The first Hospitality Festival in Munich - we were there!
On 21 & 22 June 2023, upnxt23 took place in Munich for the first time. Read on to find out what there was to experience and which exciting panels awaited us. Have fun reading!
Welcome to UPNXT23.
The very first festival of the hospitality industry, elevatr's upnxt23, took place in Munich this year and Online Birds was there as a partner! Together with six colleagues from Munich and Berlin, we arrived. We started at 09:15 and Verena Pausder started with an inspiring opening session.
For my colleagues Freddi and Emma it continued on the Main Stage with the presentation "Ready for new Tourism". I went straight to the Conference Stage, where Carolin Stüdemann from Viva con Agua gave an exciting talk. It was about the potentials that can drive change in a team. It was inspiring to see how active Viva con Agua is in this regard in order to strengthen the innovative power of the participants. For example, they organised a multi-day event full of creative workshops. That this strategy works can now be seen in Viva con Agua's strong presence. And now something completely new is being built for them: a hotel - the Villa Viva! Afterwards, we met together on the Conference Stage. Here Philipp Ingenillem moderated the talk "Personality over Tech? There were exciting insights into various hotel concepts and some suggestions.
For my colleagues Freddi and Emma it continued on the Main Stage with the presentation "Ready for new Tourism". I went straight to the Conference Stage, where Carolin Stüdemann from Viva con Agua gave an exciting talk. It was about the potentials that can drive change in a team. It was inspiring to see how active Viva con Agua is in this regard in order to strengthen the innovative power of the participants. For example, they organised a multi-day event full of creative workshops. That this strategy works can now be seen in Viva con Agua's strong presence. And now something completely new is being built for them: a hotel - the Villa Viva! Afterwards, we met together on the Conference Stage. Here Philipp Ingenillem moderated the talk "Personality over Tech? There were exciting insights into various hotel concepts and some suggestions.
Instagram Takeover, visionary talks and culinary flights of fancy.
After we had tried our way through the numerous food stands, it was time for Freddi and Emma to take over the Instagram account of the Hotelverband Deutschland, or IHA for short. I drifted through the Congress Center, exchanging ideas with other hospitality service providers, such as Hotellistat. Then it was off with Ben to the presentations "Hotel gastronomy learns from Rooms" by Andri Zinsli and "Gastronomie über den Tellerrand" with Ulrich Strünck, Stefanie Boeck, Patrick Rüther and Tellerrand Consulting. Here there was a lot of input on how F&B can be controlled more successfully and how gastronomy will develop in the future. Meanwhile, Freddi and Emma attended the session of our office colleague Burkhard von Freyberg with the topic "New Kids on the Block - Hospitality beyond the horizon". Afterwards, there was another talk, again moderated by Philipp Ingenillem, which dealt with digitalisation in the hotel industry. The focus was on the areas of employees, guests and sustainability. Afterwards, the Zarges von Freyberg team went back into the hustle and bustle and there were again good conversations accompanied by delicious snacks from the catering.
What a day... a successful day comes to an end.
Slowly but surely, we were nearing the end of the presentations, and at the end, prizes were awarded for the categories start-up, product innovation and scholarships. And finally there was a session "What's on the horizon" with Prof. Tim Bruysten, who gave us a little insight into the future. For a successful day, there was also a successful finale: a live performance by the band LaBrassBanda! Together we enjoyed the evening to the fullest with our industry colleagues. We had a wonderful day with many great encounters, inspiring input and mega delicious food!