Editorial

Dear Insiders,

Today we are moving between highs and lows: the mega-bankruptcy of Signa Holding, to which tourist magnets such as hotels or shopping malls are falling victim, frowning at the new non-Adina brand, rejoicing for Portugal, swallowing at the global decline in property values...

In 2019, on the fringes of the MIPIM, I had the opportunity to photograph René Benko's 62-meter-long super-yacht in the port of Cannes. It had all the charm of a warship. Now, the insolvency of his Signa Holding could become the biggest bankruptcy in Austria's history. The administrator is forcing the billionaire out of hiding by, among other things, rigorously selling off his lifestyle assets and cutting private luxury spending. 

Dear Insiders,

The crisis has many facets, exposing greed, humility and cleverness, characters with fine antennae and bullish stock market fists. Today we talk about boosting reservations, Dorint Hotels and ungrateful hoteliers, a snapshot of the market with JLL, the small arcona insolvency, large Travelodge sales and the Choice/Wyndham stock market battle. 
Corona and the crises have given a strong boost to direct bookings. And AI will accelerate this trend. Caro Brauer, Managing Director of distribution specialist QR Reservations, is very sure of this. She is also certain that the OTAs are spending a lot of money to intercept customers as they surf the net as they search and book and that they do it professionally than the hoteliers can imagine. Susanne Stauss spoke to her about the subtle changes in reservation systems, data and AI. 

Dear Insiders, 

Today, we begin with the pleasant, inspiring topics. First of all: After six years of HITT in Berlin, we are moving the Think Tank to Amsterdam! Save the date for 17/18 June 2024! The Dutch metropolis stands for rethinking, lateral thinking and openness. The perfect setting for the HITT community to develop visions and make new friends away from the day-to-day routine. This time, we won't be on the water, but right by the water. And in an unusual location in the very centre of the city. 

 Dear Insiders,

The ping pong game between Choice Hotels and Wyndham continues - and could probably drag on until May. CEO Pat Pacious is resolute, his Wyndham colleague Geoff Ballotti is also sticking stubbornly to his NO and appears relaxed. Sarah Douag has analysed the situation exactly four weeks after the hostile takeover bid by Choice.

Dear Insiders, 

Right next to the World Trade Center Memorial in New York there is a hotel that is neither a Motel One nor The Cloud One. All the same, the latter is written large above the door. The Munich-based budget design group, which celebrated its US-market entry eleven months ago, is behind it all. Most of us love Motel One's fresh design, the egg chairs, the Italian long sofas, and The Cloud One is supposed to be even better than all that…

Dear Insider,

We continue this week with our CEO interviews: After Schörghuber Holding and Premier Inn, Oliver Bonke explains to us today the changed strategy of Deutsche Hospitality and its Chinese parent company H World (formerly Huazhu).

Dear Insiders,

Two big companies are the focus of our attention today: Premier Inn UK and Germany, and the Munich-based Schörghuber Group with its hotel operator Arabella Hospitality and the first Rosewood Hotel in Germany, which opened on Wednesday.

Dear Insiders,

What a week! A battle of David against Goliath: The world's second largest franchisor (Choice) wants to acquire the largest (Wyndham). Now the poker between lawyers begins. The question is whether Wyndham is currently worth only $7.8 billion or significantly more. We already provided detailed coverage on Tuesday/Wednesday via Breakings News and a further update.

It's all very reminiscent of Marriott and the 2016 bid from state-controlled Chinese insurance company Anbang, which tried to prevent Marriott from buying Starwood hotels. At stake in this battle was $12.3 billion. Eventually, the Chinese government put an end to such ambitions.

Now, two publicly traded American giants are facing off, and no government is going to call the companies off this time. After all, profit first is the American economic credo. It's getting exciting.

As luck would have it, we recently had an interview with Wyndham CEO Geoff Ballotti and were set to publish it today anyway. We do that now with especial pleasure, given that Geoff reveals many details about the franchise model and how more can easily be made out of the 9,150 hotels worldwide. He talks about the fees used to motivate owners and new brands like Vienna House that bring in new guests. The interview now takes on a special flavour with the takeover game in the background, perhaps showing that Choice Hotels will not have an easy time of it after all.

Another drama is unfolding in the midst of the Dutch hotelier family, the Van der Valks. Refugees are more profitable that tourist, one nephew discovered and cashed in. Professional companies earn millions because they see refugees as cash cows and are able to charge governments additional 100 euros per night. Hotels, holiday parks, cruise ships and others are all in on the game. Sarah Douag describes the family squabble that became public in court, shining a spotlight on a mega-moral issue.

Sarah also takes up ethical and moral issues with her short story for homeless people, to whom Dutch hoteliers open their doors - in stark contrast to America, where in Los Angeles there is a public debate about whether the homeless can be accommodated in the hotel alongside "normal" guests.

There is one thing that Dutch hoteliers are not happy about at the moment: they are complaining loudly about the tax increase for every guest from 2024: from 7 to 12.5%! The city wants to control overtourism this way, but the MICE sector will be hit the hardest. The waves are running high.

Owners and developers would also like to make money, but here through serious business, more specifically though emission-free existing real estate and its increase in value. The panel at the Expo Real hotel conference with Rubus Development, Art-Invest Real Estate, B&B Hotels and PKF hospitality showed that it works. All the same, a multitude of little things and the ever-present bureaucracy frustrate such ventures in practice. It was a very honest discussion about costs, wood modules, heat pumps, lousy communication, and an appeal to owners as well as to operators: Sit down together at last!

Premier Inn has published its H1 and MHP Hotels its Q3 figures. On the new website (Home), we now publish the balance sheets of the chains as soon as they become available. And before we start: On the universally accessible pages you will also find current and diverse news, this week on a planned underwater train as well as the next Hospitality Symposium in Heilbronn, and more.

Otherwise, Accor has been chasing MICE trends, and Hilton has again been researching the needs of different generations of travellers. Not everything is new, but there are a few numbers accompanying the publications. Every Friday we also publish personalia and our News Mix; there, among the little articles, there’s perhaps big news for you.

One personalia you’ll miss today: Kempinski CEO Bernold Schroeder, otherwise rather publicity-shy, announced the day before yesterday in the Süddeutsche Zeitung that he will not extend his contract, "surprisingly", according to the newspaper. Following a little deeper research yesterday, I can only say: A surprise is different. We'll stay tuned and will filter out the important news. We are no copy cats.

With us, you'll certainly not get bored! Today is your last chance to participate once again in our Investment Barometer. Just click here! 

And again, the direct link to our new website! Behind the scenes, things are still a bit bumpy, as usual. But that’s no reason to shy away from contacting us if you have any problem logging in.

Yours, Maria Pütz-Willems
editor-in-chief

Dear Insiders,

The discussion on finance and the EU taxonomy requirements at the Expo Real hotel conference involved some very expert participants. Some names will not be known to everybody (Jean-Jacques Morin/Accor, Ufi Ibrahim/EEA, Manuel Ehlers/Triodos Bank), though others will certainly be familiar (Andreas Ewald/E&V and Roland Paar/Soravia). All of them wish to go down the ESG path together. If, yes, if the politicians finally manage to clearly regulate the financing standards! There was a lot of criticism on this point. 

Everyone wants to set out into this new era, but they are being thwarted. Ufi Ibrahim from London did his best to provide motivation, to take away the fear of ESG: "It's simple, it's business in a smart way!" 

Incidentally, this clear language ran through all the conference panels. We will summarise all of them over the coming weeks. For the first time, the Hospitality Industry Dialogue was dedicated to just a single topic. And the stream of visitors showed that it was high time to communicate more about sustainability. I, for one, still saw many sceptical faces in the hall though. At the other extreme though, the first masters of greenwashing were also noticeable. 

The next few years will show who has understood the challenge ahead and how much of it has been implemented. And that goes for those who still need to look up the word cybersecurity. I hosted a panel on this topic at Expo Real 2017 (!). Now, it’s hitting one hotel group after the other. Quite arbitrarily. 

Sarah Douag took a broad look at the issue of cyber-attacks, grilled Booking.com and heard from experts: AI and other innovations à la ChatGPT will make hacking attacks even more refined in future. 

Motel One gave us a brief statement on the status quo following the cyber-attack it suffered at the end of September. Alexander Fitz, the CEO of H-Hotels, and his team were unlucky enough to fall victim to an attack in December 2022. "A nightmare," he says. Within 10 minutes, 90% of the front office system was scrambled; after that, employees were reduced to pen and paper for months. Thank you, Mr. Fitz, for providing invaluable details and advice on the experience to your colleagues today! 

The sector is certainly experiencing ups and downs these days, as reflected in today's issue. What's the surprise of the week? a&o Hotels is being sold for €800 million - as we predicted at the end of March. Insiders confirm this and CEO Oliver Winter did not want to deny our question. In a few weeks, it will be official. 

How was the 3rd quarter in Germany? Transactions are at a standstill. Expansions? More and more hotel groups from Spain want to conquer Italy. ESG & Procurement? Accor, Hilton, IHG, Marriott and Radisson want to form a purchasing syndicate in future and check their suppliers according to common specifications. New fish in Berlin.... There will be none.... The mega-aquarium at the Radisson Collection Hotel will not be rebuilt. Also because it is now clear: There was no clear cause of damage. 

And what else do we have today? As always, the magazine features personalia and a news mix from the real estate market. And on our new public pages you will find a diverse selection of news including: Guide Michelin is now expanding into hotels, Berlin will soon host Germany's first sustainability summit, TUI is building a digital hub in Portugal, and a clever company has invented cement-free concrete block....

At the end of Expo Real week, we also have a personal message: On the "Expo Real" page, HospitalityInside says thank you! We also provide a retrospective and look ahead for 2024, including testimonials from our co-exhibitors. We have also added some nice motifs to the picture galleries from last Friday (start page).

Stay connected with us - also by clicking on our Investment BAROMETER! The online tool is always available and comes with a gift: we are giving away a brand-new book with questions and answers about sustainability. The key to the book is obtained by answering these questions on investments!

Till next Friday! 

Yours, Maria Pütz-Willems

Chief editor

Dear Insiders, The Expo Real ends this afternoon and the hotel industry is probably the only sector that will go into the weekend with a smile on its face. From the very first day, there was a large crowd of hotel exhibitors, which thinned a little yesterday, but the conclusion was uniformly positive: fewer visitors, but higher-quality discussions.