“Going back to sports, one thing I used was visualization. When
GM, I would make decisions as if I was GM. It was kind of a role- - ders, but now my relations with clients are on a more personal level. Even if it is a small client, they will get a call or text from me. I don’t understand how other people who manage this type of facility who owe themselves to their clients sometimes are hesitant to call the client or they have someone else call.” The San Juan Convention Center is a beautiful venue with architecture designed to mirror waves that roll in from the near distance. The roof has such a design, as do door handles and carpeting throughout the three-story
facility. (Note: the
carpeting has worn extremely well in its 13 years but will be replaced shortly throughout the convention center by the same company that performed the initial installation.) The forward-thinking Perez
began his new assignment by walking the venue and suggest- ing changes to the owner Puerto Rico Convention District Au- thority, such as turning an out- dated and mostly unused busi- ness center area into a bar and lounge area with its own naming rights sponsor Don Q rum. Yes, naming rights sponsor.
The convention center has some 10 such brands throughout the facility as part of a sponsorship program that brings in close to $300,000 each year. Perez said that care is given to who is brought in as a sponsor and that they “have to make sense to us and share our same vision.” Because some 80 percent of
revenue from food and beverage comes from banquets, Omar Marrero, executive director of the Puerto Rico Convention Center District Authority, an- nounced last year the appoint- ment of award-winning Puerto Rican Chef Wilo Benet as a collaborator with the center’s culinary team. “People want a top-level product,” Perez said. “They are paying
a premium to be here. Chef Benet is a hands-on chef. Having him is like having a Michael Jordan. Our team looks up to him and every- one has improved their game. It’s an investment.”
center and another inside that are always a hit and shared by attend- ees with their friends on social media. It was one of Perez’s ideas to help brand the venue and make more people familiar with it. Perez adds that he is fortunate to have other forward-thinking individuals supporting him including Brad Gessner, senior vice president-con- vention centers for AEG Facilities. Across the street, cranes hover as the new District LIVE! goes up with a planned opening in Spring 2019. Also managed by AEG, the project is a partnership between Island Hospitality Partners, led by the PRISA Group, along with the Puerto Rico Convention Center District Authority. The project consists of a
performance venue for 6,000 patrons and more than 80,000 square feet of other entertain- ment spaces, as well as a 175- room hotel.
“Having that across the street, not only for the convention center but for Puerto Rico as a destination, is a game-changer,” Perez said. “We are at a cross- roads right now after Hurricane Maria. We still have one-third of our hotel inventory being rebuilt or renovated that should be completed soon. We will have a great convention center, and a Destination Marketing Organization led by Brad Dean called Discover Puerto Rico that is going to be key in bringing in groups and conventions.”
Aftermath Of Maria Perez experienced another
sad day when on September 1 of last year his precious mother passed away in Plantation, Flor- ida. He was with her that day and the following day helped one of his sisters plan funeral arrangements before he arrived back in San Juan in advance of approaching Hurricane Irma, which struck some 60 miles north of Puerto Rico on Sep- tember 6, leaving millions with-
out power and much of the island in tatters. The convention center’s Islands as well as FEMA and other governmental entities. Just two weeks later, on September 20, came the knockout punch
of Hurricane Maria with a fury the island had never before experi- enced. The night before, Perez left the convention center at 8 pm and
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