TOP NEWS

🏨 Florencia Cueto and Xavier López discuss digital transformation in hotel operations on Shiji Insights podcast's fourth episode. EISI Soft, co-founded by Xavier in 2012 and officially established in December 2016, overcomes challenges, including the global pandemic, to innovate hotel maintenance. Key takeaways include the integration of operational tools for strategic decisions, dynamic data collection for real-time feedback, immersive management via digital twins, and operational benchmarking against similar hotels to improve asset management strategies.

💸 Guestline, part of Access Group, enhances its GuestStay product with self-service options and AI, saving time for hotel staff and elevating guest autonomy. The platform lets guests manage reservations, order services like breakfast or parking, and secure restaurant bookings via ResDiary integration. Trials show corporate travelers enjoy the ease of use. Some properties report 25% of restaurant bookings through GuestStay, with plans to add more upsell features in 2024. Digital registration completion averages 31%, and hotels collect more real guest email addresses, encouraging direct repeat bookings over OTAs.

🏢 Oslofjord Convention Center in Norway, Europe’s largest event village, automates over 30,000 bookings annually with RMS Cloud's property management software to streamline and error-proof the process. The venue hosts up to 12,000 guests with a variety of accommodations, including cabins, cottages, hotel rooms, and suites. The new system, implemented in February, enhances upselling capabilities and is user-friendly for the fluctuating staff numbers, ranging from 300 to 10,000. RMS Cloud was selected after analyzing 15 vendors and offers competitive pricing and functionality.

📣 Beef 'O' Brady's, operating in more than 20 US states, partners with SoundHoundAI to introduce voice AI for phone orders. The tech is live at all corporate locations, set for franchise integration, and efficiently handles 100% of calls—even during peak periods like the 2024 Summer Olympics. SoundHound's AI can manage orders, answer menu queries, and cover FAQs, offering seamless ordering for customers. SoundHound AI's solutions are used in over 10,000 restaurants and recently acquired the Allset ordering platform, signaling a growing trend where 80% of US diners expect AI voice assistants to dominate food ordering soon.

🍴 Chef John Tesar's Knife Italian opened on March 19 at The Ritz-Carlton Dallas, Las Colinas following a $55 million property renovation. The restaurant features diverse menus for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, combining traditional Italian flavors with modern touches. Steak options are sourced from 44 Farms and include dry-aged cuts ranging from 45 to 240 days. Tesar's fusion of steakhouse experience and Italian roots manifests in a vibrant, ingredient-driven culinary venture.

💸 HITEC 2024 recap focuses on hotel tech trends, emphasizing operational efficiency and revenue enhancement. Daniel Johnson, CEO of Venza Inc., stresses cybersecurity in the GenAI era for both protection and guest trust. Michael Thalassinos of Silverware highlights QR code menus for targeted dining experiences. Scott Wilson from Sabre Hospitality and Laura Calin of Oracle discuss labor challenges, advocating for AI and automation. Digital tipping is being adopted by Charlestowne Hotels, with Max Spangler confirming its success. Jeff Bzdawka of Knowland notes the shift towards smaller corporate meetings, creating new revenue opportunities for smaller properties. AI's role in sales and marketing is recognized for personalizing guest experiences, as per insights from Sabre Hospitality and Maestro. Mike Snavely of Phunware comments on capturing digital guest engagement. Michael Gray from Nomadix addresses hardware reduction and value in hotels.

🏖 On Thursday, 18 July 2024, the European Tourism Manifesto was launched, featuring over 70 organizations from the European tourism sector. They demand a Commissioner for Tourism, a robust Tourism Taskforce in the European Parliament, and annual Ministerial Meetings at the Council. Their agenda includes decarbonization, smart EU funding, resilient connectivity, and skills training to boost the industry.

🍴 Social Eating House, after 11 years on Poland Street, will close at month's end. Executive Chef Alex Parker transitions to Mayfair's relaunching Pollen Street Social, becoming Mary's this autumn. Launched with Chef Paul Hood in April 2013, the restaurant featured the Blind Pig bar, elements of which will move to Mary's. Hood left after a decade. Atherton focuses on new ventures: Hot Dogs by Three Darlings in Harrods, Sael in St James’s Market, Three Darlings in Chelsea, and Row on 5 on Savile Row. Mildred's vegetarian group set to take over the site. Harrods Social by Jason Atherton also recently closed.

🍔 Riccardo Giraudi, creator of restaurant brands such as Le Petit Beefbar and Beefbar, started his empire in 2005. With locations worldwide, including Monaco, Europe, the US, Asia, and Africa, he categorizes his establishments into 'modern luxury', 'heritage brands', 'hype and relaxed', 'casual cool', and 'fast casual'. Giraudi's Beefbar brand, which began in Monaco in 2005, now has around 36 venues globally with 20 more planned, including in Prague, T'bilisi, Bahrain, Marrakech, Strasbourg, and on ocean liners. By 2023, he aims to operate about 45 or 50 Beefbars. His first US Beefbar opened in April in New York's Tribeca, taking over the former Nobu site after two years of construction. In the UK, Le Petite Beefbar launched in late 2021 in Chelsea, London, and another in Edinburgh. Giraudi also has a partnership with Antinori for Cantinetta Antinori, with the latest opening in London's Knightsbridge. His future plans involve opening more brands, a second African Queen in Dubai, a Zeffirino in Istanbul, and expansion of his pizza brand Pizz’Aria in London.

🏨 At HITEC 2024, hotel tech trends like attribute-based selling (ABS), interfacing challenges, and GenAI use cases were highlighted. Jacob Messina of Stayntouch discussed how ABS automates inventory, enhancing hotel efficiency and profitability, while noting most industry systems aren't built for it. Mark Lewis-Brown of Zucchetti North America cited hesitation towards ABS due to potential reduced sales options and guest readiness. Interfacing issues were addressed by Laura Calin of Oracle Hospitality, who advocated for a unified platform to eliminate technology silos. AI innovations were also showcased, including Sabre's real-time customer support and IDeaS' conversational AI since 2018, indicating a shift towards more intuitive hotelier-software interactions.