Know Your Numbers: Making Confident Pricing Decisions in a Cost-Conscious Market
🕒 Time: 3:00–4:00 pm
💻 Location: Online
Rising costs. Tighter budgets. What's the right response?
Conference and event professionals are under increasing pressure to balance affordability, quality and financial sustainability. The challenge isn't simply winning business – it's understanding which opportunities create value and how to make confident commercial decisions in a changing market.
Join us for a practical discussion with Melissa Sobo, Director of Sales at Nottingham Venues, and Alice Richardson, Events and Marketing Manager at Chester Town Hall, as they share their experiences and perspectives on pricing, profitability and event performance.
Together we'll explore:
- Understanding the true cost of delivering events
- Evaluating the profitability of packages and services
- Building pricing strategies that support long-term sustainability
- Making more informed commercial decisions
Join us to gain practical insights and discover how a better understanding of your numbers can help you make more confident decisions about pricing, packaging and performance.
Speakers:
Ross Cox- Co-Founder, Dispace
Ross Cox is Co-founder of Dispace, the team behind Switch venue management software, and an experienced sales and commercial professional with a track record of unlocking revenue and profitability opportunities for organisations.
Known for combining strategic thinking with a practical, no-nonsense approach, Ross focuses on improving margins, increasing utilisation and creating sustainable income streams. He brings a refreshingly honest perspective on what drives profitability in the real world — balancing commercial ambition with operational reality.
Melissa Sobo – Director of Sales, Nottingham Venues
Leading the sales strategy across a diverse portfolio of event spaces that is set within the beautiful University of Nottingham campuses.
I genuinely love what I do—building relationships, spotting opportunities and bringing people together through great events. With 30+ years across hospitality, retail and professional services, I bring a strong client-focused, commercial mindset. My focus is to deliver memorable guest experiences by collaborating effectively within teams, cultivating partnerships, and driving successful business outcomes for everyone involved.
Alice Richardson- Events & Marketing Manager, Chester Town Hall
Alice Richardson is a venue and events professional who has successfully transferred the creativity, pace and commercial mindset of the festival industry into the management and promotion of historic public venues. As the lead for Chester Town Hall, she is passionate about finding new ways to activate spaces, attract diverse audiences and create memorable experiences.
Drawing on her background in large-scale events and festivals, Alice brings fresh perspectives on venue utilisation, customer experience and commercial growth, helping one of the region's most iconic civic buildings evolve to meet the needs of modern event organisers while retaining its unique heritage and character. Her approach combines commercial thinking with a strong focus on community value, ensuring Chester Town Hall remains a vibrant and relevant destination for conferences, celebrations and cultural events.