NEW YORK, N.Y. – Last year’s HX: The Hotel Experience Powered by AAHOA featured a whole lot of innovation on display at the Javits Center in New York. Among the many products and services on offer, five companies earned seven awards.
Attendees looking for practical technology solutions got an earful on day one of HX during the fifth annual HX TECHpitch. An all-women judging panel ultimately gave the top TECHpitch prize to Plum, a new product designed to solve the current shortcomings of wine by the glass in hotel rooms. Adam Hoydysh (top right), vice president of Hotel Sales, Plum, made his case at the HX Stage on day one of HX: The Hotel Experience.
“If you look historically at how wine by the glass has been served in the hotel room, there have been two methods,” Hoydysh said. “One is a service-oriented method—room service, introduced in 1936 by the Waldorf Astoria. It’s a 45-minute wait for a lukewarm glass of red wine wrapped in plastic. It’s not a particularly luxurious experience.”
Plum overcomes the mini bar and room service shortcomings by engaging customers in meaningful ways: Hoydysh explained: “The virtual tasting room comes to life and introduces you to the wine, provides you the education with high definition audio and video that tells the story, the characteristics, the fruitiness, the acidities, and all the wine information is available at the touch of the button, including the vintage and the varietal…and the wine is available on demand, perfectly fresh, chilled, and at a fair price.”
Editors’ Choice Product Awards
For the Editors’ Choice Product Awards, exhibitors were invited to submit their latest and greatest products in five categories: 1) Design Elements; 2) Facilities & Maintenance; 3) Food & Beverage; 4) Guest Amenities and Services; and 5) Technology. A panel of esteemed editors from the industry’s leading trade publications ultimately chose five winners.
In the Design Elements category:
• Farmshelf for Hydroponic Grow System
In the Facilities & Maintenance category:
• Olimpia Splendid for Maestro Pro
In the Food & Beverage category, it was a tie:
• Farmshelf for Hydroponic Grow System
• UseMe LIFE for Reusable & Customizable Straws
For the Guest Amenities & Services category:
• Enerqi for The Invisible Fast Wireless Charger
And in the Technology category:
• Enerqi for The Invisible Fast Wireless Charger
Finally, the Best of Show award went to:
• Farmshelf for Hydroponic Grow System
“We have a mission to enable the entire world to have access to clean, fresh produce,” said Patrick Trevor (pictured), sales and development representative, farmshelf, winner of the 2019 Best of Show award, along with two additional editors’ choice awards in Design Elements and Food and Beverage categories. “We’re here to add efficiency to operations, reduce the carbon footprint, and promote sustainability.”
Company founders began three years ago with a slogan of grow where you live, work, and eat. Farmshelf has been selling its wares for two years.
“Hotels need to reduce their carbon footprint, and it’s is on their radar now,” Trevor said. “Hotels are incorporating sustainability budgets nationwide to incorporate indoor hydroponic farming, such as farmshelf, to enable their restaurants to grow produce such as leafy greens, herbs, and edible flowers on site. We grow the world’s greatest viola, most flavorful basil, incredible marigolds—anything from romaine lettuce to chives.”
If you missed HX: The Hotel Experience Powered by AAHOA, the show is scheduled for Nov 8-9, 2020, at the Javits Center in New York.