What if conferences and business events actually helped people feel healthier, more energized, and more connected?

In this episode of StarrCast, Lisa Starr sits down with Reina Herschdorfer, Director of Marketing for Caesars Entertainment, and David T. Stephens, Founder of Olympian Meetings, who both serve as Co-Chairs of the Global Wellness Institute Meetings and Events Initiative.

Together they explore the growing movement toward wellness-centered meetings and events. Recorded live at the HSMAI quarterly meeting in Las Vegas, this conversation examines how the hospitality and meetings industry can move beyond packed schedules and transactional networking to create experiences that support human connection, nervous system regulation, engagement, and long-term wellbeing.

The discussion explores how wellness is becoming an essential part of event design, workplace culture, hospitality strategy, and attendee experience across the global meetings industry.

What You'll Learn

• Why traditional conferences often leave attendees mentally and physically exhausted

• How simple wellness practices like breathwork can improve focus, retention, and authentic connection

• Why event design should support human nervous systems instead of nonstop productivity

• The role wellness plays in attendee engagement, workplace wellbeing, and conference ROI

• How Caesars Entertainment is integrating wellness into large-scale meetings and hospitality experiences

• Why the future of conferences may include wellness metrics alongside sustainability and CSR reporting

• How wellness-first event strategy can strengthen networking, learning outcomes, and attendee satisfaction

Episode Highlights

• 03:38 – Why the meetings industry needs a wellness initiative

• 05:02 – "We don't design events for nervous systems"

• 06:27 – How five minutes of breathwork transformed attendee engagement

• 10:17 – Interactive wellness activations and experiential event design

• 14:52 – Does incorporating wellness into conferences cost more?

• 20:26 – How Caesars Entertainment launched its Wellness for Meetings strategy

• 23:33 – The vision behind the new Meetings and Events Wellness Initiative

• 28:55 – Why wellness in events may become part of the global wellness economy

• 31:21 – The growing importance of NA beverages and healthier hospitality offerings

• 40:38 – David T. Stephens on "Return on Wellness" and measuring event impact

Meet the Guest

Reina Herschdorfer is Director of Marketing for Caesars Entertainment and a leader in advancing wellness-focused meeting experiences across the hospitality industry. She has spent more than two decades in meetings, hospitality, and event strategy and helped launch Caesars Entertainment's Wellness for Meetings initiative.

David T. Stephens is a Wellness Architect, Founder of Olympian Meetings, and host of the Return on Wellness podcast. He specializes in designing wellness-first meetings and events that improve attendee engagement, learning retention, and human performance outcomes.

Tools, Frameworks, or Strategies Mentioned

• Wellness-first event design

• Breathwork integration for conferences

• Experiential wellness activations

• Nervous system-aware meeting planning

• Wellness hospitality strategy

• Return on Wellness framework

• Wellness meeting guides and wellness menus

• Healthy food and beverage programming

• CSR and purpose-driven event experiences

Closing Insight

As wellness continues to influence hospitality, workplace culture, and human performance, the meetings industry has an opportunity to rethink how conferences are designed from the ground up. Small shifts in programming, food, movement, connection, and intentional pauses can dramatically change how attendees feel, learn, and engage long after an event ends.

Subscribe to StarrCast for more conversations exploring the future of wellness, hospitality, leadership, and human-centered business strategy.

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