Innovation

💰 ROH, a hospitality industry payments platform, finished a $9.2 million finance round led by Highgate Technology Ventures and Acrew Capital. The investment will support ROH's platform expansion and improve data processing from contracts, invoices, and payments. Highgate's Raja Goel and Kurien Jacob, along with Acrew's John Gardner, are joining ROH's Board. ROH aims to modernize hotel payment processes, addressing the 80% of the $4 trillion in hotel payments requiring manual intervention. In 2024, ROH managed nearly $250 million in invoices and saw a 523% increase in bookings from its AI application. Highgate's properties piloted ROH, leading to the investment and further commercial use due to improved operational efficiency and profitability.

🍽 Arizona Biltmore (LXR Hotels & Resorts) is debuting Le Petit Chef on May 1, 2025, featuring an immersive 3D dining experience. This will be the only Southwest venue among its 89 global and eight U.S. locations. The resort, a Frank Lloyd Wright-style landmark since 1929, adds to its luxury offerings with this intimate, 18-seat show running Thursdays to Saturdays at 5:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. Tickets are priced at $195 per adult and $79 for the junior menu. Reservations are now open.

📍 Influence Society, a creative agency, opened a new office in Paris at 28 Cours Albert 1er in the 8th Arrondissement. Eve-Marie Steenman, with experience from Aman Hotels, leads the Paris office, focusing on high-touch digital storytelling for hotel brands. The Paris location was chosen for strategic growth and cultural alignment, highlighting Influence Society's design-centric approach in the hospitality industry since 2016. The agency services include performance marketing, custom websites, branding, and content creation, catering to hotels across Europe, the Middle East, and North America. Visit their website at www.influence-society.com.

🏥 Gilda Perez-Alvarado, CEO of Orient Express and Group Chief Strategy Officer at Accor, discusses technology and innovation in hospitality on April 22, 2025. She provides insights into the future of luxury travel on the "Hospitality Daily Podcast.

📈 Group bookings drive significant revenue for hotels, but forecasting occupancy and pricing is complex due to "group wash"—unused reserved room blocks. Gerhard Wasem, Director of Product Management, Group Business, remarks on the difficulty of predicting group occupancy. US hoteliers anticipate higher group sales by 2025. In June, an investment was made in BlockBuster, a solution that optimizes revenue and introduces group wash forecasting. This feature uses historical data to predict unbooked rooms within group blocks, helping hotels avoid overestimation, manage availability more efficiently, and enhance rate strategies. Four use cases demonstrate how group wash forecasting allows hotels to adjust pricing and inventory proactively, thereby maximizing revenue and occupancy. Best practices include data accuracy, consistency, and utilizing BlockBuster for real-time adjustments.

📅 The Travolution European Summit will take place on May 13 at Events at No 6 in Aldgate, London. New speakers announced include David Norris from Holiday Extras, Mik Ruberl from Chain4Travel, and Beatriz Oficialdegui from Destinia. The event focuses on travel and technology with discussions on AI, multi-channel search, web3, and crypto. Last year's key speakers were from companies like easyJet holidays and Amazon Web Services. Sponsors for this year's summit include Belvera Partners and Stripe among others. Tickets are available online.

🏨 Octant Hotels, a Portuguese hotel chain, launched Latitude—a new platform featuring over 200 curated experiences near its hotels. Latitude focuses on local authenticity through gastronomy, arts, and crafts, aiming to reveal hidden treasures and traditions beyond conventional tourist guides. Months of research and local exploration preceded the launch. Marketing Director Filipe Bonina emphasizes Latitude as a tool for purposeful travel and deep cultural immersion.

🏡 Lighthouse acquired The Hotels Network, enhancing its travel and hospitality industry platform with AI-driven marketing technology. The Hotels Network, founded in 2015, operates in over 100 countries, serving more than 20,000 hotels and delivering an average 32% uplift in direct bookings. The integration will offer hoteliers personalized booking experiences and advanced AI capabilities, aiming to maximize direct channel revenue. The Hotels Network is unique in combining pricing data, personalization, and cross-channel marketing in one solution.