KNOWLAND | February 08, 2024

Lexington leads secondary markets, while Nashville heads the Top 25  

ARLINGTON, Va. — Feb. 8, 2024 — Knowland, the world’s leading provider of data-as-a-service insights on meetings and events for hospitality, reported meetings and events in secondary markets outpaced the traditional Top 25 markets in January. Most notably, the highest growth Top 25 market, Nashville, was up 16.1 percent, while top growth secondary market city, Lexington, Ky., had a 76.4 percent uptick in meetings and events for the month. This exposes a trend that indicates meeting planners are sometimes opting for secondary destinations to reduce costs. This data is sourced from Knowland’s sales intelligence platform and designed to help hoteliers protect and grow their revenue base.

When comparing the top 25 and secondary markets for industry segment performance, both the top 25 market, Los Angeles, and secondary market, Columbus, Ohio, led in Education segment events. Top 25 market Orlando, Fla., saw the most Technology and Healthcare meetings in January, with Austin, Texas, leading in secondary markets for those industry segments. The average space used for meetings in the Top 25 markets was 3,426 sq. ft., while secondary markets were slightly less at 3,000 sq. ft. Average attendees were 124 in the Top 25, while secondary markets averaged 118 attendees.

  • Top five markets by YOY growth in event volume – Nashville ranked highest in the Top 25 U.S. markets, hosting Technology and Healthcare. Below is additional insight into the top industry drivers for these markets.
    • Nashville (+16.1 percent): Technology. HealthCare, National Association, Manufacturing, Pharmaceutical/Biotechnology.
    • Detroit (+10.4 percent): Education, Financial/Banking, Manufacturing, HealthCare, State Association.
    • New Orleans (+7.8 percent): National Association, Technology, HealthCare, Training/Education, Charity/Non-Profit/Social Services.
    • San Francisco-San Mateo (+7.3 percent):  Pharmaceutical/Biotechnology, Financial/Banking, Technology, National Association, HealthCare.
    • Tampa-St. Petersburg (+5.3 percent): National Association, Technology, Manufacturing, HealthCare, Charity/Non-Profit/Social Services.
  • Top five secondary markets by YOY growth in event volume – While Education and State Associations were big in Lexington, Ky., the following five high-growth secondary markets and top industries were:
    • Lexington, Ky. (+76.4 percent): Education
    • Syracuse, N.Y. (+34.6 percent): Social – Sports
    • Richmond-Petersburg, Va. (+33.4 percent): State Association
    • Oklahoma City, Okla. (+29.1 percent): Technology
    • Louisville, Ky. (+24.1 percent): National Association

About the Data: This data is provided to help hoteliers still building momentum gain insight into the top locations selected by today’s meeting planners. This information about the leading industry drivers provides a clear picture of those groups that are returning to the meeting and event space. Insights presented are a result of the analysis of meetings and events data acquired through Knowland data collection and aggregation methods, including field reporting and automated methods of customer and non-customer data collection in primary, secondary, and tertiary markets, as well as its large historical database.