Hotel Operations

💰 JLL's Hotels & Hospitality Group refinanced the AC Hotel Vancouver Waterfront, a 150-key hotel in Vancouver, Washington, opened in June 2022. Vesta Hospitality, founded in 1996, secured a three-year loan with two one-year extensions. The Marriott-branded hotel spans seven stories and features 11,720 sq ft of meeting space. It's part of Terminal 1's redevelopment, enhancing Vancouver's waterfront. The project benefits from proximity to Interstate 5, downtown Portland, and Portland International Airport, drawing substantial public and private investments.

🏨 Hotel Manager Marsela Loulai, at Kenwood Hall in Sheffield, emphasizes the need to change perceptions about hospitality as a career. Starting as a waitress at 16, Marsela progressed through roles like F&B manager and operations manager. The industry struggles with staff retention, as casual staffing is challenging. Marsela suggests connecting with colleges to demonstrate hospitality's diverse roles, including leadership and problem-solving. Hospitality is more than an entry-level job; it's a potential career starting point.

🏨 Last week, in Atlanta, Georgia, hihotels by Hospitality International hosted two Regional Conferences at Topgolf locations in Edison, New Jersey, and Spring, Texas. The conferences focused on franchisee feedback and operational improvement, aiming to enhance revenue and guest satisfaction across five economy brands. Notably, hihotels boasts a 97% retention rate, with nearly 20% of owners part of the system for over 30 years. Key initiatives include sales education, individualized support, and a referral program.

🏨 Hotel ÜJA, a family-run hotel with 11 rooms, redefined operations to avoid 14-hour workdays. Located in a scenic area, it maximizes staff hours by combining the café, guest lounge, and reception from 14:30 to 17:30. After 17:30, guest check-ins utilize a digital key system. The four-hour morning window between breakfast (ending at 10:00) and café opening (14:30) is reserved for personal time or tasks. Operations span seven days, aiming to attract new hotel owners by offering a better work-life balance.

🏨 Hotels face rising operational costs amid economic uncertainty. Effective use of Property Management Systems (PMS) is crucial. Many view PMS as merely operational, but it should play a more strategic role, maximizing efficiency and addressing the industry's challenges.

💸 Katie Linstead, VP of Compliance and Operations at Grateful, highlights the issue of overscheduling during peak times which dilutes tronc payments per person. This dilution breaks the connection between effort and reward, impacting employee motivation and trust. Busy schedules lead to harder shifts without financial benefits, causing a disconnect between expectations and reality. This mismanagement of scheduling results in disappointment for employees who anticipate greater rewards during busier periods.

🗺️ GRACE La Margna in St. Moritz, Switzerland, implemented an upselling incentive system during an internship. Employees earn a 5% commission on upsells and a 1% shared team bonus. Upselling can contribute 20-33% of hotel revenue. Effective strategies require emotional intelligence, product knowledge, and social intelligence. The system's strengths include clarity and teamwork, but may lead to aggressive sales. Upselling should balance revenue with guest satisfaction for long-term value. (Bellboy Hospitality Insights, 2025; Prostay, 2026)

📈 In October, a large hotel in Scandinavia saw room revenue 34% higher than last year. The main growth sources were email (39%), meetings, families, and events, coinciding with school holidays and a medical congress. More than half of upcoming revenue is linked to a package partner, and families constitute about half of bookings. The hotel's data system mainly tracks channels, missing vital guest insights. Simple changes, like asking guests their travel reasons, can enhance data accuracy and forecast effectiveness.

💳 Companies can secure lifelong customers by prioritizing retention over mere customer service. Ed Howie, CEO of Lifelong Customers, outlines six essential strategies: focus on retention for growth, shift resources to the "customer attention economy," achieve employee alignment with a clear customer experience vision, cherish existing customers equally, manage retention as an operating system, and consistently deliver desired experiences. Successful customer retention leads to increased loyalty and repeat business, not just through singular interactions or marketing campaigns.

📚 The hospitality industry highlights the need for intentional leadership development. As experienced leaders retire, the focus is on cultivating the next generation of housekeeping leaders, emphasizing skills beyond technical expertise, such as communication and motivation. Organizations can attract future leaders through partnerships with schools and offering internships, while technology aids in training. Leadership academies and mentoring are critical for developing potential leaders, ensuring enhanced guest satisfaction and sustained housekeeping excellence.