Bashar Wali - 10 Minutes News for Hoteliers

6 min

The Myth of Hotel Loyalty

🏨 Hotels, over 30 years, equated loyalty with transactions, using points and tiers rather than genuine recognition, leading to a transactional, not loyal, relationship. Independent hotels, like John Sutton's Journey, focus on genuine guest understanding, not just data collection. Loyalty should be about recognition and care, not just points. Sutton, previously from a $10B tech firm, promotes hospitality's original promise: making guests feel known. Points attract; care retains.

3 min

Form Over Function, Or How Hotels Keep Annoying Their Guests

🛌 Hotels embracing doorless bathrooms as a design trend face criticism for prioritizing aesthetics over guest comfort. Katie Deighton from The Wall Street Journal highlights this issue, noting that many hotels sacrifice privacy for style. Designs like glass walls, freestanding tubs, and inadequate lighting compromise guest experiences. This aesthetic-first approach leads to increased complaints, as guests struggle with privacy and comfort. Effective design should prioritize guest needs, ensuring functionality and comfort over mere visual appeal.

1 min

The Geography of Welcome | Bashar Wali

🏨 Eighty-eight countries, forty-nine states, and 266 Manhattan hotels—one night each—were explored in a quest to understand authentic hospitality, not algorithm-driven service. The journey emphasized genuine human connection, inspired by cultural experiences in places like Damascus. The monthly column in *A Hotel Life* delves into how culture and design influence hospitality, stressing that human connection outweighs amenities. This exploration is crucial for hospitality professionals and enthusiasts.

2 min

Your Lobby Is the New Flagship

🛌 High-end hotels, like Rosewood Miramar Beach and Ritz Paris, are transforming retail spaces into cultural marketplaces. They're offering limited-edition collections and exclusive collaborations, capitalizing on affluent guests. FRAME's apparel at Ritz Paris sold out rapidly. Hotels leverage atmosphere and emotional resonance to create memorable retail experiences, turning products like a $450 robe into lasting memories. Strategic retail elevates guest perception and increases revenue, creating brand ambassadors worldwide. Successful execution demands curation, dynamic inventory, storytelling staff, and local partnerships.

4 min

Hoteling in the Aftershock

📅 Q4 2025 sees U.S. hotel industry facing slower growth and higher costs. Occupancy averages 66%, down 1.5% year-over-year. Luxury hotels show 2-3% RevPAR gains, while midscale sees a 2-3% decline. Las Vegas's Q4 pacing drops 12.8%, New Orleans 16.5%, New York City 4%, but San Francisco is up 19%. Short-term rentals now make up 15% of demand. Rising operational costs compress profit margins from near 30% to low 20s. 2026 predicts a 1% RevPAR rise, driven by ADR.

4 min

Time’s Up on Checkout

📍 Hotels should adopt a flexible 24-hour stay model from check-in, instead of a rigid 11 a.m. checkout. This aligns with irregular travel patterns, enhances guest experience, and builds brand loyalty. Over one-third of travelers are willing to pay for extended hours. Real-world examples, such as Peninsula and The Standard, show success with flexible hours. Implementing staggered checkouts reduces staff stress, increases revenue, and improves customer satisfaction, with metrics supporting conversion lifts and reduced complaints.

4 min

When Fashion Checks In

🏨 Luxury fashion brands are expanding into hospitality to create immersive lifestyle experiences in cities like Paris, Milan, Tokyo, and Miami. By 2025, notable examples include Armani’s residences in Dubai and Milan, and Bvlgari’s nine hotels in Tokyo, Rome, and Shanghai. Successful ventures like Bulgari’s cultural venue in Rome and Armani Hotel Dubai emphasize brand consistency and narrative coherence. Common failures arise from superficial decoration and lack of staff training. Authentic collaborations enhance emotional loyalty, media attention, and clientele access.

3 min

Hospitality: If You’re Not Having Fun, You’re Doing It Wrong

The hotel industry is not designed for the dispassionate or detached. It’s a world built for people who notice everything, who obsess over ambiance, who analyze lobby lighting and critique…

3 min

Hospitality: If You’re Not Having Fun, You’re Doing It Wrong

The hotel industry is not designed for the dispassionate or detached. It’s a world built for people who notice everything, who obsess over ambiance, who analyze lobby lighting and critique…

2 min

You Can’t Renovate Vibes: Why Culture Is the Real Hotel Upgrade

🛌 The hospitality industry often overlooks staff emotional well-being during hotel renovations, focusing on aesthetics over the people who make the service possible. Industry leaders are realizing that staff support and emotional infrastructure are vital for guest experience, driving positive reviews and repeat business. Hospitality workers face high emotional demands, and neglecting their welfare can result in poor service, high turnover, and a weakened company culture. Forward-thinking hotels are now aiming to incorporate emotional well-being into their business models.

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