This is an interview between Alan Newton, Co-Founder and COO of Eventopedia, and Charles Boyd, Proprietor of 8 Northumberland Avenue.

AN: 8 Northumberland Avenue prides itself as ‘London’s Most Central Venue’; just one-minute’s walk from Trafalgar Square, designated by the Ordnance Survey (and now also by Google maps following our CEO’s request that Google change it – true story!) as the ‘official’ centre of London.

As a former grand hotel, 8 Northumberland Avenue has its roots firmly in Victorian London history. Today it has been completely restored to its former glory to become one of the finest venue spaces in London.

Grand staterooms combined with cutting-edge technology make this the perfect venue for up to 1,000 guests to be entertained in style.

Charles Boyd, I don’t think he will mind me saying, is somewhat of a Maverick entrepreneur, with a big slice of the classic old-fashioned General Manager.

In his heart, Charles is a caterer and restauranteur who – having learned his trade at the ‘Hollings’ modernist building, affectionately referred to as the “Toast Rack” at Manchester Metropolitan University during the late 70’s – was quick to move into entrepreneurial life with his catering venture, Chester Boyd, in 1980.

He admirably blends old fashioned (No, not the drink, though I understand he is no stranger to cocktail making) with innovation and future-proofing, to ensure he fosters an environment promoting the solid foundations and principles of ‘roll your sleeves up and get your hands dirty with the team’ hospitality leadership, supported by innovative technology.

Indeed, this interesting juxtaposition between old and new school is a good way to describe the venue, as Charles outlines:

“It enables top end events with the backdrop of a beautiful historic and unique venue, full of cutting edge technology.”

As a venue, you have invested in innovative technologies recognising the increasing importance of the digital economy and use of technology.

Indeed, your recent success as Most Innovative and Tech Friendly Venue at the 2015 Event Technology Awards gives recognition to this.

Why did you choose each of the technologies you choose for the venue and what research did you undertake to determine the importance of those specific technologies?

“We kept asking ourselves; how could we offer technology that offers a real benefit to our clients? How could we help bring about the death of ineffective conferences? How could that be delivered in the most cost effective way possible? An added benefit to this line of questioning was that if we found a solution this could help differentiate us in the crowded London venue market.

“We had already established impressive partnerships with some of the worlds leading technological companies, including: Cisco, amBX, Philips, Barco and Musion, so developing our conversations with them to answer our questions was an obvious solution.

“The benefits of light and how it affects our mood was not new: The National Geographic Magazine says “Light sways our moods… A ubiquitous and enigmatic form of energy, light now shines as the tool of the future,” but we discovered it was an under used resource in the events industry.

“You’ve heard of “surround sound”? This radical equipment can now be thought of as “surround light”.

“With 16.7 million colours per light, clients have complete creative freedom. This intuitive technology can be linked to music, PowerPoint presentations, TV commercials and films as it reacts to the colours on screen.”

Alan: We find this a very fascinating topic, particularly when you consider the drive towards understanding the Return on Investment (ROI) and Return on Objectives (ROO) from an event.

Alan: Clearly, the event environment has a huge impact upon the delegate experience and how information is absorbed, which links to ROI and ROO. Our very 1st event focussed upon the Impact of Psychology on Events, and light was one of the key aspects discussed.

Can you give us some examples of the impact?

“It is not just visually striking, but has a powerful impact on emotional responses. Are delegates just arriving in London from a long flight? You’ll need some dawn blue light (tells the body clock time to get up) to re-energise them so they can refresh themselves before your event begins.

“Is there a hard-hitting message mid-way through your conference that needs to draw staff’s attention? You’ll need the some red light on the matter.

“Whether the event organiser wishes to immerse the venue in their corporate brand colour, rouse people’s spirits with a yellow light, or help to focus guest’s attention on specific points of the room, Intelligent Lighting can help make this possible.

“We were very focused on investing in our resources to ensure we operated at the forefront of technological advancements: we became the first venue in Europe to install the state-of-the-art Intelligent Lighting system, the first venue in the UK with 3D Holographic Technology and more recently were the first in the World to test holographic telepresence over 4G.

“These partnerships have since created mutually beneficial arrangements in that 8 Northumberland Avenue now acts as a show room for pioneering technology developed by these companies.

“When you consider that we are a beautiful, Grade 2 listed historic building within the heart of London, it’s an intoxicating recipe for great events. The success of these projects has significantly improved our net income.”

Bearing in mind you are very much a pioneer in the meeting hotel & venue space for such investments, and given the consultative role that event agencies play, to what extent do you think event technology is the preserve of an event agency to introduce versus the venue? (How do you see the two working together?)

“Agencies can provide some great solutions to clients regarding what might be the best piece of technology, but I think as a venue, we can offer some great insight into what works and coupled with the investment we have made in technology ourselves we can often provide a more cost effective option to our clients.”

What % of enquiries are interacting with the technologies you are pioneering at 8 Northumberland? 

“All of our enquiries are exposed to the technology we have invested in and all clients who come for a showround are shown it in real-time.

“M&IT magazine highlighted new research from London & Partners and CWT Meetings & Events, where it was claimed ‘more than half’ of the 650 respondents said that new technologies are not being used to their full potential. And more than three quarters (77%) agreed more could be done to integrate sensory technology – devices to stimulate the senses of sight, sound, taste, smell and touch – into their projects.”

The conclusions of the research support the bold innovations you have invested in, particularly around sight, sound, and mood (lighting), so – to reap the rewards of 1st mover advantage – the key challenge is telling and promoting your story. How are you utilising digital innovations for such storytelling and marketing?

“As we started investing in technology we were keen to ensure clients experienced it for themselves. We invited key clients to come for a private viewing and hosted a number of events showcasing the technology in use.

“Working with partners like Eventopedia we hosted an event: Event Tech That Works and showcased the holographic telepresence over 4G.

We’ve seen the benefits ourselves of using technology to engage audiences and create story-telling moments: we reached a far wider audience than those just attending the event. We had an increase in social media activity with new followers, press coverage and some great feedback.”

AN: Given the cautious approach of clients towards event technology usage, the ease of use and an understanding of why you would use technology, which was the focus of our launch event “Event Tech That Works” hosted by 8 Northumberland Avenue in January 2015, it is important for event planners to have some guidance and support with the process of understanding why they would utilise event technology for their events.

A virtual site inspection of 8 Northumberland Avenue. Courtesy Eventopedia

How does 8 Northumberland support the event planner in this regard, and what is your expectation for seeing tangible Return on your Investment?

“We offer a very personalised service to all our clients so we work closely with each one to understand their objectives (we often help identify them!) and offer solutions to ensure they are achieved.

“The success of technological investments has significantly improved our net income and clients seem to be choosing our venue to ensure high engagement and immersive experiences for their clients. Here’s some direct feedback from one such client;

“As there were a number of other finance related events on in London during the weeks of our conference, a venue and venue capability was needed that would set this event apart from our competitors and ensure that delegates would want to attend this rather than others.

“We are excited to be using such a technologically advanced venue, which has 3D hologramming and Intelligent lighting – the only venue in London to have these features. We felt that the venue and its features would be a great fit for our theme and programme for our event, bringing our speakers and presentations to life, providing a visual experience for delegates that they will remember for years to come.”

Hannah Carolan, Events Manager at Jersey Finance

What are you predictions for how technology will impact upon catering? 

The use of technology is rapid and not going to stop any time soon. Chefs will have Smart kitchens, wearables will be common place and for example, could help event teams manage the increasing number of guests with food intolerances as delegates could swipe at a food station to learn what is the best menu option for them.

In conclusion

AN: I first met Charles Boyd at Haberdashers Hall in 2003 when I was Operations Manager at Zibrant and he was Director of his catering & venue management company Chester Boyd, who he later sold to Tim and Robyn Jones of CH&co in 2007.

He spent a few hours showing me around some of the key city of London livery halls in his portfolio at the time – Haberdashers Hall, Stationers Hall, Founders’ Hall – and the thing that remained with me was his absolute passion and enthusiasm for history, grandeur and exemplary service. All of which transcend to 8 Northumberland Avenue.