Written By Kayla Douglas

Since our founding in 1990, SmartFlyer has continued to develop a platform on which the industry’s most sophisticated travel advisors can seamlessly connect with savvy clients – SmartFlyer CORE remains an integral part of that mission.

As our team has taken shape over the past thirty-three years and counting, the way we innovate what traditional “conferences” look like for our community continues to evolve – because the thing is, we’ve never been the conference type. In 2018, our inaugural SmartFlyer CORE summit was held to bring together the agency’s industry-leading advisors alongside a handful of our key partners. From its outset, this first iteration of CORE served to redefine the framework on which industry networking events could be built; we’ve replaced stuffy boardrooms and stale coffee with community-driven, experiential learning against the backdrop of dynamic destinations that matter most to our travelers.

In the intervening years since that New York City kickoff, SmartFlyer CORE has blossomed into so much more than an annual meeting – today, our summit acts as our New Year, homecoming, family reunion, and gala soirée all in one. But CORE is more than a glitzy party smattered with endless hugs – it’s the yearly recalibration back to our roots; or, bearing the risk of sounding too literal, it’s the distillation of our “core” brand DNA amongst the dream weavers who are behind your next life-changing trip.

CORE: “What’s It Stand For Anyways?”

…the ethos of our entire SmartFlyer community – we run on Collaboration, Originality, Relationships, and Education.

Our CORE pillars embody not just the tenets of our annual summit, but speak to the ethos of our entire SmartFlyer community – we run on Collaboration, Originality, Relationships, and Education. Much of the meaning behind these themes remains obvious. Still, it’s worth noting that “Relationships” reign supreme at CORE because it’s through the cultivation of new connections and the fostering of decades-old relationships that our clients feel the direct impact of CORE. We’re deepening our connection with the Owners, General Managers, and global sales leaders who ensure that every check-in feels uniquely yours, from personalized amenities to upgrades and special touches with your tastes in mind every single time.

Partnerships, Delivered

By bringing together some of the top luxury hospitality brands in the business and facilitating meaningful connections between our team and the brands most beloved by our travelers, we continue to elevate the client experience. This year, we welcomed ninety partners across sixty-four brands including Owners and C-level executives behind brands you know and trust like Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, Rosewood Hotels, Belmond, Dorchester Collection, Maybourne Hotels, Peninsula Hotels, Auberge Resorts Collection, Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, IHG Hotels & Resorts, Hyatt Hotels, EDITION Hotels, Bulgari Hotels & Resorts, Barrière Hotels, Singita, Royal Portfolio, and more. With many of our 30 Top Booked Hotels of 2023 in the room, we were able to further enhance connections with the properties you most want to visit.

…we’re continually cultivating partnerships with creative companies who are behind some of our clients’ most inventive trips, too.

But it’s not just the brands with household names you know that our advisors are spending quality time with at CORE – we’re continually cultivating partnerships with creative companies who are behind some of our clients’ most inventive trips, too. Whether it be the Costa Rican ground operator vetting a remote villa for your next off-the-grid surfing trip on the Osa Peninsula or our Cape Town-based partners who ensure flawless execution of your journey from an international flight to a bush plane to being scooped up at the airstrip by your safari guide, these are the gurus who make magic happen. Our job is to know the right people – right down to the fixer in Ibiza who, yes, can get you a second seating reservation at Jondal – so that all you have to worry about is clearing your busy schedule to get the trip out of the group chat.

Why London?

We chose London to play host to our seventh annual SmartFlyer CORE for its creative spirit and vibrant hospitality scene. One of our most cherished elements of the program was the ability to showcase the unique brands and innovators infusing their talents across the cultural fabric of the United Kingdom and beyond; we partnered with local tastemaker Kelly Eastwood of “The London Chatter” to curate an Insider’s Guide to London compiling a collection of small businesses and artisans she loves across the greater London community. As a company made up over 90% women, it was critical to us to support female-founded brands – many of the companies showcased in our Insider’s Guide to London are looked after by ladies, including a handful who we partnered with on bespoke gifting.

Our Host Hotels

Beyond its shopping and restaurant scene, for us, it all comes back to hotels; London holds one of the highest concentrations of newly opened luxury properties on the global stage, so even for the most dialed-in advisor, time on the ground to brush up our shared knowledge was warranted. For the first time, SmartFlyer CORE was hosted across three properties to broaden our team’s understanding of some of the intricacies of our host city’s hottest hotels. We worked alongside The Maybourne Group, Peninsula Hotels, and Dorchester Collection to showcase some of their portfolio’s most distinct properties including The Berkeley, The Emory, The Peninsula London, and The Dorchester.

The Berkeley, Plus a Preview of The Emory

Our kickoff to CORE took place in the soon-to-open ABC Kitchens outlet of The Emory. This all-suite sister hotel to The Berkeley has been on our radar ever since The Maybourne Group announced its further expansion in London and let’s just say, we can’t wait to send you here. With several of our advisor Round Tables taking place in its top suites, we were nothing short of spellbound. One of our favorite fun facts to showcase just how tailormade each stay here will be is that every single booking will include airport or local pickup – it doesn’t get much better.

But let us not get away from sharing gratitude for the impressive feats of logistical wizardry and creativity employed by our friends at The Berkeley. As the host property for our most complex day of programming, their team welcomed us with open arms as we took over their all-day dining outlet (soon to be reimagined!) so that we could host our version of afternoon tea –– that is, one complete with a DJ, Anya Hindmarch custom leather goods, and a pop-up Lisou shop. Oh, and did we mention the number of Cédric Grolet pastries that were consumed to sustain us as we made it all happen? Perhaps it’s best we don’t.

The Peninsula London

If there’s one thing we know about our Smarties, it’s that they’re passionate about scouting the newest products on the market. After being the first industry partners to receive a hard hat tour of The Peninsula London in June, we were thrilled to see the property fully operational as they played host to our second day of CORE programming. We were fortunate to be able to activate both of their dedicated events floors for our signature Study Hall, as well as intimate Master Classes in fun spaces like their very own cinema.

The Dorchester

With nearly one hundred years of history, The Dorchester is synonymous with quintessential British elegance. We were honored to hold our grand finale of CORE programming at the property not only for its long-held foothold on the London hospitality scene but also to showcase its pristine renovation. With irreverent outlets like The Vesper Bar as our final destination for the CORE after-party, our most cherished aspect of our time here was the juxtaposition of what was expected of The Dorch, and what lies below its surface for those who truly know it: a jolly good time.

SmartieHunt

The return of our beloved SmartieHunt activation found us facilitating thirty groups of Smarties visiting just as many hotels; each advisor was meticulously paired with the three properties to visit based on their clientele’s tastes. Super traditional? Off to afternoon tea at Claridge’s you go. Prefer something more rooted in sustainability? Terrarium making at 1 Hotel Mayfair it is. Seeking a signature suite with a place in history? The Kipling Suite at Brown’s awaits you to leaf through a copy of The Jungle Book in its place of origin. Ultimately, CORE very much falls into our “choose your own adventure” ethos, and this portion of our program empowered advisors to do just that as they scout new products for their clients while further deepening relationships with their colleagues, some of whom hailed from as far as Sydney.

In true CORE fashion, our partners showcased their creativity as they translated how they create special moments for our mutual guests. At The Raffles London at The OWO, Smarties were guided through its expansive footprint by the property’s Historical Butler to learn more about the legends and characters that worked in its building over the years, ending in one of their Heritage Suites. Meanwhile, at The Charlotte Street Hotel, our Firmdale partners leaned into their impressive art collection as they walked the hotel’s whimsical halls. Over in fashionable Knightsbridge, Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park took the theatric route to replicate the entire lifecycle of two clients who fell in love during their stay and returned to the hotel to celebrate many of life’s milestones, including their wedding…it doesn’t get more memorable than that!

SmartFlyer ONE Celebrations

Part of our annual tradition as we start the year is rooted in recognizing the exceptional performers who have made indelible contributions to the agency. This year, we decided to carve out an evening during CORE to honor our top producers in style. This intimate dinner was hosted at the private member’s club and beloved London institution, Annabel’s. We kicked off the night by announcing that our SmartFlyer ONE 2023 recognition trip will take place in fall 2024 in partnership with Querido, a collection of some of the finest family-owned hotels in the world. We look forward to gathering this group in the Dolomites at FORESTIS to continue the celebration later this year.

SmartFlyer CORE: Study Hall

To jumpstart the morning at The Peninsula London, we activated our Study Hall session to create dedicated meeting time amongst attendees. In addition to several other organic networking opportunities throughout the show, Study Hall empowers the team to ask questions and discuss product updates amongst General Managers, Directors of Sales, and even Owners of some of the world’s most sought-after hotels and destinations. This year, our Study Hall activation facilitated over 2,000 one-to-one connections.

Master Classes

Leaning into our education pillar, an afternoon of Master Classes unfolded amongst self-selected groups based on personal interest in sessions led by subject matter experts. Attendees had the opportunity to pick the sessions that resonated most with them, including:

• Generative AI: What exactly is Generative AI? How it is different than other forms of AI? How can Generative AI be used by SmartFlyer travel advisors? These are all questions that expert Tim Brooks, Managing Director from Silicon Valley-based World Wide Technologies, addressed with our audience.
• Well-being for Working Mothers: Amy Brann employed her scientifically underpinned insights from the world of neuroscience to explore the genetic and environmental factors around wellness. She created a safe space for our team to be vulnerable and discuss the real challenges facing them as working mothers, in turn leading them to breakthrough conversations with Brann about their wellbeing.
• Content Creation: With social storytelling as a key tool for so many travel advisors, we tapped into Kelsey Heinrichs, a seasoned travel blogger and photographer. Heinrichs unveiled the strategies she’s employed to build her audience @kelseyinlondon to craft scroll-stopping content with actionable tips through her detailed tutorials.

Relationship Dinners

In an aim to ensure there was dedicated time carved out for our partners and advisors to see London by night, our cherished Relationship Dinner component found our attendees at thirty restaurants dotting the city. Some of London’s hottest tables were secured including Park Chinois, Bacchanalia, Pavyllon, and private member’s club Maison Estelle. We also loved to see some of the types of private dining opportunities we can create for clients replicated including an exclusive Chef’s Table in the kitchen of The Dorchester and privatizing the Food Studio at Fortnum & Mason.

SmartFlyer CORE: The Big Stage

On our final day of programming, attendees came together at The Dorchester to listen to agency updates, a conversation on sustainability, and an inspiring keynote. Our annual 365 presentation by Erina Pindar, COO and Managing Partner, showcased both the industry-leading production of our advisors as well as trends we’re seeing in 2024. The morning closed with a thought-provoking conversation with Juliet Kinsman that touched on how the luxury travel industry can have a positive and purposeful impact on sustainability. And last but certainly not least, we were joined by two-time Olympic champion and British Icon Dame Kelly Holmes shared the story behind her celebrated career marked by many moments of overcoming obstacles to turn dreams into reality.

Seeing London by Foot

The final afternoon of CORE was spent exploring London as our clients would while we tested out many of the guided tours our team can offer. With over thirty tours held in conjunction with local partners, attendees were able to choose between visiting The House of Parliament, Churchill War Rooms, Tate Modern Museum, the London Underground, some of the city’s most notable fashion houses, and more. Our insider guides secured coveted access to many of the sight’s most sought-after spots, in turn helping them come home armed with knowledge about how to better craft your next London stay.

‘Ain’t No Party Like a Smartie Party

CORE 2024 culminated with a closing soirée held at The Dorchester where the property put together a culinary journey across its legendary ballroom, recreating the property’s full suite of restaurant offerings. Attendees were able to get a taste of The Grill by Tom Booton, Alain Ducasse, China Tang, CUT, and more. It’s been said that there “‘ain’t no party like a Smartie Party” and after seeing our crew dance the night away in the ballroom before retiring to enjoy Jake the Rapper, we have to say, we agree.

SmartFlyer CORE 2025: Lake Louise Bound, Baby!

Next year’s SmartFlyer CORE will be hosted in partnership with ACCOR at the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise where we’ll once again reimagine our event. The eighth iteration of CORE will be an intimate, retreat-style gathering filled with cozy outdoor activities from skiing to snowshoeing and if you know us, plenty of après in between. Until next year, friends.