Incorporating a theme of “Elevate,” Red Roof hosted its 2024 Brand Conference emphasizing its new prototype, a pair of recent partnerships, and some key personnel additions as initiatives designed to help the 51-year-old company reach new heights.
With the company having recently reached the 700-hotel milestone throughout its four brands, Red Roof President Zack Gharib linked the new prototype for its venerable Red Roof flag with the conference theme during a media Q&A session.
“The whole concept of our conference is ‘elevate’ so it’s important that we look to elevate the look and the consistency of our core brand,” he said.
The new build prototype is designed as an 80-room, three- or four-story property with interior corridors that is scalable. According to chief development officer Matthew Hostetler, the development cost of the new prototype ranges from $84,000 to $105,000 per key, excluding land.
Gharib underscored the impetus for the prototype.
“The most important thing for us was cost. Anybody can put something up on the screen [at a conference], but if we can’t develop it and it doesn’t make sense financially then it’s not going to happen, especially in the economy segment,” he said, later adding, “growing the footprint is one of our key initiatives and we’re going to be very aggressively pursuing that.”
The revamped design for Red Roof complements the company’s new prototype for its extended-stay brand, HomeTowne Studios by Red Roof. Gharib acknowledged that “cost was also the driver” for the new design for the extended-stay flag, which has grown to include some 16 locations since being launched in 2018.
Gharib noted he was particularly encouraged about the new HomeTowne Studios design based on conversations with owners.
“They really like the prototype so I think conversions to Hometowne Studios are going to be increasing. The extended-stay segment continues to grow and we have a product that has proven to be successful,” he noted.
Hostetler pointed out the company has some 35 hotels in the pipeline between conversions and new builds and expects to open an additional 15 hotels by the end of 2024 within its four brands, which include Red Roof Inn, Red Roof Plus+, The Red Collection, and HomeTowne Studios by Red Roof.
Another point of emphasis for the company, according to Gharib, is driving consistency throughout its Red Roof brand, which includes revamping its property visits and having additional training and quality inspections.
“We’re going to have a very systematic, consistent way of doing this and start driving the consistency a little bit more. Accountability is part of our core values and we have to start holding franchisees more accountable,” he said, adding he’s personally going to be visiting properties throughout the next six months.
Meanwhile, Gharib elaborated on the company’s recently announced partnership with Sojern, an AI-based guest experience platform in the hospitality industry. According to the company, Sojern will provide Red Roof unrivaled traveler insights and the ability to communicate with guests at just the right moments.
“We’re very excited about this partnership, I think it makes great sense for us. We’re in the people business and it’s so important to do business with people that are really interested in the same culture. Sojern really stood out from that aspect,” he said.
Gharib added, “The reporting that they’re going to give us and the details on understanding the guest needs and what’s working and what’s not I think is going to help us develop action plans for the future.”
The company also highlighted the integration of the HotelKey property management system and outlined new applications for the platform in other aspects of the business, starting with PaymentKey, which streamlines transactions and operations.
Gharib also called attention to a couple of key leadership additions for the company and their potential impact, including new CFO Tara Henderson, a U.S. Navy veteran and executive with nearly 20 years of experience in finance, operations, and logistics. Red Roof also added new general counsel Gerrod Bede, who is an attorney proficient in complex franchise and business law.
Gharib talked about the impact of both additions.
“We’re deepening our senior leadership team by adding a CFO to help us grow in the future and we hired a general counsel. Obviously, it’s step-by-step and it’s going to take some time, but I think we have a great team to lead us,” he concluded.
