News Archive: August
The Components of Payroll Costs in Hospitality
Robert Mandelbaum | August 15, 2017
By Robert Mandelbaum Per the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average hourly compensation for a hospitality industry employee increased by 3.6 percent in 2016. In the hotel industry, labor costs average roughly 50 percent of total operating expenses[1]. Therefore, with STR reporting an annual RevPAR growth rate of 3.2 percent for the year, it is understandable that U.S. hotel owners and operators were concerned about their ability to increase profits. Based on the results of CBRE Hotels' Americas Research's 2017 edition of Trends® in the Hotel Industry, hotel management was able to contain the growth of labor costs in 2016. On averag...
Long Abandoned, The Colony Beach & Tennis Resort on Longboat Key to Rise Again with St. Regis Slated as Operator
August 1, 2017
Aug. 01--LONGBOAT KEY -- Southwest Florida is about to get a boost in travel luxury it hasn't seen since the Ritz-Carlton opened here in 2001. St. Regis is slated to operate the long-abandoned 18-acre beachfront site of The Colony Beach and Tennis Resort on Longboat Key, its Orlando-based owner said Tuesday. The high-end luxury brand of Marriott International Inc.'s Starwood Hotels and Resorts operates 61 hotels worldwide and just one other in Florida. In addition to that property in Miami, St. Regis' portfolio includes such exotic destinations as Cairo, Bali and Bora Bora. A name like St. Regis adds validity to the area in ...
Grupo Piñero, Bahia Principe’s Parent Company, Names Encarna Piñero CEO
August 2, 2017
The new CEO will report directly to company President and founder, Pablo Piñero MIAMI, FL (Aug. 2, 2017) – Grupo Piñero, the parent company of Bahia Principe – the leader in all-inclusive resorts in the Caribbean, has appointed Encarna Piñero as Chief Executive Officer. The executive will maintain dual responsibilities as the company's Vice President, a position she has held since 2007. Ms. Piñero's promotion is part of Grupo Piñero's generational succession plan and was included in the family protocol established in 2012. It is also a move towards a greater involvement of the second genera...
Top 6 Hotel Success Factors
Luigi Major | August 29, 2017
By Luigi Major What makes some hotels more successful than others? It is true that the selection of a site, market, brand, and management team are crucial to the success of a property. But after many years at HVS in the Consulting & Valuation division, and hundreds of consulting assignments later, I contemplated the question, "Aside from these things, what really makes some hotels work?" In this article, I share what I believe to be some of the most important factors that must be considered in the acquisition or development of a hotel, which ultimately lead to a property's financeability, profitability, and long-term success. I have...
Taking Four-Star Service to a Five-Star
Stephanie Leger | August 7, 2017
By Stephanie Leger In service comparison, four-star service will hit all the five senses at a luxury level, but it's taking those five senses to a level above and beyond creating that mystique of five-star service. For example, when arriving at a hotel, restaurant or any business. Four-star service is the basics of an ordinary arrival, but it's five-star service that creates a memorable experience from the beginning energizing the five senses. How to make an arrival experience five-star. Sight- This is the first impression to WOW the guest on their senses. The establishment is in pristine condition, even the associate's unif...
How to Be Successful with Google Hotel Ads & Hotel Meta Search
GCommerce | August 17, 2017
By Lisa McCreary | GCommerce Solutions | Search Marketing Manager We're breaking down what hotel metasearch means, where it fits into your online marketing strategy and how you can be successful using this marketing channel. In the world of online travel first came the search engines, then the OTAs (online travel agencies, i.e. Expedia) and most recently the metasearch engine websites such as Trivago and Kayak. Hoteliers are forced to evolve and utilize new online channels to be visible and compete effectively online. But what is the most effective way for hotels to use these channels? Since the launch of Google's Hotel CPC program, hot...
Key Pillars of Luxury Hospitality: The Soul
Suzanne Godfrey | August 1, 2017
By Suzanne Godfrey In a series of pieces on luxury hospitality based on interviews with leading hoteliers in Paris, Suzanne Godfrey examines key pillars that define the luxury hotel, or more specially, the Palace. Here she explores the need for the soul – the tangible and intangible, something that's not wholly definable. So far we've examined two key pillars of luxury hospitality: quality and consistency; and service and the emotional connection. Here we turn our attention to the third and final pillar: the soul of the luxury hotel or Palace. It's a concept that's hard to define, a confluence of elements that uniquely come togeth...
Irene Hoek Appointed Vice President of Development, Europe for Rosewood Hotel Group
Rosewood Hotels & Resorts | August 22, 2017
Rosewood Hotel Group has appointed Irene Hoek as vice president of development, Europe. In this role, Hoek will be responsible for overseeing the development and growth of Rosewood Hotel Group's footprint in the region. Hoek joins Rosewood Hotel Group with over 20 years of experience in the luxury hospitality industry and branded residential segment. Most recently, she served as the managing director of real estate development at Aman Hotels & Resorts, where she oversaw the growth of the Aman footprint worldwide. Prior to this role, Hoek spent more than three years with Dorchester Collection, where she served as the head of global d...
