TOP NEWS

🌱 IHG launched the Low Carbon Pioneers program on July 17, 2024, targeting energy-efficient hotels with zero on-site fossil fuel combustion and renewable energy backing. These hotels feature high-efficiency heat pumps, fully electric kitchens, and hold sustainability certifications like Green Key, LEED, BREEAM, or EDGE. The initiative aims to encourage more hotels to adopt similar practices and utilizes the Green Engage platform to monitor energy use.

🍔 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.

🎓 Tammy K. Billings, recognized for opening the $2.5B LA LIVE entertainment district and leading the subway to run past midnight in LA. Contributed to Wisely, which sold to Olo for $187M, and developed CRM platforms at Ovation, Devour, Plein Air, and founded Aben. Known for mentorship and career placements, she received Hospitality Technology's Top Women in Restaurant Technology Innovator Award on March 13 at the 29th MURTEC in Las Vegas. Nominations for the 2025 awards open in mid-October.

📡 Digital Enterprise Show, Europe's largest event focused on exponential technologies, scheduled for 11-13 June in Malaga, Spain, will host the Tourism and Hospitality forum, emphasizing AI's role in hotel and tourism industry transformation. Industry experts like Lucía Martínez of AR Hotels & Resorts and Antonio Andújar from Palladium Hotel Group will discuss business evolution, influenced by technology's impact on customer experience and operational efficiency. Notable speakers, including Pilar Crespo of Booking.com and Ricardo Fernández of Destinia, will share success stories involving bots and AR/VR technologies. The summit will also delve into regulation, data protection, and necessary skills for leveraging technology within the hospitality sector, with contributions from executives at Boho Club Marbella, BlueBay Hotels, Ilunion Hotels, and others.

🏨 With 40% of Americans traveling more in 2024, hotels are leveraging technology to enhance guest experiences and increase revenue. Personalized offers via platforms like Plusgrade drive ancillary revenue and guest satisfaction. Ancillary offer timing is crucial; a test showed a 142% revenue increase when an abandoned cart email was sent within hours. Employing a multi-channel approach, including SMS and social media, has yielded a 30% revenue increase. Guest upgrades foster loyalty; after an upgrade, cruise passengers showed a 23% likelihood to bid on higher cabins. Long-term loyalty is boosted by ancillary services; hotel loyalty members who purchased points booked 46% more stays and accumulated over 5 times more points. These strategies prepare hotels for sustained growth into 2025.

🏖️ Forge Holiday Group, owner of Sykes Cottages and Forest Holidays, plans to invest £150 million over the next three years in UK property portfolio, technology, and customer and owner services. Developing over 50 cabins in Glentress Forest and expanding at Strathyre Forest, the group's revenue for the year ending September 30, 2023, grew 22% with a 3% increase in like-for-like sales. Despite a "broadly flat" profit of £60.7 million due to inflation, net property portfolio grew by 6% to 32,921, serving over 3 million customers. £8.5 million was invested in technology infrastructure.

🏦 Kepler International Hospitality Academy (KIHA) will launch its first Senior Executive Leadership Programme in Amsterdam in October 2024. This five-month course is designed for senior executives with over 10 years of experience in hospitality management. The Programme features three core themes and is divided into two stages: three five-day residential study modules in Amsterdam, Freiburg/Basel, and Kyoto, followed by a two-month leadership assignment. Each cohort is limited to 15 participants, with personalized mentorship and coaching throughout the program. Co-founders include Jannes Sörensen, Phillippe Krenzer, Jacob Mayne, and Ken Yokoyama. Applications are now open.

🏨 Quendoo, a direct bookings platform, will expand to the UK after securing €1 million in funding (June 2024) from Capital Investment Fund, affiliated with the Bulgarian Development Bank, and Vitosha Venture Partners. The company offers cloud-based tools for hotels and property managers to manage bookings, with features like Google Hotels integration and real-time availability. Quendoo charges a fee of 1.95% per booking without setup or subscription fees.