REPORT ON THE JAMAICA CONFERENCE CENTRE The start of the business year was marred by the civil unrest in West Kingston which affected the confidence levels among customers. Tremendous effort was extended by the team to regain lost confidence, garner new business to the Downtown Central Business District (CBD) and maintain the Centre on the public’s list of viable event venues. Strategies employed ranged from promotions in the print media to personal sales calls which translated into increased activities of June and July. The events included weddings, new groups and repeat bookings. International recognition was given to the Centre, its team, and management with the awarding of the prestigious title of the “Caribbean’s Leading Meetings & Conference Centre” at the World Travel Awards in October 2010. The month of December brought mixed fortunes for the JCC. The opening session of the Commission of Enquiry on the Manatt Phelps and Phillips matter hosted by the Cabinet Office in collaboration with the Ministry of Justice received significant media coverage. As time progressed, and all Jamaicans tuned in to the inquiry, some clients had reservations about having their events at the venue during the time. Consequently some events were postponed while others were cancelled. On a positive note, December saw the re-opening of the restaurant to the public under the management of concessionaire “From Thought to Finish”. The restaurant was renamed Sea Breeze and has enjoyed a growing customer base since then. The alliance with “From Thought to Finish” has been a positive one and has strengthened the position of the JCC in the market place. The contractual arrangements have also resulted in increased revenue from rental of the Restaurant. Major challenges included:
• Malfunctioning of kitchen equipment such as chiller, steam tables and ice machines.
• Inadequate parking space on weekdays, resulting from the reduction in allocation in the multi-level car park (a
facility marketed as a part of the JCC offering) down to fifty spaces at the end of the review period. With the limitations in mind, arrangements have been made to utilize the Old Myrtle Bank location adjacent to the Jamaica Stock Exchange lot to accommodate the overflow parking when necessary. Its distance from the Centre however makes this a less than ideal situation.
• Reduced staff complement with the temporary reassignment of one member of the team to the UDC Office.
Total revenue generated this year was $38,963,398, an increase of $3,648,957 over the previous review period (April 2009 - March 2010). The graphs below indicate the breakdown of income over a monthly and quarterly period. It should be noted that the revenue indicated for the previous period included gross income from meals. However, the revenue generated for this review period indicated a net income where food costs have already been deducted. This reflects a significant increase in revenue generated from the commission earned from the provision of food and beverage. In addition, a consistent income continues to be earned from the Ministry of Justice which rents the Caucus
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Rooms for use as Civil Court. Finally, the hosting of the Manatt Enquiry over five months, positively impacted revenue.
ANNUAL REPORT 2010 - 2011