Innovation

🛌 Sesame Voice AI for hotels, currently English-only, has the potential to replace call centers with its capabilities to handle bookings, answer FAQs, and operate without breaks. Multilingual support is imminent. A future where the best front desk agent is an AI is approaching.

🐶 In 2024, dogs became a rising trend, which is expected to grow in 2025 with hotels pampering pets. Two weeks prior, Sophie Amoruso highlighted that traveling with K9 Airlines from LA to London can be cheaper considering extra costs for standard airlines. Beverage trends are noteworthy for 2025, with Taco Bell emphasizing it at their "Live Más Live" keynote. Speakeasies may see a resurgence due to tariffs, inciting ideas like "SpeakCheesy" for smuggled cheeses. Wine AI raises concerns over cultural homogenization in vineyards. The Rockefeller Center's 2021 Christmas tree was transformed into houses, an extreme Airbnb experience.

💳 Upgrading hotel payment systems involves digital wallets, buy now-pay later options, and cryptocurrency. These solutions aim to be fast, secure, and guest-friendly, enhancing the overall payment experience in the hospitality industry. The information is scant on specific numbers or stats, and no further factual data like dates or locations are provided.

🏨 Eva Klausner, Director of Guest Experience at Numa, shares insights on blending bots and humans to enhance guest experiences on March 11, 2025. Numa utilizes chatbots to increase guest satisfaction, as detailed in an episode hosted by Danica Smith, founder of MorningStar GX. The episode also features a promotion for Sojern, a hotel marketing platform offering a performance-based email solution. Music by Clay Bassford from Bespoke Sound is mentioned, and listeners are encouraged to share the episode to implement ideas within their teams.

🍕 Christopher Thomas-Moore (CTM), senior vice president and chief digital officer at Domino’s Pizza, presented at MURTEC 2025, highlighting a decade of innovations such as the Pizza Tracker, a pizza delivery car, AnyWare ordering by emoji, a 2017 partnership with Ford for autonomous delivery, Pinpoint Delivery, and in-vehicle ordering via Apple CarPlay. The Emergency Pizza promotion launched in 2023 responded to economic pressures like high inflation, offering creative value to customers with less disposable income. In 2024, the campaign evolved with gaming and Netflix collaborations, demonstrating Domino's seven tenets guiding innovation.

🏨 STAAH partnered with Espire Hospitality to optimize operations, tackle rate management issues, and improve reporting insights. Espire's Head of Revenue, Mohd Aamir, praised the user-friendly interface and innovative products offered by STAAH for enhancing distribution and revenue management strategies. STAAH's Max Channel Manager, Booking Engine, WatchMyRate widget, and Get Google feature play crucial roles in increasing visibility, driving direct bookings, and providing dynamic rate intelligence for smarter pricing strategies. Shoaib Ali, National Sales Head of STAAH India, highlights the collaboration's support for seamless operations and sustainable growth in the hospitality industry.

🥑 Shy Bird, an all-day rotisserie concept, opened its first location in Kendall Square, Boston, in 2019. It recently launched its third venue in the Fenway neighborhood. Owner Andrew Holden designed Shy Bird to fill a gap in Boston's dining scene by providing quality food and drink across various dayparts. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic hitting just months after opening, Shy Bird adapted by offering takeout and delivery. The second outpost opened in South Boston in 2022, adjusting to the neighborhood's livelier all-hours atmosphere. The brand carefully crafts its service model and menu to cater to different occasions, aiming to offer value and appropriate ambiance from morning till night. Shy Bird remains in "startup mode," with ambitions for future expansion.

💾 Lunchbox appointed James Walker as CEO, with Nabeel Alamgir as Executive Chairman, focusing on AI and automation to advance restaurant technology. Walker brings 30+ years of experience from Subway®, Nathan's Famous®, and Cinnabon®. A record 340% increase in average deal size since 2022 and 300% growth in product adoption with clients using 1 to 4 products. Funding led by Shift4 will enhance Lunchbox's enterprise solutions and SkyTab POS integration.

📢 James Walker appointed CEO of Lunchbox, Nabeel Alamgir becomes Executive Chairman; they aim to scale Lunchbox with AI and automation. Walker brings 30+ years' experience from Subway®, Nathan's Famous®, and Cinnabon®. Lunchbox saw a 340% increase in average deal size and 300% growth in product adoption since 2022. Shift4 leads a new funding round for Lunchbox, planning to integrate with its SkyTab POS system to enhance services for enterprise restaurants.

📈 SHR, a hotel technology specialist based in Houston, TX, was awarded Google Premier Partner status on 10 March 2025, placing it in the top 3% of Google’s digital marketing partners. The recognition underscores SHR's capability to drive direct bookings and optimize Google Ads for hotels globally. As part of the Google Partners program, SHR now has access to advanced tools, priority support, and can offer improved services to over 2,000 hoteliers worldwide, enhancing clients' revenue and digital presence. Founded in 2004, SHR continues to innovate in the hospitality industry.