News & Stories
London. Exactly one year ago, participants of the at Henry Stewart's Hotel Finance conference in London were told that Angela Merkel was rethinking requirements for free movement of people in the EU which was in fact a gross distortion in the UK popular press of some statements that she had made regretting the human suffering caused by the refugee crisis. Another presenter confidently predicted that a fast-track trade deal with the US was now achievable following the recent election of Donald Trump. One year later, the so-called 'special relationship' is now in tatters, especially following Trump's tweeting approval of a series of videos from Britain First, a radical far right UK group. Which impact will Brexit have on the UK economy and hospitality sector? This question is still open.
Paris. Airbnb is being questioned by the French government about a possible money laundering scheme. The rental platform offers French hosts the possibility of receiving their payment on a card issued in Gibraltar, where bank records are sealed. The Ministry of Finance is investigating the matter.
San Francisco. While major hotel chains are spending billions buying each other, Airbnb scores again through the acquisition of Accomable, a startup based in London that focuses on rentals for disabled people. With full force, Airbnb enters a multi-billion-dollar market frankly ignored by traditional hoteliers. But Morgan Stanley is convinced: Airbnb has reached a saturation point.
Bethesda/London/Toronto. Marriott has teamed with two leading tech companies to launch the hospitality industry's Internet of Things hotel room. Four Seasons Hotels has launched a Chat – a new digital service for instant messages in real time and in more than 100 languages. And Hilton turned the ground floor of its global headquarters into a public space.
Amsterdam. Hoteliers are trying to create a new revenue stream by shortening cancellation windows and charging fees. Will that pay off or scare corporate travelers away? While hotel chains are not all adopting the same strategy, HRS and Booking.com recommend flexibility, a decision-making element for business travelers when it comes to picking a hotel. Also noteworthy is the fact that European chains behave differently compared to American groups.
Munich. The term "Serviced Apartments" has received a refined touch recently right up to "temporary living", as the variety of living has become more colourful and flowing in this segment – ranging from hotel living to commercial micro apartments. "Temporary living is speeding up" as Anett Gregorius, Managing Director at Apartmentservice Berlin, summed up in short at "Hospitality Industry Dialogue", the hotel conference at Expo Real in Munich four weeks ago.
London. Artificial Intelligence has conjured up images of machines taking over, as depicted in sci-fi horror films…. But AI has become the object of speculation and projection as regards the hotel industry. While many observers have focused on the more spectacular manifestations of AI in a hotel context, such as robots serving drinks at the bar or greeting guests in a formulaic manner at reception, the fact is that the most likely applications of AI to take hold for the foreseeable future will be of a more prosaic, incremental nature and ease today's efforts in revenue management, cost control and guest information.
New York. The proper execution of a hotel management contract between owner and operator is a critical step in the development of a successful hotel venture. And: There are differences between the preferred fee structures of the contracts worldwide. In Europe, flat fees dominate.
Miami. Airbnb wants more control over its portfolio. To do so, the rental platform has decided to build its own rental apartment complex in Florida. Airbnb goes even further by offering financial loans to selected hosts, in order to improve their interiors and make them more standard.
Munich. Hackers are able to crack a hotel in 20 minutes, servers in 10 minutes, check-in procedures in 15 minutes. Digital attacks on hospitality properties have increased by more than 40 percent from 2015 to 2016, and are still on the rise. The hospitality segment, however, seems to greatly underestimate the issue: too many operators actually have no clue how to prevent threats and to react in case of attack. And even worse: The real damage is not the attack itself but the guests' reaction. They will stay away from an "unsecure" hotel. At the recent "Hospitality Industry Dialogue", the hotel conference at Expo Real, cyber experts, hoteliers and investors debated one of the industry's hottest topics.