celebrity along us! Huell Howser, host and producer of the PBS series "California's Gold," was our gracious general session speaker on the closing day of the conference. Huell appealed to the audience by touching on the heart of what makes California tourism so unique to both visitors and those in the tourism industry.
Our popular annual trade show was our most successful yet! In attendance were more than 40 vendors who supply innkeepers with the products and services that are essential to running their business. Conference attendees could see, smell and touch the amenities that make their guests feel so special. Attendees had the opportunity to talk one-on-one with bankers, loan officers and realtors who work in the B&B industry.
A special thank you to all of our InnSpire Conference sponsors for your generosity and support of both CABBI and CH&LA. InnSpire sponsors included: Lodging Property Brokers, American Dreams (Webervations), Matanzas Creek Winery, Wine Country B&B Inns of Sonoma County, Calling Inn, Tamalpais Bank, ABD Insurance and Financial Services, Wells Fargo, Markel Insurance Company, and Sonoma Bank.
Thank you to Booking Center for sponsoring the Green Packaging Tour of Sonoma County. This tour provided conference attendees and speakers alike the opportunity to learn more about green packaging and eco-tourism.
Innkeeping as a Profession (IAP) Workshop
During the conference, aspiring innkeepers attended a two-day workshop to learn about the industry and what it takes to run a bed and breakfast on a day-to-day basis.
“Overall this was an excellent learning experience for my wife and I. We are one step closer to joining the Bed & Breakfast industry.”
What innkeepers are saying about the InnSpire Conference
“This was the best conference in the last five years. Very organized and professional. I loved the different (new) vendors.”
“We always make new contacts and enjoy renewing old ones. The conference is so informative and inspirational. At the end, I always find myself exhausted from information overload, but that's a good thing – lots of new information to organize, digest, and utilize long after the conference has ended.”
“The event was great! The experience was very good, especially as our first time ever attending an event of this sort. We encountered a lot of wonderful and nice people, and have taken away a lot of great information.”
“I thought your keynote speakers were excellent choices.”
“It would be impossible for us to have provided a more thought-provoking and topical keynote address than Chip Conley. His talk was spot-on. He showed us why he is at the absolute PEAK of his industry. The idea to sell his book was very good and to have him autograph it was brilliant.”
“Judy King was superb. Her examples were clear, her presentation to the point and extremely on target. Ms. King is the caliber of presenter which we should strive for in the future.”
“Hearing Huell Howser speak was a great treat! I had never heard of him before now, but we will definitely be watching from now on. He is a very dynamic speaker, with lots of energy and great information.”
“InnSpire Dinner Party - excellent food, well served in a congenial atmosphere. This is an INTEGRAL part of the INNSPIRE experience. It allows innkeepers to become FRIENDS and to actually have FUN. Where else could we go and watch a LAWYER dance. Well DONE.”