A conversation with Calvin Stovall of ICONIC Presentations
Hospitality has always been the foundation of Calvin Stovall’s career. He earned a master of professional studies degree from Cornell Nolan School of Hotel Administration, beginning as a front desk clerk at a Holiday Inn in downtown Chicago before moving to Hilton Worldwide as vice president of brand marketing for Homewood Suites by Hilton. As Stovall examined the industry and explored why certain brands remain relevant while others fade away, the journey inspired him to branch out on his own as founder of ICONIC Presentations LLC.
Here, Stovall shares how his ICONIC Framework™ helps destinations and planners create iconic event experiences and lasting connections for attendees.
How does your hospitality background help you in collaborating with CVBs, tourism representatives, and meeting and event planners?
Hospitality teaches you to see an experience through the customer’s eyes. That perspective is invaluable when working with CVBs, tourism professionals, and meeting planners because we’re all ultimately trying to create experiences people value, remember, and share with their friends, family, and colleagues.
My background causes me to look beyond logistics and ask: “What does the visitor, guest, or attendee experience from arrival to departure? What makes this destination distinctive? Where can we create emotional connections? What story will attendees tell when they return home?”
People may not remember every detail of an event or destination, but they remember how an experience made them feel—that’s where hospitality becomes incredibly powerful.
What are the four pillars of the ICONIC Framework, and how do they apply to the meetings industry?
Be Unique: Become inimitable, defining your purpose and amplifying your story. For destinations, this means understanding what you offer that can’t be replicated elsewhere.
Be Authentic: Create emotional connections, immerse yourself in the customer experience, and maximize every interaction.
Be Passionate: “Own it. Live it. Love it.” This involves engaging, empowering, and inspiring the people (including staff, board members, and volunteers) responsible for delivering the experience.
Be Consistent: Continually reinforce what matters most while remaining committed to innovation and curiosity. Staying relevant requires evolving without losing the essence of who or what you are.
Together, these principles can transform an event or meeting from something people simply attend into an experience they remember.
What makes a destination iconic, and what role do iconic destinations play in creating memorable meetings?
Being iconic isn’t necessarily about being the biggest, most celebrated, or most luxurious destination. It’s about being distinctive, relevant, and memorable.
Iconic destinations understand who they are. They know their story, embrace what makes them unique, and deliver that experience authentically and consistently. Their distinction might be history, music, food, architecture, culture, people, natural beauty, or a unique spirit of hospitality.
For meetings, the destination should become more than a backdrop—it should become part of the experience. Attendees then remember not only the conference but also where they were, what they discovered, how they felt, and the stories they took home.
What do destinations sometimes overlook that could create iconic appeal for planners and visitors alike?
Sometimes destinations overlook the very things that make them special because those things have become so familiar to the people who live there. It might be a neighborhood, local restaurant, cultural tradition, historic site, music legacy, an entrepreneur, an artist, or a compelling untold story.
I encourage destinations to ask one simple question: “What can someone experience here that they cannot experience anywhere else?” The answers often reveal opportunities hiding in plain sight. When destinations uncover distinctive assets, amplify their stories, and authentically incorporate them into the visitor experience, they create emotional connections that can become a powerful competitive advantage.
Why is it important for meeting planners to seek iconic destinations and incorporate a destination’s iconic characteristics into their event programming?
Attendees want more than an agenda—they want an experience. Incorporating a destination’s unique characteristics into event programming creates a stronger sense of place while offering opportunities for discovery and connection.
That could mean incorporating local cuisine, music, history, artists, entrepreneurs, cultural institutions, neighborhoods, or community voices. These experiences don’t have to be elaborate; they need to be intentional and authentic.
Instead of attendees leaving saying, “I attended a conference in this city,” imagine them saying, “I experienced this city.”
Great meetings provide valuable content. Iconic meetings combine that content with uniqueness, authenticity, passion, consistency, and a genuine sense of place. When attendees leave with an emotional connection and stories they can’t wait to share, you’ve created more than a successful meeting. You’ve created an iconic experience.
