San Francisco Dreamforce convention promises big boost to downtown hotels and businesses
San Francisco's three-day Dreamforce extravaganza officially kicks off Tuesday, but already the city's downtown hotels and businesses are buzzing with activity and seeing a boost in business.
The St. Regis San Francisco, which holds a prime location across the street from Dreamforce on Third Street, is fully booked Monday to Wednesday. All of its rooms, suites, and event spaces have been reserved for what's billed as the world's largest A.I. event, and the largest conference in the city.
Attendee Lesley Bosworth checked in after a flight from the UK on Sunday.
"It literally is fantastic, I mean the location of this one," she said. "The Marriott, we've got people staying in Union Square as well so we're bringing money into the city, definitely."
Bosworth, who works for Deloitte, a Dreamforce sponsor, is one of some 40,000 attendees expected this week. Salesforce said the conference is projected to inject $90 million dollars into the local economy.
"We've got quite a number of events set up, we've got some networking events, we're hosting clients around the city as well, so we start on those tomorrow evening," she said.
Bosworth said this is her fourth time attending the conference in recent years.
"I love the people, absolutely, I love being here in a vibrant city, it really is," she said.
Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff made headlines last month when he told the San Francisco Chronicle he may pull the huge conference from San Francisco if Dreamforce is affected by the city's homelessness and drug use challenges.
This year's lineup includes industry leaders and stars like Matthew McConaughey, and the Foo Fighters will headline Dreamfest, its annual benefit concert.
"I'm very big on traditions, Dreamforce belongs here, Salesforce belongs here, for many, many years," Nicole Wentz, an attendee from New York. "But if the idea is to continue to have it here and bring in business to the community, and into the city, you want to see things cleaned up a little bit."
Nearby Bottle Club Pub on Geary Street is prepared to host several private parties all week. Future Bars, which owns several downtown venues said based on its buyouts, it's seeing a strong post-pandemic comeback.
One of its locations - Lark Bar on Market Street - is ready for its first Dreamforce. It opened in a new location this spring with high expectations.
"It's huge for us, absolutely. We make like maybe more than we'd make in a slow month in one week. So it's a really big deal," said bar manager Scotty Liberatore.
Future Bars said business overall is not quite at pre-COVID levels. Still, Lark Bar brought in extra staff to handle the expected crowds, especially the overflow from nearby spots that are fully booked.
More information on Dreamforce is available on the Salesforce website.