The Hospitality Professionals Association (HOSPA) celebrated another record-breaking attendance at its annual conference, HOSPACE 2025, which took place on 13th November at the Royal Lancaster London – marking the 20th edition of the flagship event.
This year’s HOSPACE brought together more than 600 hospitality leaders, professionals and innovators from across the UK and beyond. The event was packed with insightful sessions and thought-provoking discussions, supplemented with invaluable networking opportunities, which, once again, served to reinforce HOSPACE’s status as the premier forum for addressing the current and future challenges of the hospitality industry.
The conference featured a series of stimulating sessions covering critical issues affecting the sector, including economic trends, technology advancements, security, ESG and commercial leadership.
The conference opening saw Harry Murray (HOSPA President) deliver an uplifting keynote, reflecting on the leadership and resilience shown in the sector amidst ongoing challenges. He paid tribute to Jane Pendlebury’s 10 years of leadership at HOSPA, underscoring the importance of focusing on solutions and developing talent through apprenticeships, before highlighting the rising opportunities for accessible hospitality. Please add something about Chris Cowls speaking as the new Chair of HOSPA
Jane Pendlebury then did her customary address, before economist Thomas Pugh from RSM UK, provided a macroeconomic analysis tailored to the hospitality sector, offering delegates a deeper understanding of the trends likely to impact the industry in 2026. Pugh pointed to positive growth in the UK at the start of 2025, citing a 1.1% increase in consumer spending, but also highlighted potential challenges – including the anticipated rise in taxes and a difficult autumn budget. Before hospitality data, provided by the likes of BDO LLP, Barclays, HotStats and Venue Performance, helped paint a broader overview of sector performance for those in attendance.
Another highlight of the day was the Leaders’ Panel, which saw top executives, including Andrew Stembridge from Iconic Luxury Hotels, Guillaume Marly from Waldorf Astoria London Admiralty Arch, Louisa Green from RBH Hospitality Management and Anne Golden from Pan Pacific London, discuss the evolving landscape of leadership in hospitality. The panel emphasised the importance of empathy and collaboration when it comes to leadership, as well as offering an open-door policy in developing the next generation of hospitality leaders.
- Inspirational Finance Leader of The Year Award Sponsored by BDO – Jans Mazurs, Regional Director of Finance, Grosvenor House Suites
- Inspirational Revenue Manager of The Year Award Sponsored by Right Revenue and Edwards & Finn – Rebecca Downey, Head of Managed Retail & Digital Marketing, Robinsons Brewery
- Inspirational Technology Leader of The Year Award Sponsored by Exponential-e – Gavin Allison, Global Head of IT, Lore Group
- Inspirational ESG Leader of The Year Award Sponsored by Clean The World – Mark Cox, Director of Engineering, Cheval Collection
- Inspirational Commercial Leader of The Year Sponsored by Infor & Touchstone – Katie Niland, Commercial Director, The Belfry Hotel & Resort
The conference, supported by its headline sponsors Access Group and Agilysys, was packed full of learning with other sessions focused on broad topics, including guest understanding, the value of your meeting and events business, risk responsibility and Martyn’s Law. Various voices contributed from across the field of hospitality, including brands such as Clermont Hotels, Park Plaza Hotels, Radisson Hotels, Edgbaston Stadium, Gough Hotels, Imperial London Hotels, Firmdale Hotels and more.
A series of workshops aimed at tackling industry challenges also offered insight into the latest hotel management technology, featuring input from companies such as Alkimii, Sona, Apaleo, Shiji and Agilysys. The important topic of tips, service charges and troncs was also addressed by Moore Kingston Smith while Net Affinity highlighted its work with the Headland Hotel in Cornwall. All of the panel discussions and more will be available to watch on the HOSPACE website in the next few weeks, via www.hospace.org.
HOSPACE 2025 showcased the best of our industry, as well as shining a light on its future-focused spirit. This year’s event conducted important conversations on key topics, including AI, revenue management, sustainability and leadership, imparting a mix of practical advice and broader understanding and knowledge. We were delighted by both the strong showing and the high calibre of discussions that unfolded this year, which all served to underline how HOSPACE is a must-attend gathering for hospitality professionals. A huge thank you to our incredible HOSPA team, our sponsors, exhibitors and the Royal Lancaster London for helping make HOSPACE 2025 such a remarkable success. Jane Pendlebury, HOSPA CEO
The event also raised £2,403 for Hospitality Action, which supports those who work or have worked in the hospitality industry in the UK.
HOSPACE 2025 continues HOSPA’s mission to connect, educate and inspire the hospitality community, with positive feedback from delegates underscoring the value of this gathering. For more information on HOSPA or to stay updated on upcoming events, please visit: www.hospa.org
About HOSPA
HOSPA – the Hospitality Professionals Association – is a not-for-profit educational organisation formed to bring together professionals involved in all things commercial within the hospitality industry in the UK. HOSPA is recognised as the UK’s authoritative voice in the hospitality industry on financial management, technical accounting issues and the leading arena for debate on investments, hospitality technology developments, revenue management and marketing. For more information, visit: www.hospa.org
