Sam Bhandarkar

Lamont Associates
Job Title: Senior Director
Address: 5322 Watson Road
Riverview, FL 33578
United States
Work Phone: 202-744-0548 ext.
Mobile: 202-744-0548
Email: sbhandarkar@lamontco.com
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Please describe a past program that you feel typifies the business opportunity you represent for our partners:

I joined the team at Lamont Associates (with our friend Matt Ronk) in September after eight years sourcing for an independent show organizer with more than 40 annual programs, ranging from small, hosted executive summits at luxury resorts to citywide conventions for 10,000+. I continue to support a variety of groups of different scale and industry segments. Though I anticipate sourcing larger meetings later this year, my first group booking in my current role was a two-day Florida-based tourism conference for 200ppl with 110 peak RN (250 total RN) that confirmed at the Loews Coral Gables for August 2024.

Please share with us an opportunity you are currently working on:

For the Sunshine State Roadshow, my same Florida tourism program is most likely to next exclusively source Florida destinations & resorts later in Q1 — currently 200ppl with 110 peak RN (250 total RN) but anticipated to require significantly more peak rooms for August 2025, destinations to include SW Florida/Paradise Coast, the Palm Beaches, and possibly NE or Central Florida. Other groups I represent in sourcing will soon be seeking sourcing venues to include: premium upper-upscale to luxury tier hotels for annual corporate board meetings of 20ppl held in NYC and London for 2024 & 2025, convention hotels for annual FY association meetings in DC and New Orleans for 350-500ppl, and urban hotels for a spring 2025 technology user group conference for 150ppl that currently prefers DC and Vegas.

In what locales have you found the greatest program successes?

Vegas, Orlando, New Orleans, Nashville, Phoenix/Scottsdale, Naples, and The Palm Beaches to name a few. MGM Resorts, Loews Hotels, Hilton, Hyatt and Marriott managed a wide variety of independent properties.

Typical duration of meeting or incentive program. (number of nights): 3
Level of luxury you expect for your most important programs: Mid-level Luxury: ($350-$500 per night), Luxury: ($500-$700 per night)

If money were no object, I would: Become a philanthropist and enjoy more global travel.
Something that would surprise you about me: I am a big fan of cricket, prefer to watch the New Zealand professional league, and closely follow the NZ national women’s team, the White Ferns.

Type of company Meeting / conference / event management
Average size of your programs? (number of rooms) Varies by group