and Prepares to Celebrate 40th Anniversary and Bring More Growth to the Region in the New Year

SCHAUMBURG, Ill. – JAN. 12, 2023 – After a busy year of promoting its communities and best-in-class destination and meeting spaces, Meet Chicago Northwest (MCNW) is reporting that the region experienced a 49 percent increase in gross sleeping room revenue for 2022 (compared to the previous 12-month period). This growth, which equates to over $201 million in hotel room revenue, indicates that the area is successfully rebuilding after drastic reductions in business travel and tourism since the onset of COVID-19, according to MCNW president Heather Larson, CMP.

“We are still down 9 percent from where we were in 2019, but we are making great progress,” Larson says. “And it’s important to note that the $201 million does not include all of the ancillary revenue enjoyed by the community when our hotel guests eat in our restaurants, shop in our stores and fill up their gas tanks.”

MCNW is celebrating successes of the past year while also making plans for a robust 2023, which marks the destination marketing organization’s 40th anniversary. “As we head into this big anniversary year, we are proud of the legacy MCNW has built, including the increase in visitors and events that we continued to see throughout last year,” Larson says. “We are honored to partner with our eight municipalities – Arlington Heights, Elk Grove Village, Itasca, Rolling Meadows, Roselle, Schaumburg, Streamwood and Wood Dale – to invest in the hospitality community and enhance local economies through visitor and resident spending.”

According to Larson, the MCNW sales team proactively works to draw meetings and conventions to the region, which sits on the northwest edge of O’Hare International Airport, making it a particularly accessible and attractive option for business travelers and groups of all types and sizes. “Our sales team passionately promotes this area to meeting and convention producers on a national level. In 2022, this included crisscrossing the country to attend more than 40 trade conferences, which resulted in booking 81 meetings, 16 sporting events and 24 multi-hotel groups for 2022 and beyond.” This direct selling effort represents an economic impact of more than $17 million for the area in group business. In addition, MCNW’s marketing and partnership team launched a fresh and engaging new website, executed a record-breaking 2022 Restaurant Week featuring 62 participating establishments, celebrated the area’s many attractions during the popular Family Day at Woodfield Mall, and created unique restaurant maps for each of the eight communities. The team also rolled out a new ad campaign and placed hundreds of digital and traditional ads with the new slogan – “On the Edge of Chicago and in the Middle of Everything, Where YOU are the Center of our Universe.” Their successful Expedia campaign alone has earned MCNW’s hotels a proven $1,775,000 in gross revenue, for a return on investment of $30 for every dollar spent.

MCNW is now set to release its updated 2023-2024 Visitors Guide, with new and enhanced information on where to eat, shop, stay and play in the eight communities that comprise the region. The guide includes a quick-reference map with travel tips and lifestyle articles featuring popular establishments, including hot new additions to the area. The guide is sent to those who request information and is widely distributed to local hotels, Illinois highway tourist information centers, O’Hare Airport and select locations in Chicago, Indianapolis, St. Louis and Milwaukee. The Visitors Guide is also available in digital format on the MCNW website, chicagonorthwest.com.

MCNW has been recognized for its creative and strategic work over the past year, including one of the meeting industry’s highest honors – a Stella Award from Northstar Meetings Group. The organization received a Bronze Stella in the Best CVB/DMO Midwest category (Convention & Visitor Bureau/Destination Marketing Organization). In addition, MCNW was honored by SMART Meetings and the Daily Herald Reader’s Choice program, and also completed the Destination Marketing Accreditation Program through Destinations International.

“Our goal is to exceed all industry best practices, and we’re well positioned to continue doing that as we head into this exciting 40th anniversary year,” Larson says. “By enhancing our investment in the local communities we serve, we can help maintain a high quality of life for both visitors and residents, ensuring they continue to have hundreds of thriving restaurants, hotels and attractions to enjoy.”

About Meet Chicago Northwest
Meet Chicago Northwest (MCNW) is a non-profit, 501c6, destination marketing organization whose mission is to promote its service area of eight communities (Arlington Heights, Elk Grove Village, Itasca, Rolling Meadows, Roselle, Schaumburg, Streamwood, Wood Dale) for meetings, convention, sporting events, group tours and leisure visits. MCNW concentrates on direct sales and marketing programs designed to promote the area in order to increase overnight hotel stays, thereby enhancing the local economy through visitor spending. MCNW is one of 37 Illinois-certified convention bureaus and the first in the state to have achieved the prestigious DMAP Accreditation through Destinations International. For more information, visit chicagonorthwest.com.

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