Market Trends

🏠 Preferred Hotels & Resorts added 19 new properties in Q1 2025 from Jan. 1 to March 31 in 12 countries, including urban, resort, and countryside locations in Europe, Asia, North and South America. I Prefer Hotel Rewards members can earn 2,500 bonus points on qualifying stays. Highlights include Andronis Luxury Suites in Santorini, Greece, with 39 suites and villas, reopening in May 2025; Boar's Head Resort in Charlottesville, Va., with a 600-acre estate, and Hotel Convent de la Missio in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, with 27 rooms. Other notable additions cover various collections and locations such as Brazil, Taiwan, Hungary, and Italy.

🍍 Gusto Snacks, valued at £1.2m and available in major UK outlets like Selfridges and WHSmith, now sells in Germany via Amazon. The company, founded in 2018 and launched in 2020 by Guiseppe Baidoo and Claudio Owusu, turns imperfect fruit into vegan, gluten-free, high-fiber, low-calorie snacks with no added sugar. Their 20g bags contain less than 80 calories. With 5 flavors, they plan new products by 2025. Guerrilla marketing and a Selfridges collaboration in 2021 enhanced their visibility.

🏨 Prabhash Bhatnagar authored a blog post on August 27, 2016, discussing the varied opinions of hotel administrators on the ideal index for measuring performance in revenue management, emphasizing the lack of consensus on occupancy and other metrics.

🍳 FB Society plans to open Shaver Hall, a 35,000-square-foot food hall in New York City's former Lord & Taylor building at 424 Fifth Ave, expected to open later this year. The hall will feature 11 food stalls, including an omakase concept, wine and cheese bar, steakhouse, and modern bodega. The Food Hall Co. and FB Society operate multiple venues including Legacy Hall in Plano, Texas, and Assembly Food Hall in Nashville, Tenn. Shaver Hall is named after Dorothy Shaver, Lord & Taylor’s president from 1945 to 1959. ZGF Architects designed the hall, paying homage to the building's rich heritage.

🏡 UK-based luxury hotel group The Stafford Collection sold their country house hotel and Michelin-starred restaurant, Northcote, to Silkstone Finance. Alf and Clare Ellis of Silkstone Finance, also owners of kitchen manufacturer Ultima, aim to enhance Northcote by introducing a fine-dining restaurant under Michelin-starred chef Lisa Goodwin-Allen and adding a wellness space. The Stafford Collection, led by managing director John McLean, plans to refine The Stafford London, leveraging Michelin-starred chef Michael Caines as a culinary strategist. Further developments for The Stafford Collection will be announced later.

🏠 Excellence in hospitality and design is rare amidst widespread mediocrity. Big dreamers, like those who aspire to build a micro-resort or landscape a yard, often miss subtle details in their grand plans, resulting in a lackluster final product. The McPheeters family, owners of Nordlys in Wisconsin, exemplify the value of focusing on small, intricate details to create a standout property.

🏖️ "Five jaw-dropping luxury vacation spots for private flyers in 2025 include Isola Santa Cristina, Italy; Illa de Tagomago, Spain; Spitbank Fort, England; Domes Miramare, Greece; and Necker Island, British Virgin Islands. Marton Modis of KlasJet highlights their exclusivity and lavish amenities, such as Isola Santa Cristina's privacy and rich biodiversity, Tagomago's luxury villa with 5 suites and water sports, Spitbank's nine luxury bedrooms and historical significance, Domes Miramare's 600-meter private beach and neo-Greek cuisine, and Necker Island's celebrity appeal and environmental commitment.

💡 British furniture designer Morgan, in partnership with SmithMatthias, launches the modular Bruton collection during Clerkenwell Design Week, 20-22 May. Bruton is made with 100% natural materials, avoiding foam, and includes materials like wool, coconut fibres, latex, duck feather, and pocket springs. Morgan's Hampshire factory, using 86% renewable energy with 50% from solar panels, underlines sustainable practices. The collection offers various sustainable upholstery options and is adaptable for diverse settings.