Meyer Jabara Hotels’ Journey Culture Reaping a 75% Employee Retention Rate
Meyer Jabara Hotels | August 8th, 2023
The Drayton Hotel Savannah Joining Curio Collection by Hilton
Curio Collection by Hilton | July 31st, 2023
Hospitality Financial Leadership: Why Does It Take So Bloody Long to Do the Annual Hotel Budget?
David Lund | September 8, 2020
By David Lund Bloody is a great word. It’s English and I’m Canadian so that’s close enough and I’m adopting it for this piece. The word is so descriptive, and it immediately conjures up images of battle and of great suffering. Much the same as the annual carnage we refer to as budget season in the hotel business. It’s the epic contest between line managers and executives, hotel leadership teams and the brand and hotels and their owners. In some hotels it can take six months to get the budget done, revised umpteen times and eventually – hopefully – approved. It’s nothing for the battle to last for three months in a typica...
Apple REIT Selects Crestline to Manage Portland Residence Inn and Jacksonville Hyatt Place
the Residence Inn Portland Downtown/Waterfront, ME | September 8, 2020
FAIRFAX, VA – September 8, 2020 - James Carroll, President and CEO of Crestline Hotels & Resorts, LLC (“Crestline”) announced today that Crestline has been appointed to manage the 179 guest-suite Residence Inn Portland Downtown/Waterfront in Portland, Maine and the 127 room Hyatt Place Jacksonville Airport in Jacksonville, Florida. The hotels are owned by Apple Hospitality REIT, Inc. who selected Crestline to manage. Upon making the announcement Carroll said, “Crestline enjoys a long and trusted relationship with Apple Hospitality REIT and we are honored to add these excellent properties to our mana...
Sage Hospitality Group Adds The Guild Hotel and The Lodge at Sonoma to Management Portfolio
September 2, 2020
Denver, Colo. – (Sept. 2, 2020) – Sage Hospitality Group announced today the addition of two California hotels to its portfolio of managed properties: The Guild Hotel, Tribute Portfolio in downtown San Diego and The Lodge at Sonoma Renaissance Resort and Spa in downtown Sonoma. “We are truly thrilled to welcome these two beautiful assets and their teams into the Sage family,” said Daniel del Olmo, President and COO of Sage Hotel Management, a Sage Hospitality Group company. “Both The Guild Hotel and The Lodge at Sonoma are perfect additions to our growing portfolio of lifestyle hotels, and we look forward to bringing the talent a...
Improving Hotel ROI – Thinking Out of Box From Design to Operations
Ajay Mehtani | August 31, 2020
By Ajay Mehtani As an industry there is a need to make hotels more viable. The pandemic has taught us to rethink in this direction and develop hotel assets that can drive higher ROI. It can only be done when we look at making changes from Design to Operations. Ideally, we should make changes to the industry status, compliance cost and interest cost, however, as these are policy matters, we cannot do much ourselves. Meanwhile, cost of construction, cost of operations i.e. the largest expenses related to utilities and manpower, are aspects that can be controlled by the hotel investors, brands and operating teams effectively. Below are a f...
How to Calculate and Monitor Your Break-Even Point
Global Asset Solutions | August 26, 2020
COVID-19 presented many challenges for hotels who are currently striving to merely break-even instead of maximizing profit as usual. While hotels usually aim for 35% occupancy threshold, many are hoping that COVID-19 cost reductions will lower the break-even threshold. How can a hotel understand when is the right time to resume operations? What occupancies and rates should they be aiming for? How has the pandemic effected the BEP considerations? Through calculating a hotel’s BEP, hotel asset managers are able to determine when is the optimal time for a hotel to reopen or if it may be better to remain closed until higher occupancy levels are...
ALICE Creates Free Hotel Housekeeping Disinfection Checklists
ALICE | August 19, 2020
New York, NY - ALICE, the hospitality industry’s leading hotel management and operations platform, has just published free hotel housekeeping disinfection checklists for hoteliers. With more than 15 checklists in the downloadable document, hoteliers can download, print, and start using them today. The comprehensive document includes disinfection checklists for guest areas, employee areas and public areas. As occupancy increases, there will be intense scrutiny for housekeeping departments to not only clean, but also sanitize every inch of each guest room - and prove it. The checklists are customizable with extra space for items to be wr...
Contactless Linen Inventory Management and Stay Safe Using the InvoTech UHF-RFID System
InvoTech | August 12, 2020
Safely manage the daily tasks related to your linen and laundry activity and work in the current situation, respecting social distancing and hygiene norms. InvoTech provides a completely contactless, safe experience for everyone in your property dealing with linens and laundry activity. The ideal solution to help housekeeping operations enable full productivity and safety for your staff. Track your entire linen inventory, maintain proper inventory levels in storerooms and manage laundry activity without physical contact. Using the UHF-RFID Linen System allows you to manage the entire inventory from initial purchase, daily usage, aging and lau...
Hotel Equities Selected to Manage Holiday Inn Boone–University Area, North Carolina
Hotel Equities | August 12, 2020
ATLANTA — (August 12, 2020) — Today, Hotel Equities (HE), a leading hotel management, development and ownership company, announced it has been selected to manage the full-service Holiday Inn Boone–University Area. The hotel located at 1075 Hwy 105 is situated in the scenic Blue Ridge Mountains of Western North Carolina near Appalachian State University. A $4.3m renovation to the hotel was completed last year by Asheville, NC-based owners Watauga Hospitality, LLC. Hotel Equities assumed operations for the hotel including accounting, revenue management and sales and marketing. “We are thrilled to partner with this strong ownership g...
Lighthouse Hotels and Resorts Tapped to Manage Holiday Inn Birmingham, Alabama
Lighthouse Hotels and Resorts | August 10, 2020
Birmingham, AL, August 10, 2020 - Lighthouse Hotels and Resorts, a Florida based hotel ownership and management company, was recently chosen to operate the 220 room full service Holiday Inn at the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth Airport. According to Marty McDaniel, Lighthouse Hotels CEO, the appointment was a wonderful addition to their existing portfolio. “We have been searching for the right full service hotel with the right flag, market and owner for quite sometime. It’s rare to find that combination in only one asset, but we did here,” McDaniel said that the chemistry between the company and the hotel’s owner Mark Gregson, was the d...
Marshall Hotels & Resorts Assumes Management of Five Hotels
Marshall Hotels & Resorts, Inc. | August 5, 2020
SALISBURY, Md., August 5, 2020—Marshall Hotels & Resorts, a leading hotel management and services company that operates properties nationwide, today announced that it has taken over management of five hotels. The hotels include the 100-room Holiday Inn NW Houston Beltway 8 in Texas, the 96-suite SpringHill Suites Winchester in Va., the 74-room Hampton Inn Adel in Ga., the 114-room Hilton Garden Inn Riverhead and the 131-suite Residence Inn Long Island East End, both in N.Y. “As the pandemic continues and travel remains at a trickle of what it previously was, owners require operators with the experience to weather these types of d...
Cloud-Hosted vs. On-Premise vs. Self-Hosted vs. Private Cloud PMS: All Platforms Have Advantages; Which Is Right for You?
Warren Dehan | August 4, 2020
No need to feel pushed to the cloud to gain a web browser-based system with mobile and contact free innovations; Independent hoteliers have choices By Warren Dehan A great deal has been written over the years about the viability of moving a hotel’s property-management system (PMS) to the cloud to take advantage of the latest technologies, but hoteliers need to realize that it’s not the only viable option. All platforms have advantages, including self-hosted, private cloud and on-premise solutions that leverage the latest mobile, contact free and web-based technologies. Independent operators can still enhance the digital guest experi...
Hotel Development: Are Better Feasibility Studies Actually Feasible?
Demian Hodari | August 3, 2020
By Dr Demian Hodari Hotel development is a complex and expensive process involving multiple stakeholders with unique and often conflicting objectives. Since investors, operators, lenders and consultants all use distinct criteria to evaluate a hotel’s projected value, they may green-light projects that are unlikely to satisfy the other parties' financial goals. In order to minimize such subjectivity, investment in a new hotel’s development is typically preceded by a feasibility study, the stated purpose of which is to provide the relevant stakeholders with the information and analysis necessary to estimate the project's financial viabil...
Valor Hospitality Partners to Assume Management at Fancourt in Garden Route, South Africa
Valor Hospitality Partners | August 3, 2020
Cape Town, South Africa, 03 August 2020: Valor Hospitality Partners Africa, is pleased to add to its hotel portfolio, with the signing of a management agreement with Fancourt. Valor will be taking over the reins from outgoing CEO Georgie Davidson. Fancourt, a member of The Leading Hotels of the World®, consists of the Fancourt hotel and the award-winning Manor House, which together offer 133 rooms and suites. The 600 ha Lifestyle resort offers an extensive recreational leisure facility including indoor and outdoor pools, a state-of-the-art leisure centre, tennis courts, outdoor activities as well as an fully equipped Spa, hair salon ...
A-1 Hospitality Group Now Managing Homewood Suites by Hilton in New Braunfels, Texas
A-1 Hospitality Group | July 30, 2020
Kennewick, WA – July 30, 2020 – A-1 Hospitality Group, a family owned and operated hotel management and development company based in Kennewick, Washington announced today that it has acquired the management contract for the Homewood Suites by Hilton New Braunfels, a 90-suite property. This is the third addition into the A-1 Hospitality Group portfolio this year. It previously opened the Courtyard by Marriott in Pasco, Washington in February, as well as the Holiday Inn Express & Suites in The Dalles, Oregon in April. Located at 620 Oxford Drive, the all-suite hotel offers guests convenient access to the Comal River, the Guadalupe Ri...
M&R Hotel Management and Magnuson Hotels Rebrand 285-Room New Jersey Conference Center
M&R Hotel Management | July 29, 2020
M&R Hotel Management, a top US management company with operations across 5 states, has selected Magnuson Hotels, the fast-growing franchise alternative, to rebrand its 285 room Magnuson Grand & Conference Center Somerset-Bridgewater located in New Jersey. Formerly affiliated with Fairbridge Inns, the Magnuson Grand & Conference Center Somerset-Bridgewater is a full-service hotel featuring 8,000 sq. feet of meeting/banquet space for up to 300 guests. The hotel is located close to Rutgers University, corporate offices of Somerset, Bridgewater, New Brunswick, NJ Transit in New Brunswick, an hour from New York City. Through th...
Hospitality Financial Leadership: Chapter 9 – The Offer
David Lund | July 27, 2020
By David Lund The chapter below is an excerpt from my new book. It’s fiction but some of the characters and story lines are based on people I have worked with and events that have taken place in the hotels I have worked in. The book is a fable about a hotel manager who has some very bad habits. He must change in order to survive and the book takes him and you through the lessons needed to be a great hospitality financial leader. I’m writing ahead each month so I’m not sure how the book will end. I hope you enjoy it and if you missed any earlier chapters you can find them on my website blog tab. My drive to the hotel today feel...
IHG Signs With Borealis Hotel Group for Holiday Inn Express® Budapest City Centre
IHG® | July 21, 2020
IHG® (InterContinental Hotels Group), one of the world’s leading hotel companies, has signed a franchised agreement with Borealis Hotel Group for Holiday Inn Express® Budapest City Centre. The 189-room hotel will be the first Holiday Inn Express in Budapest and the first IHG hotel to enter the Hungarian market in over 20 years. Expected to open late 2022, Holiday Inn Express Budapest City Centre will bring simple, smart travel by providing the perfect base camp to rest, relax and recharge, whether for business or leisure. The project will be developed by the company Big4. The expansion of IHG’s presence in Budapest brings a new offer...
Hotel Equities Named as Management Firm for Three Marriott Hotels in Alabama
Hotel Equities | July 21, 2020
TUSCALOOSA, AL — July 21, 2020 — Today, Atlanta-based hotel owner, operator and developer Hotel Equities (HE) announced its appointment as the management firm for three Marriott hotels located in Alabama. A Courtyard by Marriott in the city of Mobile and a Courtyard by Marriott and Fairfield Inn by Marriott located in Tuscaloosa. Tuscaloosa is home to the University of Alabama, the flagship of the University of Alabama system. The trio of hotels is owned by Neil Patel who engaged Hotel Equities to take over the day-to-day operations and management of the properties. This owner will also participate in Marriott’s Operator’s Coachi...
Focus Hospitality Management Opens The Tuxon in Tucson, Arizona
Focus Hospitality Management | July 21, 2020
TUCSON, AZ — July 21, 2020 — Focus Hospitality Management, a full-service hotel management company with a total of seven properties in the Tucson metropolitan statistical area (MSA), has opened The Tuxon, a modern boutique hotel and member of Marriott International’s Design HotelsTM, a collection with over 300 independent hotels in more than 60 countries across the world. Managed by Focus Hospitality, The Tuxon, located in the heart of Tucson, the second most-populated city in Arizona behind Phoenix, the state’s capital, and known for its adventurous outdoor activities and authentic culinary offerings, is owned by Tucson natives Vi...
Crestline Hotels & Resorts to Manage the Hilton Garden Inn Akron, Ohio
the Hilton Garden Inn Akron | July 21, 2020
FAIRFAX, VA – July 21 2020 - James Carroll, President and CEO of Crestline Hotels & Resorts, LLC (“Crestline”) announced today that Crestline has been awarded the management of the 139 guestroom Hilton Garden Inn in Akron, Ohio. The hotel, which is located at 1307 E. Market Street, also offers 4,521 square feet of event space in five meeting rooms. The hotel is owned by a privately held real estate development and investment firm. “We are honored to have the opportunity to work with this beautiful hotel,” said Mr. Carroll. “This management contract is part of an exceptionally active period for Crestline. In the past...
Genuine Hospitality, LLC to Operate the Tru by Hilton – Naperville, IL
Genuine Hospitality, LLC | July 21, 2020
SAINT LOUIS, IL, July 21, 2020 – St. Louis, MO based hotel operator, Genuine Hospitality selected to operate the 121-room Tru by Hilton - Naperville, IL. Located at 1850 Diehl Road, Naperville IL 60563, the hotel is ideally located at the southwest corner of I-88 and Route 59, 6-miles northeast of downtown Naperville, IL and 33-miles west of downtown Chicago. The Tru by Hilton - Naperville, IL will open Spring, 2021 boasting the Build Your Own ‘Top It’ breakfast, more modern, and efficiently designed guestrooms with oversized windows for natural light; a multifunctional fitness center; and fast Wi-Fi. Premium snacks, light meal optio...
Reopening Delays Giving Hawaii Hotels Added Time to Ensure Employees, Guests Are Safe
React Mobile | July 21, 2020
React Mobile continues its ‘Employee Safety Culture’ Webcast Series with a deep look at what’s happening in Hawaii; Ryan Doi of Prince Resorts shares several technology-based best practices, including remote medical diagnostics for staff and guests if they feel ill Seattle, July 21, 2020 — As hotels coast to coast prepare for reopening, Hawaii braces for more delays. Although there was talk of travelers returning August 1, the recent surge of COVID-19 cases on the U.S. mainland has postponed the effort once again, this time until September. In Episode 2 of the “New World, New Employee Safety Culture” webcast series, React Mobil...
Hospitality Financial Leadership: 3-Way Match
David Lund | July 20, 2020
By David Lund Internal controls in your hotel are critical and they need to be designed to keep your assets safe and your money where it belongs – with you and not in someone else’s pockets. I have seen this go wrong way too many times and I also talk to many hoteliers that are oblivious to this level of control or they just don’t see the importance of it. In this piece I am going to lay out the requirements for a three-way match in your purchasing and accounts payable area. Put this in place and you will never pay a bill twice again and you will never pay for something that you didn’t actually receive. I have lived through both...
Beekeeper to Host ‘Communicating for Agility’ Webinar Featuring Insights From MOHG
Beekeeper | July 16, 2020
Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group’s Director Rooms and Quality will share how the iconic hotel chain is engaging and motivating its employees on the long road to recovery Oakland, Calif. And Zurich, July 16, 2020 — With the resurgence of COVID-19 cases in many parts of the world, hoteliers need to be more agile today than ever before. As newly crafted safety and operating protocols continue to evolve, hoteliers must react quickly to ensure that changes are carried out effectively by their frontline employees. Next week Anja Luthje, group director rooms and quality for Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, will join Beekeeper in discussing ...
