SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) – The annual Dreamforce conference has generated a business boom in downtown San Francisco, generating an expected $130 million in revenue for the city.
KRON4’s Sarah Stinson spoke with hotel and restaurant leaders in the video player above.
People packed the streets of downtown San Francisco on Wednesday for the final night of Dreamforce.
“I was standing at the corner of 4th and Mission streets and saw wave after wave of people coming down the street — it felt really big and bigger,” says John Anderson, general manager of Marriott Marquis.
The conference, held at the Moscone Center, attracts nearly 50,000 participants from more than 150 countries. The influx of visitors fills nearby hotels.
“It’s great to see people walking down the street again taking advantage of the space,” says John Eric Sanchez, owner of Executive Order Bar and Lounge.
“Most of our hotels are sold out,” says Anderson. “The economic impact on downtown San Francisco is absolutely amazing.”
Anderson, who also serves as chairman of San Francisco Travel, says the city has so far proven to be a great host for a massive event like this.
“If you look around the streets, there are officers on strike, there are ambassadors from the Yerba Buena Community District, and welcome ambassadors from SF Travel. There’s a big presence on the streets — the job they do is to greet people and ask how they’re enjoying San Francisco.”
Crowds flocked to bars and restaurants like an executive order.
“For us, this is a glimmer of hope that San Francisco can go back to what it used to be,” says Sanchez, who opened the bar and lounge in 2018. “I’ve struggled to survive here ever since — hoping for better days.”
Sanchez says that while it hasn’t been easy, conventions like Dreamforce provide much-needed business for all downtown businesses. But without a conference, Sanchez says it’s still difficult to convince downtown workers to stop by his business.
“Some kind of forgotten people in San Francisco finally had the opportunity to make a living for themselves,” Sanchez said. “In the last six months, we have had to do a lot of internal programming to get people to come here. Weekends are a challenge for us and even weeknights. It seems the economy has not fully recovered locally and globally.”
Thousands attended Dreamfest at Chase Center on Wednesday night, a benefit concert for UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals. Metallica and Benson Bone performed. Thursday is the last day of the conference.