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HITEC Helps 2015 – Hospitality Conference to Raise Funds for Central Texas Flood Damage
HFTP | June 5, 2015
AUSTIN, TEXAS, USA (June 5, 2015) — The Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition and Conference (HITEC®) being held June 15-18, 2015, produced by Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®), is organizing several avenues for exhibitors and attendees to donate monetary funds to the United Way for Greater Austin. These efforts will be the basis of HITEC Helps, HFTP/HITEC's way of giving back to the community. All donations to the United Way for Greater Austin will go towards helping those victims affected by the Memorial Day flooding devastation in and around Austin, Texas, USA, the host city of HITEC 2015. The Greate...
InvoTech Returns to HITEC with RFID Uniform System and Linen System
InvoTech Systems | June 4, 2015
At HITEC Visit InvoTech Systems in Booth #736 June 16 to 18 at the Austin Convention Center 15th Year at HITEC: Industry Leader Showcasing New Product Offering – Pool Towel System LOS ANGELES – June 4, 2015 – InvoTech Systems will be exhibiting at HITEC, the world's largest hospitality technology show, for its 15th year. InvoTech will showcase its RFID Uniform and Linen Management Systems that increase property profitability. InvoTech will also launch a new RFID Pool Towel Tracking System, which is a module of the InvoTech Linen System. InvoTech is the leading provider of advanced Linen and Uniform Management Systems that integr...
Duetto’s Revenue Strategy Solutions will be Implemented Worldwide at Pestana Hotel Group
Duetto | June 4, 2015
Duetto brings new levels of insight and revenue optimization to Pestana's close to 90 Hotels in Europe, Africa and the Americas London, June 4, 2015 - Duetto, the market leader in hotel profit optimization technology, announced that Pestana Hotel Group will implement its revenue strategy solutions, bringing new insights on pricing and demand to close to 90 Pestana hotels on three continents. Coming just months after the launch of Duetto's EMEA headquarters office in London, the deal with Lisbon-based Pestana brings Duetto's solutions to luxury hotels in five European capital cities, and continues Duetto's rapid expansion...
Moneyball: Big Data and Raising Your Hotel Company’s Batting Average
Aptech Computer Systems | May 28, 2015
'Outside-The-Box' Business Intelligence Analysis and Reporting Reveals Competitive Advantages that Lift Performance and Profitability By Cam Troutman, Vice President of Aptech Computer Systems May 28, 2015 - This viewpoint is about money and baseball. Hotel company financial executives are like the general manager of the baseball team in Michael Lewis' book, Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game. The book argues that the Oakland A's' front office took advantage of innovative analytical measures of player performance to field a team that could better compete against richer competitors in Major League Baseball. If you are in the h...
Assila Investments and Shangri-La Sign MOU for Management of New Luxury Hotel in Jeddah
Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts | May 27, 2015
Hong Kong, May 27, 2015 – Shangri-La International Hotel Management Limited and Assila Investments have signed a Memorandum of Understanding in relation to the management and operation of a luxury hotel and residences development in Jeddah, the second-largest city in Saudi Arabia and the principle gateway to Mecca. Slated to open in early 2018, it will be the first Shangri-La in Saudi Arabia. The 242-room hotel will be in a prominent 65-story development located on Jeddah Corniche Road facing the Red Sea. Shangri-La will also manage and provide services to the 122 residences in the tower. The hotel will feature three restaurants, func...
Pebblebrook Hotel Trust Acquires LaPlaya Beach Resort & LaPlaya Beach Club in Naples, FL for $185.5M
Noble House Hotels & Resorts | May 22, 2015
BETHESDA, Md.--Pebblebrook Hotel Trust (NYSE:PEB) (the "Company") today announced that it has acquired LaPlaya Beach Resort, a 189-room, waterfront, luxury resort and LaPlaya Beach Club, a private members club located at the resort, (together, "LaPlaya") for a combined purchase price of $185.5 million. "We're thrilled with the opportunity to expand our portfolio into the thriving market of Naples, Florida with the acquisition of LaPlaya," said Jon Bortz, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Pebblebrook Hotel Trust. "The resort is uniquely located on the beach and within one of the most affluent coastal resort communities in the count...
Hospitality’s First Hackathon Postponed until Later This Year
HFTP | May 21, 2015
AUSTIN, TEXAS USA (May 21, 2015) – Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP®) has elected to postpone the HITEC Hackathon, which was slated to be the first hospitality hackathon, due to a lack of available space. The hackathon gathers technology developers for a two-day straight competition which tasks participants to come up with solutions to specific hospitality technology problems. The event was originally scheduled to run in the 48 hours preceding HFTP's Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition and Conference (June 15–18 in Austin, Texas USA), which is expecting record attendance this year. The City of Austin ...
The New York Times and Financial Times Launch New Digital Access Program for Hotels
The Financial Times | May 21, 2015
U.S. Hotels Can Provide Guests Unlimited Access to NYTimes.com and FT.com NEW YORK, May 21, 2015 –The New York Times and Financial Times today announced a new, first-of-its-kind program available to U.S. hotels to provide their guests with unlimited access to NYTimes.com and FT.com on any device connected to the hotel's network. The program offers hotels a chance to purchase their own branded web portal that provides guests free entry into both NYTimes.com and FT.com. Participating hotels will receive promotional materials in the form of instructional keycards to notify guests about the amenity. Guests staying at hotels with this prog...
PAS Solves Integration Heartburn with pasUNITY Integration HUB (IHUB)
PAS | May 18, 2015
Integration no longer needs to be difficult With hundreds of connections already in place, pasUNITY Integration HUB (IHUB) already connects to a majority of applications in any given hotelier's financial ecosystem. "pasUNITY IHUB, a next generation technology, that's built specifically around hospitality, leverages our experience in connecting over 1,000 hotels across the globe to revenue generation, labor, payroll, banking and other auxiliary systems for hourly, daily, weekly, monthly and year-end transaction load, reporting and consolidation," says Bill Euler, President and CEO of pasUNITY. Hoteliers require data, and lots of it. This...
Powered by Duetto, Speakers and Topics Announced for the 3rd Annual Revenue Strategy Summit (RSS)
Duetto | May 14, 2015
July 29, 2015 at the Affinia Liaison Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C. RSS Anticipates 300+ Participants, Discussing Strategies to Keep Hotels Ahead in Today's Dynamic Marketplace New York, May 14, 2015 … Duetto, Kalibri Labs and Silver Hospitality Group, LLC announced the speakers and agenda for the third annual Revenue Strategy Summit (RSS), a gathering of thought leaders and practitioners who will examine the forces reshaping the hospitality industry and how marketing and technology must evolve to meet new demands. Scheduled for July 29th at the Affinia Liaison, Capitol Hill, the full-day conference will feature industry leader...
Survey Says: Hospitality Sector Failing to Calculate Full Cost of Laundry
TRSA | May 11, 2015
ALEXANDRIA, Va., May 11, 2015 – Two national surveys recently completed by opinion and research firm Fabrizio Ward found a large segment of the hospitality sector is failing to calculate the full, accurate cost of laundry on their businesses and that outsourcing laundry services is better for the environment. The surveys were commissioned by TRSA, the leading global textile services trade association headquartered in Alexandria, Va. By reaching out to both textile service decision makers and consumers nationally, key findings for the hospitality industry included: Less than half of all hotels account for key laundry cost such as...
Mom Knows Best: Hotel Marketing Lessons from Your Mother
Dave Spector | May 6, 2015
Back by popular demand, we've updated one of our most popular posts from last year! Could Mom be the best hotel marketer ever? Quite possibly! All throughout your childhood, she recoiled at the sight of your dirty room. She questioned your questionable friends. Her never-ending nagging was enough to keep our eyes rolling for years. But guess what? Turns out her sage, maternal advice is completely applicable to your work as hotel marketers. Check out the hotel marketing advice hidden inside your mom's favorite sayings... proving again that mother knows best: Mom: "If your friends jumped off a bridge, would you jump too?" Hidden Hotel Mar...
US Cities Achieve World Class Status as Foreign Investment Booms
Kathy Conroy, MAI | April 22, 2015
By Kathy Conroy, Apr 16, 2015 This article offers a comparison of international investment in US Hotels during periods of strong hotel operating performance and a close look at Florida. In September 2013, my colleague at HVS Miami, Andrew Cohan MAI, published an article entitled "Miami's Leap to Global Gateway Status". In that article, Cohan pointed out several interesting facts denoting Miami's shift to a global or world gateway city. One of the factors noted by Cohan was the movement in the HVS Hotel Valuation Index for Miami -- from just above the national average index in 2002 to almost four times the national average index by 2011...
Hotel AG Continues Pace of Closings
Hotel AG | April 20, 2015
ATLANTA - April 20, 2015 - Hotel Assets Group, LLC (Hotel AG) is pleased to announce several of the firm's recent closings were the Hampton Inn & Suites at the San Francisco Airport, The Hampton Inn & Suites in Frazer/Great Valley, Pennsylvania and a completed auction process on a hotel in Louisiana. Eric Gunderson, a partner located in the firm's Los Angeles office, handled the sale in San Francisco, and Michael Bernath, from the firm's Atlanta office, handled the transactions in Pennsylvania and Louisiana. The firm has been involved in 191 hotel transactions over the last 24 months with many of the assets being Hilton, Marriot...
Hotel AG Closes San Francisco Airport Hotel
Hotel AG | April 20, 2015
ATLANTA - April 20, 2015 - Hotel Assets Group, LLC (Hotel AG) is pleased to announce that it has arranged the sale of the Hampton Inn & Suites in Burlingame, California at the San Francisco Airport. Eric Gunderson, a partner in the firm's Los Angeles office, exclusively represented the Seller, Saturn Investment Group, LLC. The Hampton Inn & Suites is located less than two miles from the main terminal of the San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and only 14 miles from downtown San Francisco. SFO had a record of 47 million passenger boardings in 2014, marking eight consecutive years of passenger growth. Eric Gunderson remarked...
Messaging and the Art of Simplicity
Alan Young | April 15, 2015
How Travel Technology Companies Can Create Effective Messages That Will Resonate with Your Prospects and the Press by Alan Young, President, Puzzle Partner Ltd. Companies frequently ask me how to refine or redefine their corporate messaging so that it will resonate with their audience and make their brand stand out. I have discovered that as companies grow or decide to position themselves for new markets, one of the paramount challenges they face is ensuring prospective clients understand what they have to offer and how it can benefit them. Hotel and travel technology companies have become encumbered by explanation. Is it a solution or ...
Hotel Innvestor President to Speak at Industry Confab on Subject of Crowdfunding
Hotel Innvestor | April 10, 2015
Boston – A leading expert in the field, Hotel Innvestor founder and President Tim Edgar will speak on the subject of "Crowdfunding vs. Private Equity" at the Hotel Equity and Lenders Perspectives (HELP) Conference April 14 at the Seaport Hotel. "The HELP Conference is a two-day, national networking event dedicated to providing timely and accurate information from senior-level experts, lodging industry leaders and deal-makers," according to the conference's website. Among those experts and leaders will be Mr. Edgar, who will speak on a panel with other industry pundits at 10 a.m. Tuesday. The focus of this year's meeting, "Making Waves...
Unique Travel Startups and Services That Can Help Optimize Revenue and e-Commerce Strategies
Amanda Bryant of TNJ Management | April 9, 2015
by Amanda Bryant It's no secret that third party services and new intermediaries are popping up faster than we can keep track of, however as revenue and e-commerce managers we should constantly be evaluating new services as opportunities to not only improve RGI, but optimize channel mix by improving ADR and reducing guest acquisition and distribution costs. Let's admit the fact that intermediaries have scale, which individual hotels and small portfolios will never achieve, especially when we try to affordably compete in SEO and SEM. While we wish the marketing fees paid to our franchisors are the only investment we need to make in filli...
RobertDouglas Advises Clarion Partners on the $670 million Refinancing of a 65-hotel Portfolio
RobertDouglas | April 1, 2015
San Francisco, CA – April 2, 2015 – RobertDouglas announced today that it advised Clarion Partners on the refinancing of the 65-property CBM Two Hotels LP Portfolio. Bolstered by robust in-place cash flows, strong geographic diversification, and institutional Sponsorship, the Portfolio attracted strong interest from a wide array of lenders. The $670 million five year, fixed-rate mortgage financing was provided by Deutsche Bank who is expected to securitize the loan in a single-borrower deal later this year. The Portfolio is comprised of 65 Courtyard by Marriott hotels totaling 9,590 keys and located in 29 states and 46 metropolitan ...
Magnolia Hotel Group Simplifies Global Property Budgets for Growing Portfolio
Aptech Computer Systems, Inc. | April 1, 2015
Multi-Brand Operator Implements Enterprise Budgeting and Accounting; GMs Refine Spend and Revenue in Real Time April 1, 2015 - "We recently took over a portfolio of 11 hotels where everything was done by hand. Accounting, budgets everything was in Excel spreadsheets. Our team knew immediately that we needed uniform accounting and an easier budget process across the properties," said Darren Phillips, CHA, principal of Magnolia Hotel Group. Columbus, GA-based Magnolia Hotel Group (MHG) owns and operates Marriott, Hilton, IHG and Wyndham properties in the Southern US. "Today we have everything online and our GMs don't need an accounting ba...
Let’s Talk About Cost Controls
Kirby D. Payne, CHA | March 30, 2015
A hotel manager's most important tasks are making money for the owner and maintaining the asset. Satisfied guests and motivated employees are among the tools, but cost controls are also critical components of the formula. by Kirby Payne Managing expenses is among the most important things a manager does to achieve an owner's goals of profit and value. (I never say it is the most important because everyone knows, "Nothing happens until somebody sells something." But, it is close!) The most central elements of effective expense management are proactive rather than reactive. The first step in expense management is budgeting, and zero-based...
Hotel ICON Becomes First Hong Kong Hotel to Implement Duetto’s Revenue Strategy Solutions
Duetto | March 30, 2015
Duetto partners with the 262-room luxury independent hotel to bring new levels of insight and revenue optimization to one of Hong Kong's most visible properties Hong Kong, March 30 2015 - Duetto, the market leader in hotel profit optimization technology, announced that Hotel ICON is the first in Hong Kong to implement its revenue strategy solutions, bringing new insights on pricing and demand to the landmark property. A leader in design and luxury guest services, Hotel ICON is a teaching and research hotel owned by the School of Hotel and Tourism Management at the The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Utilizing new consumer-centric ...
Cornell Study Highlights Drivers of Risk Premium Paid for Hotel Loans
The Center for Hospitality Research | March 26, 2015
Ithaca, NY, March 26, 2015 - A new report from the Center for Hospitality Research (CHR) highlights the factors that drive the interest-rate spread between loans for hotels and office buildings. That interest-rate spread, in which hotel loans become more or less expensive than loans for office buildings, is a predictor of the relative delinquency of the hotel loans. The factors that cause those interest rate differentials are important, because they help forecast the fate of the hotel finance market. The report, "Looking Under the Hood: The Catalysts of Hotel Credit Spreads," by Jan A. deRoos, Crocker H. Liu, and Andrey D. Ukhov, is ava...
GuestREV® Mobile, New GroupREV® Functionality, and Market/Business Intelligence ‘Steal Show’
Rainmaker | March 26, 2015
Mobile Revenue Management app declared a "true game changer" ATLANTA, GA - March 26, 2015 - The eleventh annual Rainmaker Hospitality Client Summit concluded Wednesday in Fort Lauderdale, FL, highlighted by The Rainmaker Group's latest innovative advancements to solve the key business challenges that help hotels optimize profitability through its unique total revenue management methodology. The company unveiled its GuestREV® Mobile app version, the first of its kind in revenue management as a complete solution version for mobile devices. Rainmaker also introduced cutting-edge enhancements to its market-leading GuestREV® and GroupREV®...
