AXIS Hospitality International

WHY OR HOW SHOULD A LUXURY RESIDENTIAL RESORT BE BUILT?

Why Build a Resort and Risk Losing Everything?

The answers are as simple as the question, but find the right persons to ask.

As I take a look back over the hundreds of projects that we have reviewed over the years, I often think I should be offering up our 'pearls of advice' that, if followed, would save fortunes and make millions. There are a few things with which one should start. 

The three most important parts of the anatomy are,

1. 1. Ears    We have one and a spare. Two create depth.
   2. Eyes    One's OK, Two are magical if engaged fully.
   3. Brain   A left and a right are all that is necessary.... used wisely.

The results of those three body parts interacting precipitate the sniffing of success.

Perhaps the most important two components are a pair of ears. Ears that work well and hear everything. Ears that are connected to both a yes and a no 'switch. 

Eyes that engage with the human and physical components of the project are critical and nostrils are important since the power of smell needs to be sharpened to detect the aroma of good omens as well as the stench of unwanted gases.

There are Ten Critical Pieces that need to be assembled, not built but conceived. There is an order in which they need to be done because some rely on others and are inter-dependent. Therefore sequencing is absolutely as critical as the ears.

1. Land. Before buying the land, it should have certain characteristics that a luxury resort must have. On a scale of 10, we are seeking a 7 or more. Here they are in their simplest form,
   1. Located within easy access to an airport.
   2. Commuting distance to a town or village that can provide employees, restaurants, cafes, bars, retail and healthcare.
   3. A beach with sloping land or hilly contours providing views for all villa owners is ideal but great resorts have been built in the middle of nowhere.
   4. If the land was bought already and it is deemed as a 6 or less, be very careful.
2. Development Team. The internal resources for the owner should include
   1. an experienced resort developer,
   2. an experienced team,
   3. a financial architect,
3. Resort Team. The external resources that would include the following skills but only added as required.......and never before. In addition, their work needs to be staged
   1. Experienced Resort Co-Developer.
   2. Brand & Operator (3 or 4 options with Expressions of Interest)
      
   3. Experienced hotel/resort Architects * 
   4. Interior Designer * 
   5. Engineers * Soil test, environmental study)
   6. Project Management (only when financed)
   7. Real-Estate Specialist.
   8. Subject to approval by brand OR chosen from the brand's list
4. Resort Co-Developer. The need for experience on the team of the landowner is critical. In that sequencing of the development is the most important element, this person or company will provide the discipline necessary to avoid catastrophe and assure long range profitability.
5. Brand & Operator. Unless the developer has very deep pockets, a recognized brand and operator will be necessary to get investors and debt financing. One or two LOIs would suffice. Developer must be ready for design approval and other demands from the operator/brand.
   1. Interest does not mean success because they are not typically at risk.
   2. The process of signing the contract takes time and their conditions have to be met. Signature is reliant on,
      1. Good developer/ownership,
      2. Financing,
      3. Architecture,
      4. Safety & Security,
      5. Payment of Technical Service Fees (Pre-Opening advice).
   3. The choice of the right brand is an educated selection amongst several options that should be based on
      1. Market positioning.
      2. Geographic spread.
      3. Level of interest.
      4. Experience in branded real-estate.
6. Feasibility Study. To be completed when the project has advanced to the point where the independent, recognized Consultant knows the brand, the project. scope and the anticipated timing. This study will look at the competition in the area and outside both from a hotel perspective and from the real-estate sales side. The latter may find alternate competitors in distant resort areas. ie a buyer in New York has sunny options in the Caribbean, Mexico or the Greek Islands.
   1. Many developers choose local specialists/accountants that do not pass muster with the financial community.
   2. Developer should have already concluded the market positioning of the property in relation to its competition.
7. Design Architect. The choice of a team of Architects is critical. Brands retain the right of approval of the architects and Interior designers and if selected in advance may provide a list from which to choose. There are several phases
   1. Concept Phase
      1. Define project parameters and budget with Owner.
      2. Development of the space program for the building.
      3. Prepare preliminary drawings and sketches to illustrate planning and stacking options. This will establish the basic massing of the hotel and help to further define the space program.
      4. Prepare preliminary concept rendering of building exterior to depict general concept and massing only,
         with preliminary indication of materials.
      5. Preliminary mood boards with precedent images to convey the “lifestyle” and inspiration for design.
   2. Schematic Design Phase
      1. Develop the concept design and provide preliminary floor plan layouts, elevations, and sections at 1/8” scale including all amenities.
      2. Identify all primary building systems—structural, mechanical, electrical, plumbing and fire protection.
      3. Coordinate with the various consultants to incorporate their work into the architectural design. The architect will work with the hotel operator and incorporate their comments and requirements into the Schematic Design.
   3. Design Development Phase
      1. Confirmation and revisions of the Schematic Design and development of the documents to define all design and scope issues related to the project.
      2. At the conclusion of Design Development, typical guest room plan layouts will be finalized, floor plans of the function areas, public spaces, and back of house finalized, and any exterior elevations will be developed at a scale of 1/8” including all primary building systems, structural, mechanical, electrical, plumbing and fire protection—will be identified and will be addressed. The architects will coordinate with all consultants and incorporate their information into the architectural drawings. 
   4. Construction Documents Phase
      
      1. Upon confirmation of the Design Documents, the architect will provide full documentation of all aspects of the Architectural Design elements of the project and coordination with the consultants to enable the project to be competitively bid. This phase will also include the preparation of filing drawings with local authorities, which will be coordinated with the GC.
   5. Expeditor and Client Bidding Phase
      1. During this phase, they will provide assistance to the Client and Project Manager, including providing clarifications, review of cost estimates and review subcontractor submissions, if needed.
   6. Construction Administration Phase
      1. Review of subcontractor shop drawings and product submittals for
         conformance with the documents.
      2. Responses to contractor field requests for information and clarifications.
      3. Reviewing samples and mock-ups.
      4. Attending job meetings and construction observation weekly.
8. Financial Architect. As important as the Design Architect, the Financial Architect is equally so. Without a knowledgable specialist in structuring and securing the financing, there is no project and the longer that the financing takes, the more money is (probably) being spent un-necessarily.
   1. The protection of the developer's equity is paramount.
      
   2. Compatible partners should be sought carefully. Divorce is costly & painful.
   3. A Capital Stack explains the makeup of Equity and Debt.
   4. The Sources and Uses describes in educated ways how and when the funds will be spent.
   5. Construction Loans should be extinguished by opening day through real-estate sales.
   6. A Line of Credit against real-estate sales can be opened to provide insurance, only if necessary.

Although this is a detailed list of ingredients for a successful resort development, a fine chef will always leave out a couple of extra ingredients that take his recipes over the top.

We always have a couple up our sleeve. We started over 20 years ago and in our first project in the Middle East, we saved the developer $9 million in our first meeting.

For more information, contact David McMillan of Axis Hospitality International

[email protected]

HOW CAN THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY RECOVER ITS 000s OF LOST EMPLOYEES

THE INDUSTRY BLEW IT. THEY WERE TREATED AS EMPLOYEES, NOT LIKE PARTNERS.

The value of a lifelong employee is worthy of a partnership but how many 'lifers' feel that they were actually treated like partners. Many feel that they were part of the family but if the truth be known, it was only their fellow workers who were truly family.

How many of them ever spent holiday weekends in their manager's cottage or were invited for a BBQ with their families?

How many of them were laid off during slow periods, every year?

How many of them were known by their first name by all the managers?

How many of them had a career path to financial success mapped out for them with their senior colleagues?

How many of them were taken care of during the pandemic at home?

Are the owners an intricate part of the family?

Unfortunately, we know the answers to all those questions and virtually none of them are positive but the questions must be asked and many more formed to create a map, back to the future, for a cultural and financial revolution in our industry. It must start at the top and include the bottom, the insides and the outsides. The very structure of the industry must be re-imagined to recognise that the employees are the front-line of our industry. They are at the sharp end of hospitality where the rubber meets the road. They are our 'surgeons' whose many skills depend on their colleagues to pass the right instrument at the right time so that the patient lives. They have no script. Their lives are impromptu and they shape the experiences of kings, princes and paupers tirelessly without support or any real encouragement. They create the experiences of which management boasts

The reputation of our industry is poor. We have done nothing to change that image as an industry. Sure, we have major corporations that boast of their close-knit 'associates' and carefully structured HR programs for encouraging retention but as soon as the occupancy drops a couple of points, all bets are off. It is said that 'the best time to make a friend is before you need one'. I say that time has come but before we embark on another temporary fix, we need to structure the participants to include the governments, the hospitality and tourism industry associations, the trade unions, the owners, the lenders, the brands, the operators, the educators and the employees.

THE MISSION. To create an environment in which the hospitality industry is the very best employment opportunity to build wealth and a great lifestyle for all partners and their families.

THE OBJECTIVES. There will be many objectives identified in the early stages of this worldwide effort but the fundamentals of this Hospitality Partnership will build toward a situation in which,

• The industry will be seen as a highly desirable career option.
• Opportunities for advancement will be open to everyone.
• All partners will enjoy full-time employment with vacation time increasing over time.
• All partners will accumulate equity ownership in the business, growing over the life of their service.
• Equity earned will be transferable as the partner advances in the industry.
• Accounting systems will be modified to include a reserve for partner FT employment similar to the reserve for FF&E.
• Innovative educational and health programs will be encouraged to occupy partners and their families during slow periods.

While the pandemic has decimated the employment base worldwide, there was already a global shortage of manpower in hotels and restaurants pre-pandemic that was estimated between 12 to 15 million. Contributing to this shortage were a number of factors that included,

• Low wages in entry level positions with little job security.
• Restrictive visa regulations prohibiting job seekers from the job openings.
• Poor reputation as dead-end jobs.
• High turnover due to seasonality and other factors.

These factors require the participation of governments & politicians (Federal, State/Province, City/Town), all industry players, employer countries, employee countries, hotel and restaurant groups, educational institutions, trade unions, suppliers of consumables and FF&E.

This industry is an industry that cannot export its jobs abroad. Jobs in a hotel are there for decades and for as long as the building functions as a hotel.

Shortages of employees translates to lower GDP, lower tax revenues, lower profitability and lower investment returns. The only way forward is with full fledged, committed partners with a hands-on interest in the success of the business, their business.

Let's get back to the future together, as a team.

 

HOW SHOULD HOTELS FUNCTION IN A PANDEMIC

IF THE HOTEL INDUSTRY CREATED A SITUATION IN WHICH IT FULLY FUNCTIONED THROUGHOUT COVID19......

................What would be happening?

It has been catastrophic to watch the hotel industry be decimated by well-meaning politicians and the bureaucrats when it could be offering so much to the community as a huge collection of essential and perfectly matched, well-located resources.

This is not an occasion when the industry can sit on its' hands at home. This is war! This is an international catastrophe potentially worsening as wave after wave creates and accentuates the human and commercial damage.

If the creativity of our industry is harnessed and cooperates, we can quite possibly be functioning at record occupancies and with a full complement of employees and caregivers. All of the tools are there for the hotels and local restaurants to provide goods and services to those that need it, when they need it and how they need it.

It is not too late and we can not wait another moment.

What do we have to offer?

1. Around the world presence in every community on the planet.
2. Millions of furnished rooms and public areas that can be reimagined if needed, cleaned daily and if necessary 2-3 times daily.
3. Millions of trained employees that perform identical tasks to those performed in hospitals, prisons, institutions and senior care homes.
4. Hundreds of thousands of trained cooks performing around the clock.
5. Infrastructure for people management, purchasing, transportation, communications, recruitment and training.
6. Air conditioned Convention facilities that could do double-duty for ICUs, the homeless, schools etc 
7. Empty rooms that could do double duty for front-line workers, quarantine, employees and the partly sick.
8. Room service to hotel rooms, local homes and apartments using rotating local restaurants to keep them all open.
9. Provincial, State and National Hotel Associations to coordinate government participation.
10. Owners that are willing to roll up their sleeves and cooperate.

What would be the benefits?

1. The economy would continue to function.
2. Full employment from one of the world's largest employers.
3. Expanded and improved mental health.
4. Massively expanded and improved community services.
5. Hotels and restaurants would be doing what they do best. Safely, securely and happily.
6. Governments could take credit. Politicians would be in the loop.
7. The industry would survive and a template for the future would have been created.
8. Break-even financial saviour.
9. Full-time employment restored.

Nothing needs to be built. No-one needs to be recruited. Re-training is part of the industry's vocabulary and all the resources are located in every community.

Where and with whom do we start?

1. We start small and we start rapidly.
2. We start global, national and local.
3. We involve governments, healthcare, hotel groups, trade associations and perhaps the military.
4. We start in small circles and work out, ironing out the wrinkles as we go.
5. We develop checks and balances to ensure full compliance.
6. The Team. Here is the first 'small group',
   1. IH&RA (International Hotel & Restaurant Association)
   2. UNWTO (UN World Tourism Association)
   3. WHO (World Health Organisation)
   4. ITUC (International Trade Union Confederation)
   5. UN (United Nations)

There exists an international hotel and restaurant association (IH&RA) that is formally recognised by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) and whose members include National Associations and Hotel Groups that could and should be mobilised to oversee this catastrophe. Global Councils of Security and Human Resources could be employed to provide oversight and guidance. The association (IH&RA) has already worked with the other international organizations.

Adapting to the new Reality

For comments and suggestion, email [email protected] or contact your local hotel or restaurant association.

 

HOSPITALITY ASSOCIATES ARE ENTERTAINERS............ without a script.

WHY IS IT SO HARD TO UNDERSTAND THAT HOSPITALITY IS ENTERTAINMENT

In its simplest form Hospitality is Improvisation personified when we Entertain. Friends and Acquaintances, Food, Drinks, Conversation & Memories.

When we entertain at home, we plan as much as we can in advance and are generally ready on time when the doorbell rings. The front driveway is swept, there is room to park, cobwebs have been cleaned from the front door, flowers in vases, hors d'oeuvres chilled, ice cubes fresh and a great selection of drinks are ready. The kids are smiling as are the adults.......proud in the knowledge that the floors have been swept, shelves dusted and furniture cleaned, lights adjusted and cushions puffed. Our stage is ready for the most important ingredient of the event, the conversation. 

From here on in, it is Improv in its purest form.

Conversation flows. Initially in twos as coats are removed and hung leading to more open conversations as things warm up. There is not a single moment of silence from our guests' arrival to their departure, our faces project our enjoyment of their presence and our conversation is warm, interesting and all-inclusive. Not the 'all-inclusive' that we have adopted in the resorts but a combination of experiences that are memorable, partly planned, ad hoc but definitely not scripted.

This Hospitality play has no scripts, no planned entry 'stage right', no drum rolls or cymbals crashing. It is 'improv' at its best.

Our hotels and resorts are no different. Putting all the corporate standards, procedures and branding aside, shutting ourselves out of the company politics, the hierarchy, the uniform, the shift that has just started or is almost over, we in the hospitality industry are all entertainers without a script. Front of house or back of house, we warmly welcome our visitors and our colleagues with the same genuine eye-to-eye contact, words of 'non-scripted' welcome, setting the stage for the experiences and pleasant surprises that we have in store. As we move through our series of stages, the entrance, the reception, the lobby, the elevator, the rooms corridor, multiple opportunities for un-scripted conversation exist and should be exploited. Introduction of Mr & Mrs Guest to Teresa the room attendant or Joe from Maintenance on the way to the room is just one of the ways that this entertainment experience can be amplified.......if Teresa and Joe realise they are a part of the show and engage in a creative way.

Conversely the back-of-house or more affectionately the heart-of-house is no different with similar opportunities for entertainment and interaction. Why should all our attention go toward our guests when our colleagues are as critical to our success as the paying guests. Managers, supervisors, owners are all equally part of this theatre, this play, this experience that we are selling. Creative thinking for the development of interesting storylines should not only be encouraged, it must be exploited, planned, researched but not scripted. 

This concept is fun. It must be fun. It is as rewarding for us as it should be for our guests. If done well, it will become the magnet that is needed to attract associates to our industry. Not necessarily just young associates but associates of all ages, all levels of society, those with talent and those whose talents can be developed further. Let's face it, all of us have the power to smile, to speak, to empathise, to communicate verbally or non verbally, to laugh, to sympathise, to empathise. 

Let us all put Entertainment back into Hospitality!

TRIAGING RESORT DEVELOPMENTS

RESUSCITATING RESORT PROJECTS FOR FINANCING.

Such a shame that so many great projects are gathering dust on the shelves of so many Developers and Landowners who are losing hope of them ever moving forward.

Billions of dollars of financeable projects sitting there waiting to be financed in various stages of completion and not going anywhere while the solutions are visible to the naked, experienced eye in a matter of hours.

We know because our eyes are naked and experienced and we conduct triages on resort developments.

They are not 'sick' or 'injured' due to malicious or wicked intentions, they are more often projects for which sequencing was not taken into account. Sequencing is not necessarily the phasing of the project although that is eventually an important factor. It is more about the sequencing of the planning that ultimately leads to financing. Too often, brains have been blown out by spending too much on the wrong things until the financing is in place.

They are almost dead in the mind of the developers because they have exhausted every avenue available to either find a partner or a lender without any luck. Some of the interested parties have encouraged the developer to spend additional monies to support the investment or loan only to go silent when the proof is not conclusive. They are injured in the minds of the investors or lenders because the details finalized do not line up with the aspirations of the project. 

There are thousands of details that go into Resort Development and the enthusiastic developer without experience may rush into the project surrounded by experts who approach the project with the best of intentions but without the development experience that would have rationed the consultants input only to the actual requirements for financing. The details should be dealt with in a sequence that includes the complete financing of the development's planning, execution and opening and, as a rule of thumb, not a penny should be spent that is not directly connected to financing.

Here are some of the more interesting but fairly frequent causes of sickness or injury in a resort project,

1. Land. Elaborate plans developed on land that is not yet owned.
2. Development Company 'team' made up of outside consultants only.
3. Single minded, inexperienced Developer with no capacity for listening.
4. Full design detail architectural plans developed without brand involvement or previous brand experience.
5. Budget for hard & soft costs only....... but none for development, financing or other expenses.
6. No plans for financing (equity & debt, sources and detailed uses....... and detailed timing of phases.
7. Feasibility or Valuation Study done by a local consultant unknown to the lending community.
8. Inexperienced team with limited or no experience in similar projects.
9. Business Plan completed by a specialist for another industry.
10. Glowing letters of worthless support from government officials.

As one of the Doctors in our Emergency Room at Axis Hospitality, this is typically how we 'triage the project' usually precipitated by a short e-mail call for assistance.

1. Telephone conversation about the project with the Principal Developer, elaborating on its status, their achievements and their perceived needs.
2. A review of all the available documentation (eg. plans, development company details, plans, budgets, operators etc)
3. Analysis of the actual status and determination of their immediate Planning needs.
4. Calculate the missing parts of the plan, determine the likelihood of success and the timing.
5. Discussion on recommendations and agreement on way forward.

Most resort developments that have either been injured or are comatose, can be resuscitated and most will not need to dilute the equity of the existing shareholders. 

For further information, email [email protected]

RECIPE FOR A LUXURY RESORT

INGREDIENTS

10 Acres of owned land

100 Metres of virgin beach

1 Local Developer with good ears

+/-10% Equity including land

1 Experienced development team

1 International resort real-estate agency

1 Luxury Brand/Operator

1 super-detailed development plan

$100K for Planning & Preparation

6 Months for Planning & Preparation

Taste, Humour & Creativity for colour and fragrance

TO PREPARE

Create product mix of residences, villas, suites and condos and place strategically on plan with innovative amenities.

Against confirmed value of land, borrow 45%, finalise planning, feasibility and commence real-estate sales.

Start 2/3 of villas and hotel amenities.

Borrow a bit against ‘As-Completed’ value to support pace of real-estate sales.

Add 1/3 of villas, sell and complete hotel.

Check details very carefully.

Place development profit in bank.

Enjoy profits from debt-free resort.

 

FOR GUIDANCE

Because if it really was that simple, everyone would do it,

Contact AXIS HOTELS & RESORTS

EMail David McMillan

THE LACK OF DEFINITION OF FINE DINING...... WHERE YOU ARE ACTUALLY FINED FOR DINING!

RESTAURANTS OR DINING ROOMS, CAFES OR BISTROS. WHAT ARE WE THINKING ABOUT WHEN WE DESCRIBE OUR RESTAURANT AS 'FINE DINING'?

Do we really mean that the food is fine, the service is fine, the decor is fine or the china is fine? What does fine mean. Does it mean that the other outlet is not fine? 

In that great period after the end of the Second World War when air travel became more common and hotels were needed to accommodate the masses, all hotels started out with a Continental restaurant and a Coffee Shop. The inference was that only Europeans could cook but their art was never practiced at breakfast, hence the need for vaste expanses of formica counters and tables.......... and waitresses with bedroom slippers.

Continental was of course an outright lie but it was a great boast for the daily roast, typically roast beef but ranging round the farm yard from the chicken coup to the pig pen while the short order cooks in the Coffee Shop shovelled out eggs over easy with parsley and Club Sandwiches with packets of mayo & ketchup. Chefs with any type of an accent were gold. But a French accent was platinum, regardless of his career path to date!

http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/19/travel/chef-fools-diners-taste-test/

As time progressed through the fifties and sixties, our Continental Restaurants took on some character, most believing they were French.......the only acceptable cuisine of those decades and the word 'Chez' crept into our vocabulary. Canned snails and soup a l'ognon were matched with 'Cock O'Van' or Roast Beef au Jus.

Others made attempts at Italian.....a far easier cuisine to emulate where pasta could be enveloped with anything. Hardly Italian but what did the masses know.

The 70s and 80s saw the entrance of the Asian market, initially pioneered by the Japanese but later dominated by the Chinese. Chop Suey was all we knew in the West so that became the favourite Asian dish of choice.

Gradually our Coffee Shops became 'Casual'. Bedroom slippers were still de rigeur but a new vocabulary emerged. One where everyone needed to address everyone by their first name and wrote love notes on the bill in flourishing handwriting. Casual of course was to attract the customers who were averse or actually scared off by the maitre d' in a Tuxedo in the Continental 'Fine-Dining' Restaurant. We were all of a sudden becoming Californian, where the real revolution in American Cuisine was flourishing.

Enter the term 'fusion'. Not 'confusion' although that was an ingredient. Fusion became a culinary term for cuisines being married, combined, opposites attracting......con-Fusion was the order of the day as European and Asian, Mexican and American, Jewish and Italian combinations were born and surprisingly survived.

Fine Dining has however survived but has never really been defined, refined or become popular. Perhaps the latter outcome will see the demise of Fine Dining forever. It is of course stiff not casual, pretentious not welcoming, staid not comfortable, expensive not affordable and overdressed not appropriate.

It is of course where designers flourish and blow-out the proverbial pocketbooks of their client owners with their choices of SouthEast Asian silk wall coverings, Venetian crystal chandeliers, fine Irish linen tablecloths and Austrian & Hungarian crystal glassware. Fine French & Italian wines from long distances are stored poorly in basements & beer cellars and described in glowing terms on parchment menus with Argentinian leather covers. The menu choices are equally as discombobulated with French, Italian, English, American, Caribbean, Indian, Chinese and Malaysian jockeying for the attention of the diners being fined.

Why does this cacophony of products from abroad come together under the heading of 'Fine Dining'? What does any of this stuff have to do with eating well, great flavours, the art, colour and scent of great ingredients, the theatre of great combinations of regional ingredients and local customs served adroitly by hospitable locals.

Interesting that the opposite or Antonym for Fine......includes words that might be applied to the other Dining Outlet, and those include Repulsive, Unattractive, Unsophisticated, Drab, Inferior, Poor, Unfashionable, Cheap, Horrifying, Second Rate, Dull..............all of which are best represented by bedroom slippers!!

And synonyms for the word Fine include Beautiful, Elegant, Expensive, Fashionable, Attractive, Splendid, First-Class, Ornate, Five-Star and Gilt-Edged.........all of which are perhaps best represented by waiters in dinner jackets.

Now.......what is on the menu you may ask and at what price? Well this is where the fine really is!!!

 

TOP TEN PROJECT MISTAKES TO AVOID IN A LARGE (OR SMALL) PROJECT

IMAGINE THE DAY WHEN ALL THE  STARS LINE UP TO  FORM A PERFECT PROJECT AND THEN IT TURNS INTO A NIGHTMARE.

Picture if you can inviting 3,000 people to a  Congress and then realising that your Convention Centre is not large enough.......... so you build a new one, cost is no obstacle and you can pick from amongst the best contractors, architects and specialists in the world.

This perfect project was actually too good to be true. We were invited to assist in the development of a new hotel and convention centre in which we were faced with,

1. No pre-determined architectural design.
2. No Ego. This is a country thing, nothing personal.
3. No budget restriction. Right! Just name your price.
4. No delays. Give me a Budget in 3 months & complete it in 24 months.

Yes, it happens more often than one would think. They have invited people to a Congress and they needed a place to hold it. Two to three thousand people and all of them important, rich, influential and demanding. They are determined to build an international Five Star Facility.

They have to have it in 24 months, which is not unreasonable but they need a top-ranked world-class team and a world class organization. There are of course many contenders and those with solid proposals represent the biggest and best in the world. How can this possibly go wrong?

Well, here are the Top Ten of the biggest darn mistakes that were all very avoidable ! Almost a perfect list of DO NOTs,

1. Experienced Team. Take plenty of time to assemble a team that has no similar experience and then give them Carte Blanche. Fire the architect on Day Two and replace with a part-time architect cum part-time university professor. Ensure he collaborates with no-one. Allow him to threaten to quit monthly.
2. Leadership. Appoint a part-time Project Manager with a murderous international travel schedule. Move him to an area where he will have difficulty communicating & whip him publicly every day.
3. Budget Accurately.  Postpone finding and contracting a team of specialists until budgets are made and their input is impossible to incorporate, then with-hold payments for all specialists.
4. Special Interests. Choose the wrong team and then provide the suppliers themselves with the full authority but half the scope.
5. Tools of the Trade. Order half the operating equipment & eliminate the other half........ and keep that secret. Specify good interior design and knock off cheap duplicates in China.
6. Teamwork. Forbid teamwork...........in writing! Fire those that collaborate with others. Avoid at all costs any requests from the international operators.
7. Organization. Plan the installation of 200 tons of furniture without elevators and without methodology. Install room furniture before completion of construction. Forbid delegation of responsibilities and ensure lies are well-communicated.
8. Local Integration. Import 100% of the staff from other countries, postpone application for Construction Permit until the 11th hour and avoid Fire Marshall approval until the final few weeks.........approval with-held!
9. Project Planning. Repeatedly and consistently avoid the creation of any Project Planning Schedule that integrates all components of the design/build/equip plan into one document. 
10. Real Dates of Completion & Handover. Avoid all requests for final dates of handover and estimates of potential dates for the opening of the hotel and facilities. 

It is hard to imagine a project that was so right for this region and so poised for success that was so mis-handled. It is also difficult to imagine how difficult this is and has been for the many fine professionals who have been forced to toe the line from within this team.

As the final weeks click away and the opening date approaches, two minor details require attention. An application is made for a Construction Permit and the still incomplete architectural plans are sent to the Fire Marshall for approval, two fundamental requests that should have been executed 18 months ago and that could have prevented the Congress from proceeding as planned. 

It is my earnest belief that a small team of high school students left alone,  from your average school anywhere in the world would have planned, designed and executed this project in time and with a budget that would have saved over one hundred million euros.

However, most of the major meeting facilities were more or less completed in time for the congress ....................but then the Alaskan Volcano erupted and the resulting dust clouds prevented most of the conventioneers or speakers from travelling there as planned.

Even a well planned project could not have foreseen that little glitch!!

 

SIGNS OF INNOVATION IN OUR INDUSTRY

AS A VOCAL CRITIC OF OUR INABILITY TO INNOVATE, I NOW TAKE PLEASURE IN OBSERVING EXPLOSIONS OF CREATIVITY POPPING UP EVERYWHERE.

What a thrill to see the industry acting irrationally and creatively for a change. Allow me to take off my hat to those that are starting to take some risks.

I believe that they are right but I also believe that we are all to blame for our addiction to company or minimum standards. 

1. Starwood takes whole Executive team to China and then announces 175 new hotels there and Chinese breakfast items chain-wide. They have since taken them to Dubai.
2. St Pancras Hotel is restored lovingly back to British perfection and then does the same thing with the menu.
3. Richard Branson promotes the aggressive hiring of ex-convicts.
4. Hotel Fox in Denmark........hang on a minute. That was done by Volkswagen!
5. Rooms designed by Graffiti Artists.

Here is where our innovation is lacking however.

1. Rooms are fundamentally dirty. Our industry should be pioneering cleanliness through design, maintenance and management. Our space science techniques should be exported to homes and households.
2. Sound & In-room Entertainment. Televisions, radios & telephones should have been advanced technologically to make the bedroom and bathroom into entertainment spaces.
3. Retail opportunities for Lifestyle abound. Beds, linens, carpets, marble & granite innovations are just the start. Restaurant table-tops, china, glass, silverware and furniture are waiting to be merchandised.
4. Employees are in very short supply in the West. We are 12-15 million workers short. Workers cannot get to jobs because borders need reinvention. Our jobs can never be exported. Ourindustry needs reinvention and that can in part come from our employees.
5. Local artists and artisans need to be integrated into all hotels & restaurants. We are in entertainment but we have not yet embraced it.
6. Creativity is not encouraged. In fact it is shunned and relegated to the brand managers, the keepers of brand standards tied to minimums. 

This is an industry that is losing its way. It is being overtaken by opportunists that are licensing the privilege of operating a hotel under a reputable name without the commitment to the philosophy.

Since this Blog was first drafted almost two years ago ( I just found it again), I have been exposed to yet more industry standards glued to the past and to basic minimums, rather than maximums. I have found standards that were ill-conceived, poorly researched and even worse, have been rejected outright.

I am tempted to think back to an era when a great chain was launched internationally with but a suggestion of creativity, a titillating suggestion that the hotels were launch pads for regional character, foreign personality and local touches. As General Managers of these farflung properties in developing countries, it was our responsibility to identify and introduce these small, intriguing neighbourhood winks of local colour. These ideas were often the suggestions from local entry-level employees who were proud of their culture and thrilled that their ideas showed off their country, a piece of their history, their artisanry, their heritage.

The 'Touches of Hyatt' were in my opinion one of the most brilliant advertising & marketing campaigns ever launched by a hotel group which harnessed the innovativeness of thousand of managers and employees and focused their attention on their guests' delight. It lasted for years. It should have lasted forever!

Centralising standards is going backwards.

Leadership, innovativeness and delegation with authority and responsibility needs to be taken to a new plateau. We are a lifestyle industry in the business of entertainment and our theatres need more amusement, greater variety and more fun.

THE CUSTOMER IS ALWAYS WRONG!

WHAT IS THE DEFINITION OF A RESORT? DEFINING A RESORT'S MARKET PRECEDES THE DEFINITION OF THE PRODUCT OR DOES IT? BOTH OF THEM ARE LIKE ROCKET SCIENCE.

If you ask that customer what he is looking for, he will give you a description of an old, obsolete model. Take my advice! Do not listen to the customer. The customer is always wrong!

Now, the real work starts!!

Does a rocket scientist ask the space passenger how the space ship should be built?

Imagining a product that will appeal to tomorrow's resort customer is what Steve Jobs, Kemmons Wilson, Conrad Hilton & Steve Wynn did for their products. Building your product based on the last model is moving backwards. Asking the Commodore 64 customer what he wants in his computer does not lead you to today's Mac or PC.

And where do the old resorts go? What happens to the really good ones? Do the classics from the 50s and 60s survive or do they become old folks' homes or hospitals? What made the really really great ones great? Do you remember Frenchman's Cove in Port Antonio Jamaica? How about Jumby Bay in Antigua? Both were 'culinarily superb' all-inclusive before 'all inclusive' was a dirty word. No telephones, no TV, croquet and bicycles instead of golf carts, beachfront help yourself Champagne and Princess Di's ex-chef. Then there was the Kahala Hilton in Hawaii, do you know why they were so special?  They called it JIT. They specifically hired inexperienced employees with great attitude. How about Gstaad in Switzerland? There they had the Palace, and several more. In Villars sur Ollon (see below), there was architectural stature, grace and arrogance. They have since ditched the last two!!

How about some from my own background. Well, here are some examples from my career, in order of appearance.

• Grand Hotel Eastbourne. Staid, elegant.....Lionel Jeffries and his Palm Court Orchestra for tea in the afternoons. Butlers, starched serviettes and a grand-piano shaped pool. Still going! http://www.grandeastbourne.com/. Staid is not good. Elegant is still good, but does it work in resorts?
• Villars Palace, Switzerland, Elegant, formal but ski-to, with horse back riding, tennis and scintillating views. White tablecloth dining and a waiter count of 37 full-time professionals, 36  from Italy and me. Now an 'all-inclusive Club Med http://www.clubmed.ca/cm/resort-villars-sur-ollon-switzerland_p-61-l-US-v-VSOC-ac-vh.html. Elegant is 'passee' in the mountains but still good at the beach..........in the evenings.
• Woolacombe Bay Hotel, Devon, England. Ballroom with sprung floors. Dining room with two sittings. Horseback riding on spectacular rolling hills and unspoiled beachfront property. Peter Sellers choice for a brief holiday with his Mum......and her chauffeur. Still chugging along but upgraded....with a sprung ballroom floor!! http://www.woolacombe-bay-hotel.co.uk/. Unspoiled beachfront with rolling hills is still good. Sprung floors is overkill! Horseback riding is good. Memo to self. Make sure stables are downwind.
• Jamaica Hilton, Ocho Rios, Jamaica. Modified American Plan...... a full social program from dawn to sunset, European department heads and bulging at the seams. Harry Belafonte and Martin Luther King. Coral reefs & crystal clear Caribbean waters good, European department heads inappropriate. Now the Jewel Dunns River Beach Resort and Spa , all inclusive. http://www.jeweldunnsriverresort.com/.  Crystal clear waters still good. European department heads good........in Europe!
• Curacao Hilton. Willemstad. A classic 23 acre Hilton resort with a creative beach, successful casino and junkets with a huge entertainment budget and a great Indonesian rijstaffel buffet. Casino run by Bud Sweet and John Scarne (and me). Still operating successfully. 
• http://www1.hilton.com/en_US/hi/hotel/CURHIHH-Hilton-Curacao/index.do Huge entertainment budget works and an authentic rijstaffel is always good. Creative beach is good...........natural beach is better. Local food specialities are really hot.
• Mont Gabriel Lodge. Forty five minutes north of Montreal, this ski and golf log cabin resort with blazing fireplaces and hearty fare was the epitome of a Quebec hostelry for families, lovers and business groups. A world class centre for acrobatic skiing now anchors this resort as an ideal second home for the energetic set  http://www.montgabriel.com/. World class is always good and chalet living in a ski resort within commuting distance to Montreal is a winner.
• Algonquin Hotel, St Andrews, New Brunswick.  Iconic railway hotel with 18 hole golf course with a greenskeeper from St Andrews, Scotland...... priceless. Fresh all you can eat lobster.........MMMM! Tea and crumpets for the older crowd. Passamaquoddy Bay views spectacular. Owned at the time by Lady Beaverbrook and Murray Vaughan. Mmmmm, those were the days.The village of St Andrews...very special  http://www.fairmont.com/algonquin. It's worked for over 100 years, why stop now! Iconic works.
• Hotel Santo Domingo. Urban, elegant Oscar de la Renta designed hotel, HQ of the Miss Universe Pageant, exquisite Alcazar restaurant, home to Gulf & Western's senior executives, now a shoddy shadow of its former self.  http://www.hotelsantodomingo.com.do/. No USPs left.....not good.
• Hyatt Presidente San Salvador. Built in 6 months on the instructions of the President to host a Pan American conference........that went elsewhere. Great neighbourhood of San Benito, now operated as a Sheraton after a brief stint as a Marriott. A rocky start due to the civil unrest. What a fabulous countryside!! What fabulous people.   http://www.starwoodhotels.com/sheraton/property/overview/index.html?propertyID=1597. Fabulous employees works. Spectacular topography works.
• Hyatt Tesoro Beach, El Salvador.  Opened in the midst of their most serious civil unrest, it did not stand a hope in hell of financial success, in spite of a great location, a golf course and a wonderful deserted beach. It did have panache, like the owner. It did have serenity. It was an oasis, a relaxing 'old world' resort with no surprises.     http://www.tesorobeachhotel.com/ Not much to be learned from this one. Panache works!
• Hyatt Regency Acapulco. The Centre of Things was an understatement. The most successful Incentive Destination in the World had a sizzling reputation for everything, food, service, entertainment, special events and much more. Pete diTullio, the illustrious President of Hyatt was the driving energy behind this great property and several great present day VPs made their marks here.   http://www.grandhotelacapulco.com/english/mapa_grandhotelacapulco.html. Creative event planning was the great takeaway from this property. Imaginative Mexicans and frenetic, creative energy makes a perfect combination for a successful resort.
• Hyatt Continental Acapulco.  Formerly the Continental Hilton, it fell into some disrepair under the ownership of Miguel Aleman himself who personally invited me to join the property as his GM when I was in Salvador. We later took it over as a Hyatt and the famous architect John Portman worked with us on the new designs.  http://www.hotelesemporio.com/acapulco. The takeway on this one was that ancient resorts always have great landscaping but what a shame that the town of Acapulco collapsed around it!

In retrospect, all this was pretty boring stuff by today's standards. What we have as takeaways are elegant evenings, downwind stables, a natural beach, apres work skiing, fabulous people, great landscaping, management panache, inexperienced employees with great attitude and iconic architecture. Then there is culinary excellence, free bicycles, no telephones or TV

What we look for in a resort is basically the same as then. Although the delivarables are changing, we still need to be surprised, even shocked, amused and entertained. We need beauty in food, amusement in the art, engagement in the language and a total lack of 'boring'. Employees need to be seen to be having fun, enjoying life and your presence.

Men and women have different needs whether they are adults or children and most seem to tend to fluctuate between the two (or four) while at a resort.........or dare I say in a community, or even at home.

What is the definition of a resort? 

The answer perhaps is that it is an evolving experience for all ages, all genders and all nationalities. It is an unscripted play, a rejuvenation of spirit that exceeds everyone's expectations in gentle but changing ways. 

Once it is defined, it starts a process of obsolecence. It challenges the senses in amusing ways without provoking necessarily laughter. We learn attractive skills, new areas of interest and open our eyes to new challenges while minimising past disappointments. It is not absent of stress but is opposite of stresses that existed at home or work. 

It is perhaps less 'packaged hotel services' and more a 'community experience', linked in an unimprovised fashion.

Yes.......I think it is just that. An experience that includes getting there, being in an exciting, different environment with people who are approachable, welcoming but different. The facilities and services at the resort is but a portion of the overall experience of the community, its' landscape, its smells, the sounds and the lifestyle.

I say, bring on the next generation of special resorts. Maybe like the ones that we were conceptualising at Cirque du Soleil. But whatever you do, don't ask your customers, they will always be wrong!!

FORECLOSURES FORECASTED, OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS....IF YOU LISTEN

RECENT FORECASTED HOTEL FORECLOSURES OFFERS HUGE OPPORTUNITIES TO THOSE OF US WHOSE BUSINESS IS TURNKEY TURNAROUNDS.

A recent example allowed us to conduct a brand analysis on an aging property, select from amongst ten brands, select three for a short list and deliver increased profits of $50 million GOP over ten years..........just with the choice of the Brand and a strategic re-positioning. Profits will more than double after the reno, but will quadruple if the expansion proceeds.

No it's not Rocket Science but who would build a rocket without a rocket scientist?

A launched hotel with the wrong engine going in the wrong direction will in fact cost as  much as the rocket fired in the wrong direction. It will never get there!

And yet time after time, developers make the decisions on the launch criteria without the Hospitality Scientist and the technicians that determine the direction.

Case Study Number One. A major chain operated hotel in the Caribbean was closed for a major $100 million renovation and re-opened under the same brand that had been there for +/- 40 years. It was opened as a new project and not re-positioned. It is a financial disaster and the owner is searching for ways to re-coup his losses.

Case Study Number Two. A major chain operated hotel in Africa faces a major $60 million renovation and will be re-launched under the same brand that has been there for +/- 40 years.

Ironically the same brand operates both hotels and in both cases, the hotels are government owned. In both cases, there is no intent to change the brand/operator. They are emotionally and historically tied to the brand where brothers, sisters, daughters and sons have graduated, been married, feted and celebrated for four decades.

Case Study Number Three. A major chain operated hotel in Asia plans a major $45 million renovation and will be re-positioned under a new, upmarket brand, shedding its' ties to the old one and will benefit as I have described in the title above, resulting in a project that will once again become to market leader.

This hotel is also government owned and was also emotionally and historically tied to the original brand where brothers, sisters, daughters and sons graduated, married, feted and celebrated for four decades. The difference was that the latter contacted the David McMillan Group and listened. They had agonised over the decision for a couple of years and made the courageous decision to contract an outsider to assist them through the analysis and the decision.

Case Study Number Four. A government owned, run-down, partially closed  independent hotel and convention centre in the Caribbean seeks a partner to invest, renovate, brand, re-launch, operate and maintain.........and wonders why there were no answers to their RFP.

All four Projects were referred to the David McMillan Group but only one, so far has listened and listened carefully. At times the terms I used were foreign, misunderstood and complicated to comprehend within the contexts of their worlds. But they listened, they learned and they made the decisions that were needed. They all now understand those terms and the science behind their use.

 Here are the fundamentals of our One Stop Shop 'Turnkey Turnarounds'

• Current Brand Position vs Ideal Brand position.
• Brand Options.
• Selection Criteria & Weighting.
• LOI & Business Terms.
• Scope of renovations required & preliminary costing.
• Brand scoring.
• Risk analysis.
• Decision.
• Final negotiations.
• Renovation Planning & Design.
• Construction & Fit-Out.
• Commissioning.
• Deficiency management.

It is interesting to note that the first four points are very often excluded from so many projects and yet they actually fuel the rocket that is expected to keep going for some 30 plus years.

HOSPITALITY & ENTERTAINMENT. NEXT PHASE - MALE FROLICKING?

IS THERE A BLURRING OF HOSPITALITY, ENTERTAINMENT AND RETAIL? THOSE THAT KNOW ME, KNOW THAT I THINK THERE IS AND I WELCOME IT.

Does the rumour that IKEA is implementing 'Play Rooms for Men' not spark some interest from those in the creative departments of Starwood, Marriott, IHG, Hilton and others? 

The news that IKEA introduced a Play Room for Men in one of their Australian outlets for Fathers' Day and may be extended and expanded as a concept, caught my attention as a potential idea for hotels looking for imaginative ways to attract clientele with methods other than alcohol, attractive female service staff and fitness clubs.

IKEA's Manland is set up with free hotdogs, pinball, foosball, video games and non-stop television sports to keep them busy while their wives shop.

Seems to me like a great method of socialising, networking and excercising while adding to the allure of keeping the guests in house and out-of-trouble for their entertainment and refreshments.

IKEA's ideas were prompted by the added benefit of freeing up the ladies to do some serious shopping while their 'better-half' male partners were kept amused and out of trouble.

And while the North American side of me smiles and sees opportunity, the Brit in me ('almost-a-'Euro') recoils at the thought of having to adapt to Americas' informality and drop my guard in front of total strangers. I however then have to imagine how the Asians might react and feel and was immediately reminded of the speed with which Asians took up the hugely embarrassing game of Karaoke. No problem on that side of the world!!

Colleagues of course immediately reminded me that hotels have spas, which for all intents and purposes are Play Rooms for Ladies.

“It will be interesting to see how it turns out.”

But now take a look at this one. It brought tears of joy to my eyes!

http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=NLjuGPBusxs&vq=medium

START A BRAND FROM SCRATCH, BUY A NAME OR DISSECT AN OLD CHAIN?

IF HOTEL 4 and 5 STAR BRANDING IS YOUR BUSINESS, WOULD YOU START FROM ZERO, FROM ONE FLAGSHIP NAME OR CARVE UP AN OLD ONE SO THAT YOU ACTUALLY START WITH A CHAIN? 

A hotel brand needs geographic spread to attract owners and a hotel needs a market to attract customers. Now comes the million dollar questions.

Who pays for the risk of  creating a brand?

Who pays for the risk of building a hotel under a new brand?

How many hotels make a chain?

The gradual shift that has seen hotel groups gradually dispose of their real-estate in favour of management or franchises means that the development costs of these new branded properties falls on the shoulders of the property owners.

As a former executive with Cirque du Soleil in the heady days when they were planning to enter the hotel market with their own brand, an idea that was later shelved, I was very intimately familiar with the label that CDS places on their huge skill-set. They referred to themselves as Creative Content Providers leaving those that created the Box, be it a hotel or a theatre, to finance the container. This is a reasonable approach where everyone sticks to their knitting!

This leaves me to probe a little further to find out the degree to which hotel groups go to create a new 'Brand'. Do they go to the extraordinary lengths that Cirque du Soleil went to re-invent hospitality spending many, many millions on research, creators, designers, concepts, ideation and study. The brand owners will probably answer yes and I grant that there is some investment in the development of the standards. I just question whether the level of creativity is high enough.

And what (for heavens sake) have these Creative Content Providers created that will revolutionise our industry and create huge waves of investors across the globe to start creating new experiences.

Let's take a look at the menu!

 ZERO

There are a few that have truly been created from scratch and those that come to mind include,

1. Edition (Marriott)
2. Blu (Carlson)
3. Indigo (InterContinantal)

In the case of this scenario where we create a brand from zero, I as the hotelier will want to create a brand from which my company provides the Creative Content and then profits from it. My preference would be to insure that my company hipes up the excitement of the 'brand' new idea and that owners get caught up in the promises.  I would prefer to invest minimally in creativity and not at all in the land, bricks and mortar.

The less preferred but more honourable route would be to invest in the hotels to obtain the spread and then sell off the real estate when the brand is successful and franchise from there, as Marriott did when they started.

 ONE

Starting from the value of a name that already has panache, brand value and an image that can be exploited is a brilliant concept that grabs the imagination of the hotel developer although leads to some unfair comparisons as one searches out the Waldorf's Bull & Bear equivalents (that is a classic Lexington Avenue haunt in New York)...........in Orlando or Shanghai.

And those that come to mind do include,

1. Waldorf Astoria
2. Fairmont
3. St Regis
4. Four Seasons

In cases where hotel groups take an existing hotel with a huge, well-earned reputation and rolls it out to the far corners of the globe, it comes with a mix of gigantic expectations with a dash of raw disbelief. It is perhaps geared to the owner 'libido' more so than the future client. As a natural brand for princes, pop-stars and presidents, a Waldorf Astoria Orlando seems like a stretch, although probably not to the owner.

The exception to this was the Four Seasons. The two first Inn on the Park properties were on great parks in London and Toronto. A great start! That did not work for the next ones which were far from parks so they needed a new name. The decision was made to use the name of their 'other' managed property which was the Four Seasons on Jarvis Street. While a perfectly acceptable city-centre motor hotel, it was perhaps better known for its' neighbourhood whose reputation in Toronto was delectably and titilatingly anchored in the red-light zone. 

So that puts an end to my theory that you need a great name to get started!!

NB. I was the opening General Manager of the first purpose built Four Seasons ever, in Calgary.

SPLITTING

I can think of a number of examples of chains that have been created from other chains to create brand differentiation, or separating the wheat from the chaff or less politely separating the shoddy from the chic. Those that come to mind are,

1. Holiday Inn Select from Holiday Inn.
2. Crowne Plaza from Holiday Inn.
3. Pullman from Sofitel.

Splitting a group of hotels from their sisters is a frightening decision. It is sometimes referred to as 'sub-segmentation'. Do you take the substandard ones out as they did with the Pullman brand or take the good ones upmarket as they did with Holiday Inn Select? Ironically in an earlier phase of similar surgery, the insiders were referring to the two groups as Holiday Inns and Holiday Outs!

The Crowne Plaza branding was, in my opinion, a huge error of judgement starting out as a HOLIDAY INN Crowne Plaza (in Red), morphing into CROWNE PLAZA by Holiday Inn, moving on to CROWNE PLAZA where it now remains but still perhaps smeared by the distant memory of its' 3 Star roots.

And if none of this makes sense, consider the confusion that is created by the large operators of multiple brands that elected to call the umbrella company by its' Deluxe brand name and in this category there are two major ones that come to mind,

1. Intercontinental Hotel Group (7 brands)
2. Wyndham Hotel Group (17 brands)

All of this to suggest that the decision on branding is probably best not made by,

1. an inexperienced owner who has minimal knowledge of global brand movements. 
2. a hotel brand.....due to conflicts of interest or.................. tunnel vision.

It should be made by an independent hotel brand consultant who is typically very familiar with where is the brand on the curve and will it contribute more than it charges in fees, costs and other more uncreative content to the success of this business over the next 30 years or more.

And how many hotels make a chain?  How long is a piece of string?

REINVENTING HOSPITALITY IN THE 21ST CENTURY

THE INDUSTRY IS ANCHORED IN THE 50s IN WHICH HOTELS ARE DESIGNED, BUILT AND RUN....... ONLY THE NEWCOMERS GET IT.

How fascinating that those that are inexperienced newcomers are succeeding in our industry while us veterans copy the sins of our past, 'ad infinitum'.

The challenge of imagining and running a hotel is less daunting than most people think. The complexities of food costs, yield management, accounts receivable and supply management are simple compared to the more complex challenges of defining the product. The definition of the product is where we most often fail and this is where the inexperienced amongst us shine.

In fact the product was defined in the 1950s and hasn't changed much since.  What might it look like in 2050?

Allow me a look back to the post WW2 era of the 1940s/1950s when Kemmons Wilson, the founder of Holiday Inns and Conrad Hilton aka Paris Hilton's great grandad started their quest to define the needs of the post-war customer. And what came out of their development was largely the foundation of what we have today in countless brands across all six Continents (7 if you are in the USA).  They all include well defined spaces and contents, some larger, some better finished with varying degrees of the same services provided within those similar boring or so-predictable spaces.

They include a bedroom with 6-8 pieces of furniture, a bathroom with 3-5 pieces of furniture, a restaurant or two, a bar or two, a swimming pool, a spa (whatever that means) and other mundane basics.

What we failed to realize in those early days was that we were not in the business of guest rooms and restaurants, bars and the like, we were actually into a much more interesting service delivery system that incorporates 'lifestyle'.  What does that mean in the grand scheme of things?  I think it actually is more fundamental than that, it touches on but intermingles,

1. Deep sleep. Sublime Rest, complete relaxation and ultimate rejuvenation.
2. Replenishment. Healthy Sustenance, improved health & well being.
3. Rejuvenation. Stress reduction, social interaction & positive energy.
4. Amusement. Entertainment and attitude ajustment.

Given those more holistic descriptions of our basic function as hoteliers, I suspect that we would have advanced our approach to the bedroom and its contents, the bathroom and its' functions, eating and drinking, exercise and introspection all as it relates to those nouns, adjectives and adverbs above.

Does this make us more of a Clinic?  

Am I proposing that hotels are in fact overnight Healthcare?

What therefore differentiates us from a Hospital?

If we were entirely and completely devoted to delivering a rejuvenated, refreshed and energetic guest, would we be delivering a one-size-fits-all mattress, 1-2 soaps, shampoo, breakfast menu and lounge chair or would we be in partnership with sleep & relaxation experts, dieticians, stress doctors or dreamers who might be assisting us to re-invent our spaces and service delivery systems to exceed the limited demands of our un-imaginative clients who have been trained into the status-quo by a half-century of similar hotel products across all the major brands.

Imagine what a sound engineer could do with a television, a radio (or iPod) and a telephone in a space of 25-45 square metres, including a head-board, a bathroom and a shower? Something tells me that he could arouse our senses.

As we industry specialists go deeper and deeper into re-designing the old delivery system, newcomers to our industry are developing what we should have done which, in a nutshell, is to harness the imagination of everyone with the smallest trace of creativity,  spunk or theatrical talent and let it all out. 

In an earlier life, I had the great fortune to be given the task of reinventing hospitality under the banner of the great entertainment giants, Cirque du Soleil. Their plan was to develop their own theatrical complexes consisting of a theatre and hospitality.  It was given the working title of 'Complexe Cirque'. In very short order under the critical eyes of my collaborators, I was very quickly whisked into the stratosphere of their creative thinking on how hospitality would be delivered under the creative direction of Cirque du Soleil.  And while the project was at that time shelved, for all the right reasons, the dream lives on and will one day gather steam and be launched to the huge detriment of all those who insist on doing it as was done in the past. In the meantime, CDS has indeed moved into the arena of  'Lounges' which blur the line once again between entertainment, refreshment and lifestyle.

Imagine what a choreographer could do with our public spaces to create movement, amusement and fun with perhaps some schoolchildren on a fitness break.

What will our industry look like or consist of in 50 years? Will the hotel still be an extension of the 1950s prototype or will it have been re-invented. If so, who will do the re-inventing? Let's face it the only frenetic growth in the hotel industry is taking place today in Asia. But what are they doing? They are duplicating the brands and standards of those chains that have their roots in yesterday's standards.

With what parts of the village could a hotel merge? Do we truly need all those huge public spaces or can they be combined with other village uses?

Might a vertical high rise hotel be conceptualized in a horizontal fashion at a more human height and integrated in to the village?  Will soundproofing techniques in 2030 allow us to eliminate permanent walls to our rooms or public spaces and provide us with instant 'staging' options
depending on the needs and preferences of our guests for that day. Rooms or moveable partitions that morph into meeting rooms or apartments, 2 level homes or even a 10 room Corporate meeting centre with a show-kitchen for an evening Barbeque?

How will we compete with hotels in outer space? Never mind attract the staff!! 

http://davidmcmillangroup.typepad.com/consulting/2007/05/can_you_imagine.html

The days will have passed when we can get away with stale air, dusty broadloom and one standard mattress that lasts 6 years and occupied by some +/- 700 strangers. And then perhaps we will be a little bit more like a clinic or a hospital..........or maybe they will be a little bit more like a hotel, or a theatre..........or maybe there will be some convergence of all three.

Let's face it, it is not called Hotelity, it is called Hospitality!!

Imagine what an economist could do with the merging of health facilities with a hotel or resort and what might happen as spinoff benefits to both entities. And how about rolling in a school?

But what entity is going to kick that idea off? The Hotel Chains.........probably not because it is not their territory, it is the building owners who develop. The Ministries of Health...........probably not because they deal with health, not building innovation. The Ministries of Education.........probably not because they have no money.

Perhaps it needs to start in a small town or village where they need a hospital, a hotel and a school but can't do any.

Now all we need is a concept!! But let's make the next 50 years fun for Generation Y.

Y not!!

 

PS. My choice of photos are all US hospitals!!

 

OPEN PLATFORM 'MACAPPLE' HOTELS. NOW THERE'S A CONCEPT

AN OPEN STAGE. NO SCRIPTS. NO MINIMUM, NO MAXIMUM. JUST RAW CREATIVITY AND IMPROVISATION TOWARD CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT. 

If Apple can create a complex electronic device which serves as a creative platform or launch-pad for thousands of programmers' APPS and to the delight of its public, why can't we in the hospitality industry conceptualize hotels as platforms with the same editorial freedom for product development and guest-elation through a range of Hospitality APPS?

We are told that today's Generation Y are a breed unto themselves. Creative, entrepreneurial, free spirits and un-controllable. We already know that they have no interest in our industry because of all the rules and regulations and boring standards with no room for self expression or interaction. Just imagine the day when they become our guest-base!

I have for several years openly yearned for the day when Hospitality recognizes its' natural link to Entertainment........... and Design. We are running stylish 'theatres' where the actors write the scripts and where the spectators participate.

The platforms or stages are clearly formed and ready for artistic expressions to be applied. The areas and parameters are clear and the programmers are already hard at work.

Our obstinence has not permitted the link for that creativity to be encouraged, fostered and then applied. Our own programmers have not had the confidence in the creativity of others, be they suppliers, customers, students and employees.

Imagine GUEST-APPS or applications that are designed for business guests, leisure travelers, restaurant and banquet guests, travel agents, airline passengers for situations that allows for ease of use in a wide range of service-points. Here are some possibilities,

• Room and Airline Reservations (Guarantee, payment options, discounts, upgrade options).
• Special design requests (Sheets, Pillows, Towels, Soaps, Desk, Sofabed).
• Entertainment options (Movies, Sports replays, Podcasts).
• Room Registration (Boarding Card key).
• Special food order.
• A la Carte Delivery from local restaurants
• Meeting Planner.
• Banquet Planner.
• Banquet Drink orders.
• TRIP-IT organizer.
• Guest Friend synch with my Contacts (Linked-in etc).
• Pool Chaise reservation.
• Maintenance order & time-tracker.
• Sample room (Supplier trials).
• Sample bathroom (Supplier trials with guest feedback).
• Sample meeting room (Supplier trials).
• Guest comment tracker.
• Standards of performance.
• Guest satisfaction monitor.

Imagine OPERATOR-APPS or applications that are designed to make the hotel more efficient, more enjoyable for workers, more profitable, less bureaucratic, greener, more people-friendly and sustainable. Here are some other opportunities,

• Employee satisfaction.
• Payroll & personal Productivity.
• Training aids and related benefits.
• Promotion opportunities in-house............. & worldwide.
• Work openings at peak periods.
• Learn a language.
• Management skills monitor.
• Labour turnover.
• Inventories & Purchase Orders (rooms, food & beverage, paper supplies, guest supplies etc)

The opportunities are endless because that is how the human mind works. It continually searches for ways to improve. Thousands of minds finding ways for their idea to be showcased. Thousands of clients who have special needs but who can find ways of satisfying their needs. Some APPS will have charges and some will be free. All will be organic and will one day be replaced. 

The time has come to retire the Operations Manual. The time has come to bury Minimum Brand Standards. The time has finally arrived where the customization of our clients' goods & services and continual improvement go hand in hand with employee development and an explosion of satisfaction, a tepid word.........maybe an explosion of expectations.

Let's yank this industry out of the 'Dark Ages' and squeeze it through Silicon Valley. Let us brush this industry with some of the golden inspiration that is Cirque du Soleil who re-invented the circus.

This is the first week of 2011, the start of a new era in the hospitality industry, one which embraces Generation Y. One which celebrates innovation and creativity and takes the lid off our stale, over-used methods and launches us toward the excitement of daily break-throughs.

Yes, the time has come to re-invent the Hospitality Industry........and we should not do it alone.

 

 

 

 

 

HOW EMBARRASSING. $11 MILLION ON A CHRISTIAN SYMBOL IN ABU DHABI

COMMUNITY VALUES GO OUT THE WINDOW!!

Luxury Hoteliers the world over pull out all stops to demonstrate that their creative skills are well focused on the needs and aspirations of their clientele while carefully respecting and honoring the local community's values.

How shocked therefore I was to read of this 'over-the-top' gesture to a simple Christian tradition in the middle of the middle of the Middle East. 

As a former hotel General Manager in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, I learned a great deal about the Muslim world, their traditions, their customs and their likes and dislikes. It was a fascinating experience and I came away with many Muslim friends with whom I shared many similar interests. I gained respect for those traditions and for those even who were more extreme in their beliefs.

At no time while I was there did I or my team ever consider that it would be wise to celebrate openly any Christian holiday or event. It would not have been appropriate, appreciated............in fact it would have been plain rude. We were guests in their country. We were operating a hotel which respected the local values and traditions and which was adorned with pieces and mementos that were connected to their history, their culture and their past.

To do so at that time would have been like thumbing our noses at those whose values were different. To do so today is in some ways an attempt to send a message. I am not at all qualified to know what that message is, or was intended to be but it might include these,

• My hotel is more upmarket than yours is!
• I can do better than you can.
• We respect your Christian values.
• Christian values are actually capitalistic.
• The only Christmas decorations around here are at the jewellery store!
• My owner is richer than your owner.
• What else could I have done with $11 million in December? 

In that the tree at Christmas is where gifts are deposited and where friends and family are invited to unwrap their gifts, show appreciation and exchange gifts. Many families today are scaling back the value of the gifts they give so that they can be more charitable. 

It will be interesting to see how this part of the custom plays out in Abu Dhabi!! Are the decorations accessible? Will they be gifted to others? Are they guarded by security? Do the security officers have guns? Do the guns have bullets? Do they plan to distribute them to the needy, as is done in many a hotel in the Christian world? So many questions. So much that needs explanation.

Last evening I helped to decorate our tree at home. Over the years we have accumulated a huge collection of decorative memories from large balloon balls in glass, paper mache and clay dolls with intricately woven lace dresses & fancy aprons to all sorts of silver stuff; ribbons, disco balls, chains and lights. By January 6th, they will have been packed up in boxes under the basement stairs for another year only to re-awaken memories again when reopened next year.

 The gifts will have gone. The wrappers refolded or recycled. the decorations extinguished.

All of which leads to the question.........are these decorations gifts or is this the ultimate tease?

Happy Holidays............ and keep it up UAE, you are not afraid of leading or taking a risk or two!!

 

PS. Apparently, the tree was removed and the mistake was admitted. Only big people admit their mistakes. All is forgiven. Happy New 'Gregorian' Year to all.

 

HILTON & STARWOOD FIGHTING OVER BOUTIQUE HOTEL SECRETS!!

 

NOW THAT THE SECRET IS OUT, THERE IS A SCIENCE TO CREATING HOTELS THAT HAVE A BOUTIQUE FEEL. WHY WOULD MARRIOTT HIRE SCHRAEGER?

It does take time and effort to create that special feel but why would Hilton and Starwood fight over the same two guys when there are hundreds of thousands of employees who are ripe to change them all into boutiques!

It does not surprise me that the big hotel groups would treat the development of their own Boutique Brands as just another 'brand'. That's the easy way out. Hire a couple of  gregarious innovators to reinvent our industry and then bottle it. What does surprise me is that they do not realise that this missing creative link in their existing brands is the one serious illness that has been so contagious that everything has become boringly standardised.

Here are my Top Ten, (actually Twelve) Secrets for a Boutique Hotel.

There are some basic principals that are critical to the establishment of a hotel as a 'boutique' hotel. Here are my rules for Artful Living at that special hotel.

1. A residential scale and elegant feel has to be created so that it does not feel or look like a hotel.
2. No-name. Sorry Hilton and Starwood, you must leave the brand names at home. And Marriott, the brand name Edition for your Schraeger inspired boutiques does not fit this criteria.
3. Hi design. Yes, every nook and cranny needs to be thought through. Every seat has to be sat in 'virtually' to anticipate the vista in the planning stage. Every door and window peered through, each picture viewed from all angles and all materials that come in touch with skin must be real.
4. Voluminous amenites. Not just soap, shampoo and shower caps, we are talking amenities like limos to the office, personalised marmalades, exotic honeys and fragrant teas with fruit baskets in the hallways.
5. Elite and personalised. Elite means elegant, haute, top-drawer and special. Personalised means anti-snob, sincere and warm and in your preferred room.
6. Cozy and Sophisticated. Cozy is cottage-like and sophisticated is Ralph Lauren paint but neither of them stop there.
7. A hotel created around the bar. Now there's a concept!
8. Private Club feel. Leather, quiet conversation, social and very personal.
9. Life as it might be in the Design and Fashion magazines.
10. Unique elevators, small and exquisite.
11. Staff personalities. Yes, excentric, outgoing, gregarious and non-conformist. In on his/her weekend to greet you or invite you home.
12. Hand made, not mass-produced. This goes not just for the furnishings and fixtures but also for the food, the drinks, the wine list and the paper.

And, if one thinks back to the origin of the term 'Boutique', it refers to a small shop selling one-of-a kind items usually from artisans. It means top quality, high priced and unique. It also means no standardisation like, "How may I direct your call?"

It can not mean standardised, name-brand or mass produced. It will never be cookie-cutter simple or rolled out from White Plains, Washington or Bethesda.

Maybe it should just be left to the non-hoteliers to do or, heaven forbid, let loose the creative instincts of our people. Now that's something that Generation Y can warm to!!

For some really innovative advice on introducing some unusual 'boutique touches' to your property, contact [email protected]

 

 

 

 

 

 

OUTSOURCING HOTEL CHAIN BRANDING? NOW THERE'S A CONCEPT.

THE CONCEPT OF USING INDEPENDENT BRANDING SPECIALISTS 

Too many things are going wrong by design and we need to fix this once and for all and for the long term.

There are three groups who are directly involved in the branding decision at the large hotel companies and they are the Brand, the  Owner and the Employee. Each of these groups have their special areas of interest and none of them are happy all the time, in fact the scale of happiness is hovering precariously low almost all the time. 

And while there are other groups involved in the process which include the Banker, the Market Study Consultant, the Architect and the Builder, I am going to deal with the first rung in the process as I attempt to  solve this heretofore complex series of needs.

Here are the basic needs of those three groups on the first rung of the ladder of development,

THE BRAND.

The President of the typical hotel group is committed to growth at any cost. His shareholders demand it. The stock analysts demand it and the spouse relies on the millions in stock options that will result from exponential growth. The VP Development and his team make annual predictions of the number of new hotels and acquisitions that will be signed up under each brand and predictions are made, budgets are approved and the business press get the news. Failure to reach the predicted level of growth results in great pain and much navel gazing. Those at the sharp end of this false energy are the chains' Employees who are charged with the task of persuading Owners to choose their brand whether appropriate or not. More about them in a moment. The outcome is that many re-brandings are done inappropriately and the brand is weakened.

THE OWNER

The hotel or resort Owner or developer is intent on finding the best hotel operator and brand that will deliver the maximum return on his investment. This will mean a difficult decision involving choosing between Group A or B in an intricate cocktail of market positioning, supply and demand, brand image, business terms, incentive clauses, exit windows and geographic exclusivity. His decision on Group A or B is not made any easier by the Employee of Group A or B because both are 'encouraged' to lie, exagerate and mis-lead the Owner into his decision in their favour. The wrong decision could result in a short-fall of millions in profits and a dysfunctional relationship over years with the brand. Huge penalties are inflicted for terminations and several years of profit shortfalls will never be recuperated.

THE EMPLOYEE

The Employee is typically an accomplished business negotiator armed with a range of promotional tools, charts and statistics that support the choice of his brand. He may well be either a newcomer to the industry with an MBA or a veteran hotelier who has worked his way up the ladder to this prestigious position with an impressive title that will tell the Owner he is dealing with the most senior representative of the Chain in the world. His first task is to eliminate the connection with Group B and this is typically done with a 'pre-contract' contract. The Employee's actual days are numbered because the countdown to the next recession started at the end of the last recession when the newly appointed President obtained a budget to re-activate the development department which is then systematically  annihilated every seven years. There are currently literally hundreds of unemployed ex-Employees in this Corporate Musical Chairs exercise in which large numbers of Employees change companies every seven years and start the process again with a new brand pitching new lies and dissing their former colleagues. 

THE SOLUTION

The solution to this Seven-Year Itch is a scenario in which this task of development is out-sourced to a corporate, globally represented group made up of independent branding specialists. This important group would have the ultimate task of servicing the Owner better, providing better-planned strategic growth for the Brand at a lower cost using Employees that work over a long-term with clear definitions of what the brands can and can not do with and for a global network of Owners that they know well and where trust is accumulated over a period of years.

____________

It becomes even more interesting as one contemplates other areas that are connected to the relationship between an Owner and the Chain and amongst those are the following,

• A typical Owner will look at a hotel investment as one with a shelf life of 7-10 years when he might anticipate an 'exit strategy' and wish to dispose of the asset. A typical management contract will be sought by Chains for 30 years plus options. The solution of a global branding group would provide the counsel and the link to a solution.
• A branded hotel that has run itself through a 20 year term might benefit from a second marriage and a change of name. The Brand may also be looking for an 'out' in favor of a new development and the Owner might also enjoy the enthusiasm of a new 'bride' and benefit from a re-branding.
• In the same way as a corporation will do succession planning for its' executive staff, a concept of 'succession branding' can be envisioned where re-branding becomes a natural progression rather than a chaotic transfer of logos. This, a process that is planned by the Brand in conjunction with the Employee Group that acts as a transition facilitator.

If you are a developer and need the counsel of a professional judge for your selection process, email us at [email protected]

http://davidmcmillangroup.typepad.com/consulting/2009/03/financial-disaster-management.html

LIFESTYLE BY TRIAL AND ERROR

WHEN WE GET OUR FIRST TASTE OF LUXURY, IT IS USUALLY IN A HOTEL.

The president of a luxury manufacturer of high-end linens once told me that most people get their first all-encompassing experience of luxury in a hotel.

He went on to explain that the purchaser of a Hermes scarf or a Louis Vuitton bag would experience the sensation of luxury but that it was a fleeting moment in time and hardly as sub-mersive an experience as in an overnight or weekend hotel stay when the full range of one's senses can be challenged, titillated and tempted.

Reading recently of an innovative hotel operator who displays fine local art throughout his hotel property all of which is for sale, I was reminded of my own thoughts surrounding similar opportunities that we have in the industry as purveyors of many luxury, or even everyday items. Here are some good examples, I think,

• Mattresses. Buying a mattress is a hugely complicated experience in which we are challenged to understand the amazing variety of hardnesses, coils, paddings and pillowtops. Why do we not become the testing ground for these mattress distributors where potential clients can try out various models and make their choices by spending quality time on the decision?
• Sheets and Towels. Thread counts, Egyptian cotton, satin, polyester or a mix. What is the difference in feel of a 500 thread count sheet to one of a mere 350 threads? What does a thirsty towel feel like? How long does it last?
• Pillows. Hard, soft, foam or feather......we already have pillow menus. How come this hotel is not a retail outlet associated with a supplier?
• Marble or granite vanities and shower enclosures. Sealed or not sealed, under-sink or over-sink. Why can I not purchase a Waldorf=Astoria bathroom?
• Faucets & Shower heads, sink stoppers and bidets, where are our limitations?
• Beverage glasses. I was privileged to experience a wine tasting co-hosted by Georg Riedel of Riedel Glassware www.riedel.com/ and was blown away by the huge difference in tastes when different grapes are experienced in different shapes of glassware. Are not an industry that can test-drive glass shapes, glass lips, stems and wash-ability.

Where do these concepts end? I am not sure that they do end. I believe that the hotel could be a testing ground for china, linen, glass and silver, drapery rods, wall coverings, paint, carpet, upholstery, wines, soap, shampoo, conditioners, beers, chairs, sofas. In fact anything that is quality.....it could be 5 Star, it could be 3 Star. Because who says 5 Star is luxury! It is luxury to a 4 Star guest but so is a 3 Star hotel to a 2 Star guest so there are arguments to be made that these test products can be tested up and down the spectrum.

To avoid the potential cacophonous appearance of multiple products in multiple colours and textures and the total loss of a unified look, these sample rooms and sample corridors would have to be coordinated by Interior Designers or Professional design groups and paid for by sponsorships and affiliations/partnerships designed to bring tested luxury to the masses.

I have always maintained a close connection between Hospitality and Design, Entertainment and Fashion but have only recently made the connection to retail. Suggest you also see my blog article at http://davidmcmillangroup.typepad.com/consulting/2010/01/hospitality-is-connected-with-entertainment-fashion-why-stop-there.html

Have a good night's sleep!!

THE DEMISE OF RESTAURANTS & BARS IN HOTELS?

IT HAD TO COME. THE DAY A HOTEL GROUP GAVE UP ON THAT UNPROFITABLE 'LOST LEADER', THE FOOD & BEVERAGE DEPARTMENT.

 The announcement by Hilton that they will test a new Business Area concept to replace the Lobby Bar is admission, albeit not surprising that we have failed to retain our edge in running restaurants, bistros and bars and now need to re-invent our basic product mix and maximise our huge, wasted public areas.

Having personally closed some 20-30 discoteques some 20 or so years ago with the full realisation that most business people would rather get a good night's sleep than join the kids on the pulsating dance floor, I can sympathize with Hilton's dilemma, and more particularly the pain of the hotel owners, in dealing with the huge losses created by these unprofitable, tired and cavernous public areas.

I was enthused by the Hyatt initiative that twinned their food outlet with a snappy deli style counter and takeout food area and have seen countless chains attempt to reinvent, restore, reno and retire their public spaces in favor of other weak concepts.

However all of these efforts are shots in the dark, weak efforts to make a little difference rather than large, coordinated community efforts to maximise the huge chunks of unused indoor (and outdoor) space in every community.

This trend leads me to imagine what they should have been in the first place. Here are some future options for development consideration. Future ways in which locals can benefit from this excellent space and create traffic, interaction and interest............sort of like what the airports have become but with more of a planned and changing theme.

• Specialty Retail (electronics, or fashion or fine foods, exotic automobiles)
• Shop Local (local produce, home-made food specialties, cheeses, local wines, tomatoes)
• Franchising (networking, short term rentals, interviews, sample rooms)
• Sports (fitness & health products, golf & tennis lessons, )
• Technical training (woodworking, auto mechanics, computer science)
• Product displays (electronics, computers, sports equipment, Home furnishings, real-estate)
• Wheels. (Motorcycle & scooter displays, bicycles, skate boards, in-line skates, surf boards)
• Music & Theatre. (Concerts & chorales, school plays, community art shows)
• Local artisans & Handicrafts (artwork, glass blowers, stained-glass etc)

All of this making it obvious to me that what is needed is the equivalent of a 'public space or community planner', or a person who can plan for the sale, rental and regular use of all these spaces on a weekly, monthly and seasonal basis. A dynamic person (or company) who treats these areas like a staging area, an exhibition centre, an exciting place to visit or stay at, an interactive urban happening, a stage, a scene.

It is time to become creative, time to work with the other hotels, community centres, police & fire departments in the community to plan a destination around a theme.......imagine a cheese week in which all hotels and public buildings in town threw open their public areas to host a Cheese Festival, or a Garage Sale with shuttle service between the sites.  

This is the time to re-think our communities' public spaces and expose them to our existing visitors while creating reasons for others to visit our areas and meet the people.

This is a huge sponsorship opportunity waiting to happen.

HILTON & STARWOOD FIGHTING OVER BOUTIQUE HOTEL SECRETS!!

NOW THAT THE SECRET IS OUT, THERE IS A SCIENCE TO CREATING HOTELS THAT HAVE A BOUTIQUE FEEL. WHY WOULD MARRIOTT HIRE SCHRAEGER?

It does take time and effort to create that special feel but why would Hilton and Starwood fight over the same two guys when there are hundreds of thousands of employees who are ripe to change them all into boutiques!

It does not surprise me that the big hotel groups would treat the development of their own Boutique Brands as just another 'brand'. That's the easy way out. Hire a couple of  gregarious innovators to reinvent our industry and then bottle it. What does surprise me is that they do not realise that this missing creative link in their existing brands is the one serious illness that has been so contagious that everything has become boringly standardised.

Here are my Top Ten, (actually Twelve) Secrets for a Boutique Hotel.

There are some basic principals that are critical to the establishment of a hotel as a 'boutique' hotel. Here are my rules for Artful Living at that special hotel.

1. A residential scale and elegant feel has to be created so that it does not feel or look like a hotel.
2. No-name. Sorry Hilton and Starwood, you must leave the brand names at home. And Marriott, the brand name Edition for your Schraeger inspired boutiques does not fit this criteria.
3. Hi design. Yes, every nook and cranny needs to be thought through. Every seat has to be sat in 'virtually' to anticipate the vista in the planning stage. Every door and window peered through, each picture viewed from all angles and all materials that come in touch with skin must be real.
4. Voluminous amenites. Not just soap, shampoo and shower caps, we are talking amenities like limos to the office, personalised marmalades, exotic honeys and fragrant teas with fruit baskets in the hallways.
5. Elite and personalised. Elite means elegant, haute, top-drawer and special. Personalised means anti-snob, sincere and warm and in your preferred room.
6. Cozy and Sophisticated. Cozy is cottage-like and sophisticated is Ralph Lauren paint but neither of them stop there.
7. A hotel created around the bar. Now there's a concept!
8. Private Club feel. Leather, quiet conversation, social and very personal.
9. Life as it might be in the Design and Fashion magazines.
10. Unique elevators, small and exquisite.
11. Staff personalities. Yes, excentric, outgoing, gregarious and non-conformist. In on his/her weekend to greet you or invite you home.
12. Hand made, not mass-produced. This goes not just for the furnishings and fixtures but also for the food, the drinks, the wine list and the paper.

And, if one thinks back to the origin of the term 'Boutique', it refers to a small shop selling one-of-a kind items usually from artisans. It means top quality, high priced and unique. It also means no standardisation like, "How may I direct your call?"

It can not mean standardised, name-brand or mass produced. It will never be cookie-cutter simple or rolled out from White Plains, Washington or Bethesda.

Maybe it should just be left to the non-hoteliers to do or, heaven forbid, let loose the creative instincts of our people. Now that's something that Generation Y can warm to!!

For some really innovative advice on introducing some unusual 'boutique touches' to your property, contact [email protected]

 

IDEAL HOTELS FOR YOUR HOROSCOPE

THE DECISION BY WORLD HOTELS TO LINK STAR SIGNS TO THEIR HOTELS WAS CREATIVE.

I wonder if it works? It sounded like a creative idea to talk about their hotels in a different way. It is the sort of thing that the ladies would appreciate and it was probably a female marketing person's idea. Next, we'll have a Feng Shui chart for each property to be able anticipate our Chi intake!

It may have been done to placate some member hotels who never get featured or who do not warrant much normal publicity, and looking for a reason, this is what surfaced. Of course, it begs the question, what if all the people there are Geminis, looking for action? Heaven forbid that I should end up in a property full of Aries!

 

Hotel horoscope: The ideal hotel for each Zodiac sign

Jan 17, 08 | 1:55 am

Capricorns appreciate solitude, Scorpios love extremes and only the best will satisfy Leos. When it comes to the perfect holiday accommodation, the tastes of the star signs are as varied as the character traits ascribed to them. WORLDHOTELS now reveals the perfect hotels for each star sign.

For discovering more holiday accommodations for every taste, the WORLDHOTELS website has the search facility ‘Search by Inspiration'. This function matches user preferences such as climate, destination features, and activities on site with the ideal hotels from its global portfolio of close to 500 unique properties.

Aries: Sports challenges and lots of action

Christmas Mountain Village in Wisconsin, USA

Of all the Zodiac signs, the dynamic Aries is the most active. Lazing in the sun for hours obviously is not their idea of a great holiday. They are only ever truly happy if they can choose from a limitless range of sports like at the Christmas Mountain Village in Wisconsin Dells, USA: Here, Aries can test their skills on the tennis court or golf courses, or explore the countryside. In the winter time they can let loose on the nearby ski slopes or spend their energy cross country skiing. Christmas Mountain Village

Taurus: Relaxed indulgence in the countryside

Duin & Kruidberg Country Estate in Santpoort, Netherlands

Tauruses like the beautiful things in life. Being true connoisseurs, they appreciate the restrained elegance, the cultivated ambience and the excellent cuisine at the Duin & Kruidberg Country Estate in Santpoort, Netherlands. Here, they can enjoy the relaxed conviviality that suits their character. As they feel deeply connected with nature, they will also savour the location of this luxury hotel situated in a huge park. At the same time the art loving Taurus will appreciate the close proximity of Amsterdam's museums. Duin & Kruidberg Country Estate

Gemini: Exotic city trips for night owls

Eton Hotel in Shanghai, China

Variety is the spice of life for Geminis. To be happy, they need to be surrounded with lots of action. Due to their outgoing personality their holiday priority is meeting new people and having fun. Therefore they are attracted to bustling cities where they enjoy nightlife to the fullest. To do so, they prefer to stay at authentic yet exceptional properties such as The Eton Hotel in Shanghai, China. With exquisite artwork and innovative design concepts this deluxe hotel will capture the attention of any Gemini. The Eton Hotel

Cancer: Luxurious romance with tradition

Grand Hotel National in Lucerne, Switzerland

Cancers are introverted persons,loving, emotional and sensitive. They abhor big crowds of people and prefer to travel individually. Spending a romantic evening on the hotel patio with their partner, preferably with a water view, is their idea of a perfect holiday. All this the Grand Hotel National in Lucerne has to offer, and more. With a sophisticated ambience and furnishings in the Fin du Siècle style and situated right by Lake Lucerne, it provides the ideal surroundings for Cancers as this star sign loves tradition and luxury. Grand Hotel National

Leo: Luxury holidays with star appeal

Ocean Sands Resort & Spa in Pompano Beach, Florida, USA

Leos abhor mediocrity. They set great store by luxury and status symbols at home as well as abroad, so only the best is good enough for them. Leos want a truly exceptional holiday experience and ‘to see and to be seen' is their motto. Luxurious resorts such as the Ocean Sands Pompano Beach in Florida provide the perfect stage where they can draw the attention of the crowds. Leos will enjoy gettin pampered from head to toe at the spacious spa before mixing with the rich and beautiful at nearby exclusive Palm Beach. Ocean Sands Resort & Spa

Virgo: Spa vacation to perfection

The Empire Hotel & Country Club in Darussalam, Brunei

The precise and serious Virgos cultivate high standards of perfection which they apply to themselves as well as their environment. Not even the smallest detail escapes their discerning eye. Therefore they feel truly at home at the luxurious Empire Hotel & Country Club in Brunei where the surroundings are natural and picturesque, which are exactly to their taste. The health-conscios Virgos particularly enjoy relaxing at the spacious sophisticated spa as they are open to everything that contributes to their wellbeing, from Ayurveda massages to Zen meditation. The Empire Hotel & Country Club

Libra: City trip with an element of wellbeing

Graves 601 Hotel in Minneapolis, USA

Nothing is quite as important for Libras as harmony and peace. These markedly sensuous persons love beautiful things and enjoy taking in art. On holidays this star sign expects the perfect mix between relaxation, culture and entertainment. At the Graves 601 Hotel in Minneapolis the Libra appreciates the stylish ambience as much as being close to the theatres and other cultural highlights the city has to offer. For relaxation, they can pamper all their senses at the spacious spa of the deluxe hotel. Graves 601 Hotel

Scorpio: Varied vacation of the extremes

StarWorld Hotel and Casino in Macao, China

The passionate Scorpios find nothing more boring than a life in which everything works out easily. On holiday they tend to go for unusual destinations and love extremes. For Scorpios, there is no place like the StarWorld Hotel and Casino in Macau : The city's highest hotel casino towers above all other buildings and the architecture is stylish and extravagant. Furthermore the risk-loving star sign appreciates that they can challenge their luck at the gambling tables. StarWorld Hotel

Sagittarius: Fun cultural vacation

Royal Olympic Hotel in Athens, Greece

Sagittarius are the born globetrotters: They travel the world independently and with an optimistic view of life, continually in search of new adventures and freedom. Therefore the unforgettable view of the temple of Zeus and the Acropolis from the luxury Royal Olympic Hotel in Athens will enrapture Sagittariuses. Here, they can indulge their dreams, as is their habit, right in the middle of the historical capital city. Royal Olympic Hotel

Capricorn: Nature vacation in solitude

Mountain Run at Boyne in Michigan, USA

The determined Capricorns are among the more serious star sign characters. Spontaneity is not in their nature; instead they prefer peace and quiet. Capricorns prefers to retire to deserted natural surroundings which they prefer to conquer by foot or mountain bike. Therefore the Mountain Run at Boyne in Michigan State is among their top destinations. Here, they can hike in the mountains, in summer as well as in winter. Mountain Run at Boyne in Michigan

Aquarius: Extraordinary destinations for individualists

Garden Hotel Suzhou, China

Aquariuses are unconventional and love everything that is exceptional or bizarre. Often ahead of their time, the individualistic characters always finds their own way. So it is not surprising that unusual destinations that are not over developed appeal to them. Therefore they love the Garden Hotel Suzhou right in the Yangtze Delta, in an area which is dubbed the "Venice of the East". The luxury property in the heart of the 2500 year old city offers a huge range of options to spend a varied vacation with culture, sports and spa treatments. Garden Hotel Suzhou

Pisces: Romantic vacation for sensitive dreamers

Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten Starnberg in Starnberg/Munich, Germany

Pisces are very sensitive and vulnerable creatures who tend to go to ground at times. On holiday this star sign searches for rest and recreation in pristine nature and clear waters. Therefore staying in a scenic environment is their idea of a perfect vacation. At the 4-star superior Hotel  Vier Jahreszeiten Starnberg close to Lake Starnberg, south of Munich, they can enjoy an impressive view on the Alps. Here, the imaginative Pisces can also disappear into their own dream world by visiting the many historic villas and romantic castles the area is famous for. Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten Starnberg

An interesting approach to marketing only to demonstrate that there are no real limits on one's imagination in this industry.

Now if someone can just do the Feng Shui evaluation on a few distressed properties, we might get them rolling again financially. I know of one hotel that's doing very well financially, in fact always did. I wonder if it had anything to do with the fact that a Feng Shui evaluation was done before the opening, and he changed the location of the hotel entrance.........just prior to the opening!!

For alternative and more conventional methods of increasing your profitability, contact [email protected]

COUNTRY MARKETING............NOW WE ARE TALKING SUSTAINABILITY!

COMMERCIALISING THE CULTURE OF A COUNTRY. CREATING A NATIONAL BRAND. CREATING SUSTAINABLE JOBS.

Is this for real? Countries actually fighting to build their product for tourism market share? Is this something that a newly appointed  Minister of Tourism can grasp easily?

Is it not strange that the opportunity to create 'sustainable' jobs in tourism is strategically overlooked by most developing countries as they 'revolving-door' their Ministers of Tourism virtually each year. No chance to realise that a country needs to build brand equity. No chance to realise that the logo and slogan do not have to change each year. No chance to realise that it is not just beaches and sun that are the foundations of sustainable wealth and great jobs for their people.

The average Minister of Tourism is in place for a year! How can the world's future tourism markets be commercialised when the 'product manager' is changed every year? Sure some are long serving, knowlegable professionals but the majority are new to the industry, hold other portfolios and know little or nothing about the global competitiveness of their product. As an enthusiastic participant in tourism over the years in at least two dozen countries, I have had the good fortune to meet many Ministers of Tourism, even one of a huge developed country (that will remain anonymous), who had never been on a plane in his life.

In another blog of mine on this site, I encouraged the 'twinning' of the Tourism ministry with other ministries. It could be Culture and the Arts, the Environment, Natural Resources but why not also Education or Human Resources, Heritage, Transportation, Fisheries, Immigration and Agriculture. All are in some way linked to the sustainability, reputation & growth of tourism.

As an enthusiastic member of the United Nations' World Tourism Organisation's Strategic Planning Committee, I once suggested that they prepare a Job Description for their new and incoming member Ministers of Tourism. All agreed that it was probably a good idea but somewhat difficult to implement.

Now, intimately involved in developing a marketing plan and brand strategy for a large developing country, I am thrilled at the thought of demonstrating to this country's government how all ministeries are involved in this mission, all regions must actively participate, all   municipalities must contribute so that piece by piece, brick by brick, year by year they can all create a new brand of, and for their country. They will in fact be creating future sustainable jobs for their nation, their children and their grandchildren that can never be outsourced, never be stolen or relocated.

What fun they will have competing with other countries in the 'Oscars' of country branding, where large countries are sometimes vaulted by smaller ones and unknown countries are suddenly rising stars. This is the Olympics of Tourism in which training is undertaken by every level of society who are proud of their country. For more fascinating information and to download the study, click on http://www.countrybrandindex.com/

For some suggestions on what you can do in the area of sustainable tourism, click on this link http://www.sustainabletourism.net/#youdo

For assistance in the development of a national marketing plan and brand strategy, contact [email protected]

'TURN-KEY' DEVELOPMENT IN AN ERA WHEN KEYS NO LONGER 'TURN'.

HAS DESIGN BUILD SEEN ITS' DAY IN THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY?

Has Turn-Key been exagerated for too long? Does 'Clef en Main' truly deliver the goods. We no longer believe that selling services can replace the need to produce and deliver a working product. And when producing a product, that product must function profitably, functionally and for a tested period of time when one can see the results.

For this reason, David McMillan Consulting is now linked to the huge, full service Engineering company , Genivar with over 3,000 engineers and specialists in over 80 offices worldwide.

Recently marking 50 years in the hotel industry, McMillan, in conjunction with Genivar has decided to reinvent the process to provide cutting edge hospitality development and re-development expertise to developers with the promise of success.

It has been rewarding to observe the evolution of the hospitality consulting industry over the years and to see it mature and change from 'accounting and audit' services to 'hospitality real-estate business strategists who deliver a functioning product.

Conceptualise & Deliver is a the new approach to Design & Build.  It is in some respects similar to the Taj Mahal. Intricate detailing and extraordinary delivery.

Design and Build is best associated with Turn-Key, an out-of-date method of turning a key on to the tumblers in a lock until the bolt slides away and the door creaks open. Design & Build for an industry which requires innovation, creativity, change & drama is a combination that has seen its day. In the same way as iron and steel numbered keys and numbered key tags weighing half a pound have been replaced by 1/2 ounce anonymous plastic cards, so have the huge audit & accounting consultancies staffed by graduate hospitality students been replaced by agile, creative business engineers.

Conceptualise & Deliver is a method in which all systems are activated in an instant but only for the right customer, when the stars are aligned and the sliver of plastic is programmed and the well-oiled machinery is in-place. This is the new Consulting method where a full range of expertise envelopes those already in place. Where the Design & Build is prefaced by research, imagineering, customising & communitising and then followed by launch, run-in, consolidation and asset management.

Where a project is warmed-up, trained, tweaked, tested and then run again. This asset-management period is a one to three year period when financial and market consolidation takes place.

This is the time when the key, such as it is, can be thrown away because the product has been launched and the baby is fit.

For more information on Conceptualise & Deliver, contact Genivar at +1 (416) 504-6800, Extension 238

 

THE LINK BETWEEN DESIGN AND HOSPITALITY

THE IMPORTANCE OF DESIGN.

More and more hotels and restaurants have their decors made by international designers.This make great sense has the local or even national design knowledge is often not what is needed for a high class establishments. The top designers will know about the future trends and will reconnise the beauty of local furniture or/art and then make an unique design accordingly.

In a world which become more and more visual, it isn’t really a surprise that style has taken such a place.

What is an interesting trend is the fashion world now focusing on the Luxury of travel as well

As the luxury of the destination.

Two strong exemples are Gianni Versace and Tag group and Hermes and Eurocopter, both have created an extreme luxury way of travel, with the first concentrating on private jets with beautifull interiors, leather sofas, cushions,lamps etc...and the second concentrating on the business world with luxurious shoppers with ample space, separation between pilots and passagers ,special materials for noise control, climatisation and of course Hermes famous way with leather.

The personnel to accompagny  such luxury is hard to accomodate as the “staff”who will fir such extreme will have to be “wealthy” themselves to be able to cope with the demands of this exclusive travelers.

When I mean “ wealthy” she/he will have to have had life experiences perhaps not in $ sense but in art, business,,,,,and will have to be on top of her mental and physique state as demands from billionnaires are huge, having done it myself. (from reading the Financial Times to be aware of the current arts auction to just ba able to have a conversation)

Also this mean working out, world knowledge, politic.

How much do people pay for this sort of staff is big bucks, between 40 000/70 000 euros per year is quite standard they often come from private butlers schools.

And to tell you the truth often  money is no subject as more than often money is trivial to them, family, safety, privacy, securtity and secrecy is more important to the billionnaires than money. But this is a parallel world than most of us don’t cross often.

Saying that so working for billionnaires is very interesting, as you are in close contact with them if you are interested and an enthousiast, you will learn about all sorts and about yourself, and you will be surprised that most billionnaires I have worked for knew the prices of things to the penny. I have to say I can’t say the same about our French politician.

Sandrine Urvois

Hospitality consultant

KUDOS TO EMBASSY SUITES HOTELS FOR THINKING FOR THE GUEST

HOW REFRESHING TO LEARN OF A 'HIP CASUAL' RESTAURANT THAT IS WELL THOUGHT THROUGH.

On far too many occasions I have been scathingly critical of my industry colleagues who have failed, in my opinion to fully think through a new concept.

Kudos therefore to Embassy Suites Hotels' new concept "Flying Spoons" that I think has absolutely and unqualifyingly nailed it.

Part European-style cafe and part American coffeehouse, this new creation seems to cater to what their customers would want if they knew what to ask for, which they generally don't.

Here is my take on the key components.

• Open from 5AM to 1AM.
• In the hotel Lobby.
• Integrated into Breakfast and Manager's Reception.
• Social environment.
• Fornasetti dinner plates... a design statement.
• Easily accessible electrical/computer ports.
• Comfortable casual furniture.
• Varied seating to include,
  • bar height/transactional seating,
  • restaurant seating,
  • wing back chairs,
  • ottomans with a famous verse from the Declaration of Independence.
• Innovative menu choices,
  • fresh soups,
  • salads,
  • gourmet sandwiches,
  • salmon, scallops and lobster enchiladas,
  • rotating desserts and pastries.

This is a concept which recognises the existence of outside restaurants, acknowledges the need for social interaction, real comfort, convenience, road warrior necessities, small, frequent appetites, almost round the clock needs and the feeling of a really comfortable family room at home.

This is also a facility that would be equally as feasible and welcome in an upscale, city centre property where some of my colleagues still promote tea & finger sandwiches in sofas that are easy to fall into and virtually impossible to get out of with not a single, accessible electrical outlet in sight.

Now if we could just get some of these babies into the airports, life on the road might become a little more bearable.

Come to think of it they are there already but only for the Business & First Class passengers......... which sort of proves my point!!

REPOSITIONING ANALYSIS PARALYSIS....NOW NEW & IMPROVED!

HOW MANY TIMES CAN ONE REINVENT A HOTEL BRAND?

Are we never satisfied with a great product? Do we always have to find a 'new and improved' version? Can we not build in 'perpetual improvement' into the brand in the first place?

I have never been in the retail business so do not know whether my dishwasher soap needed to be reinvented every year or so. Apparently it does, otherwise the 'new and improved' phrase would not appear every day on the shelves and in the newspapers  promoting this newly concocted product.

In automobiles, it scares me. Why did they have to throw out every part that was 'new and improved' in my model purchased last year. Was it faulty? Did they screw up that badly? *

InterContinental, the brand leaders in our franchising industry, not so much for their InterContinental name but for their Holiday Inn brand, has announced  a new brand re-launch of the basic HI brand. Not the HI Select, not the HI Sunspree, not the HI Express, just the HI.

It caught my eye because they went through that twice before when they wanted to filter out some of the measly franchisors who did not keep up their product quality.....and reward others. Some were bleeding their properties and thence the brand.....a new sweep was called for and a new brand extension, Crowne Plaza and then Holiday Inn Select were born and those with the old green sign and no moniker were left in the dust.... or were they?

Can we see the day when Four Seasons introduces Five Seasons or Three Seasons? I doubt it. Or will Marriott subsegment a Ritz Carlton in suburbia to a Carlton Inn or a small boutique city centre property to an Auberge Ritz....I also doubt that! Although using Barry Sternlicht's keen eye for signage economy with his brilliant "W" projects, perhaps an "AR" might be a first step for Auberge Ritz?!!! Actually, it has a nice relaxing ring to it..............AAAAARRRRRR.

Or perhaps Marriott's base brand could sub-segment and Alberghi Marrio's would hit the streets in Little Italy city sections around the world with specialty Sports Bar combos called RRiots.

Then why does the mother of them all keep having to spin off what are now know as Holiday Outs. In fact a brand was born from that piece of corporate surgery in the early 90s when they went through the same excercise and ended up mailing the franchise fees to a competitor. New signage for the loyal owners, new standards created by a new wave of MBAs and their new brand managers, such a waste of money when all it takes is brand discipline, agility and teeth.

What is brand discipline you may well ask? What will it take to build a brand that has stability, consistency, standards that are not standard.....and built in quality? It is an unrelenting focus on guaranteeing the quality of the FF & E, the services, the F&B and guest loyalty/satisfaction. This is needed by both the franchisor and the franchisee. Put another way...it is needed by the licensor and the client........and therin lies the rub.

Does the licensor have enough 'chutzpah' to eliminate a client just for the sake of some worn carpet, some sagging mattresses, dated bathrooms or faded drapes? Or is it easier to provide that loyal client with a waiver for renos that are then deployed to next ....or future years........and keep the revenue stream coming.

Will it take another pendulum swing where franchisors become managers again, and franchisees are disenfranchised? Will the owners of the brands need to recognise that standards are not delegatable by written agreements nor can they be policed by company negotiators.

I think it should but it won't.

I believe that the management of a brand is a very personal thing, not open to diverse interpretations nor financial difficulties. It is a strong statement of a position. A powerful statement of style......not something that gradually deteriorates and then needs to be re-named. That is a cop-out. A total departure from the basic principles of the brand which were established in good faith.

It is however the way our industry works. The day that each hotel opens is the best day of the rest of its life. From that point on, its carpets and mattresses start to wear, its' sheets and drapes gather dust and grime and the youthful staff each take one day closer to retirement.

As long however as there are new names to throw at sub-standard generators of franchise fees, there will always be a new name for those that excel. It is just not fair for those that toe the line and those enthusiastic employees of all ages who try to make up for the shortfalls of the owner or franchisor.

"Quality is never an accident......................it is always the result of calculated effort."

See also "New & Improved, Oh Really?"

http://www.fool.com/investing/value/2006/01/27/new-and-improved-oh-really.aspx

If you are in need of franchise advice, contact [email protected]

* Actually I drive a Lexus so do not have to buy a new car every year. They just build in perpetual improvement..... so whenever I am ready, I know they will be.

WHAT ISSUES DOES CUBA FACE IN TIMESHARE

COULD HAVANA CHALLENGE ORLANDO & CANCUN AS A HOT TIMESHARE DESTINATION?

Orlando and Cancun are two of the hottest timeshare destinations in the Americas, perhaps even the world. Could Cuba become the next real estate hotspot? And if not, why not?

In 1959, the Car Ferry to Havana from Florida departed twice a day. When the Embargo is lifted, Cuba will become the only 'drive-to' Caribbean Island   ........ again?

The answers to all those questions are positive! The character, scale, safety, style and history of Cuba and Havana in particular make it an ideal place to purchase a well designed, well constructed 'pied a terre' under a right to use contract.

Why would I buy one? Let me count the ways,

1. International playground. Havana and Cuba is a magnet for well-travelled visitors from around the world.
2. Latin 'lifestyle'. Others can emulate a Latin lifestyle but few have the history, the rhythm, the panache that Cuba has.
3. Culture, History & Entertainment. Richer in all three areas than Orlando and Cancun combined.
4. Architecture. Ditto.
5. Security and safety. Safe and secure, at least for now. Family and community values are strong so this is likely to  continue.
6. Healthcare. As good as it gets with limited resources. Better to come.
7. Demand growth. Huge growth potential and opportunities to re-sell or rent later.
8. Accessible by car. A short drive from Miami or even Atlanta and New York.
9. More than beach & sun. Longer as an island than England, multiple opportunities to tour the island, its towns, villages and mountainranges.
10. Friendly People. Intelligent, helpful and warm.

It would seem that on all scores, it has the right components to be successful as a timeshare and fractional destination.

It is just too bad that millions of would-be timeshare buyers can not and may not for a long time, be able to buy that 'Hemingway-like Hideway' in Havana or anywhere in Cuba. And the reason for that is that there are too many parts to the timeshare puzzle that have connections to the USA, be they Exchange Programs, Timeshare Financing, Helms Burton laws, US Currency regulations etc etc.

There is a possibility also that when the US decides to lift the embargo, it will not be done in one swift move, it may well be done in small bits and pieces and based on specific changes or democratic reforms that are made in the country. It therefore may be that an embargo is in fact in place, but with multiple holes or restrictions that could conceivably go on for years.

How tragic that would be. How sad that the Cubans and we can not benefit from the Baby Boom explosion of timeshare that could invigorate their economy, explode their tourism base and build a solid group of visitors that return each year.

For further information on timeshare solutions in Cuba, contact [email protected]

David McMillan is the former President of the Cuban Canadian Joint Venture that was formed to finance, design & build four multi use resorts in Havana East, Santa Lucia, Varadero and Cayo Coco involving hotels and timeshare.

TOP TEN FOOD DESTINATIONS

MY TOP TEN CHOICES OF CITIES WHERE I WOULD WANT TO OPEN A LUXURY HOTEL AND BE INTIMATELY INVOLVED IN THE CREATION OF THE FOOD & BEVERAGE FACILITIES.

The recent selection of the Top Ten Food Cities in the World by Forbes Magazine was so wrong that I decided to do my own.

These are based on the variety and quality of their restaurants & street food, the character, flavours and choices of food in their food markets and most important of all, the culture of good, nutricious, tasty meals for the general population on a daily basis.

I also decided that since too many great cuisines of the world fall outside of my Top Ten, that I would only choose one city per country (note that Forbes had 3 cities in the USA). The reason for this is that anyone taking my advice from this Blog and choosing Paris as a food destination, probably has the good sense to travel to Lyon or Marseille or both, once they are in the area.

For the benefit of those that have their own list of cities that do not appear on this list, I am adding some 'near miss' cities that came close but failed. My subjective reasons will be provided.

Here however is my own choice of Great Food Destinations, whether you are visiting a local family, as a tourist or as a culinary voyeur. Bon Appetit! For restaurant reservations,  call a friend. All of them are worth travelling to for no other reason than food.

1. Paris. Classic, unchanged, unadulterated.
2. Hongkong. The best of the East & the best of the West. Just the best.
3. Mexico City. Regional differences, colour, texture & wild tastes.
4. Rome. Traditional, simple, savoury & unchangeable.
5. Barcelona. Mediterranean, Catalan with a touch of Spain
6. Bangkok. Spices, colours, textures and nutricious.
7. New Delhi. Steamy, multi-flavoured, traditional & unchanged.
8. San Francisco. Daring, leading edge, artistic and dramatic.
9. Brussels. Not French, not Viennese, not even Belgian, just culinary.
10. Kuala Lumpur. Malay,  Indian, Chinese and spicy.

Here are the 'near misses' that made the list for one or more reasons but failed for the reasons given. They are all however worth driving 100 miles to for a meal......or two.

1. London. Locals eat plain & tasteless. Over to you Jamie!!
2. New York. Too often locals & visitors eat fast food.
3. Chongqing. 30 million locals eat well......restaurants, not enough yet.
4. New Orleans. Stunned momentarily by Katrina...seeya later.
5. Dublin. Locals eat plain.....when they eat.
6. Chicago. Great restaurants for 'out of towners'. Locals eat hamburger or steaks.
7. Sydney. Anglo-Asian fusion. Anglo locals eat plain & tasteless.
8. Montreal. Ten out of Ten for everything, except 'poutine' which ruined the lot!!
9. Cairo. Undecided whether it is Middle Eastern or European....love it!

There is another group of cities that are on my 'watch list'. These are the cities that are located in great food cultures and/or cater to a growing body of well-heeled visitors.

1. Macao. Over the top.
2. Saigon. French, Asian and exploding.
3. Dubai. Spectacular.

For assistance in opening new hotels in any of these cities, contact [email protected]

CANADA'S TOP TEN EXTREME TOURISM USPs

CANADA.....ONE OF THE WORLD'S TOP DESTINATIONS, BUT DOESN'T WANT TO ADMIT IT.

A Paradise by any comparison. Heaven on Earth....Good will to all Men. Good fun for all Women too! By any measure USPs need to be extreme or exaggerated, like Parisian Architecture, French food , Italian fashion, Irish pubs, Cuban music, Brasilian dancers or Trinidadian Carnival.

By any measure Canada has what it takes in its' extremes to become one of the Top Five Destinations on the world stage. Strategically located within a few hours of Europe, Asia and the Americas, this huge, peaceful combination of every culture in the world has all it takes except 'cojones' to tell the world where to go............except when we are on the hockey rink.

Now if we could just get our hockey players to help us out in the area of tourism development, our competitors would be against the boards!!

Blessed with Seven Wonders of its own representing 'major world-class destinations' see http://www.cbc.ca/sevenwonders/,  this gentle giant of a country rests on its laurels and fails, time after time, to aggressively develop additional tourism products.

Here are my Top Ten Reasons to Visit Canada and where.

1. Extreme Space (Go to Saskatchewan, turn left or right........then sigh!!!)
2. Extreme Festivals (Anywhere in Summer or an NFL hockey game at half-time)
3. Extreme Peace (Everywhere....or with our world renowned Peacekeepers)
4. Extreme Entertainment (Queen Street, Crescent Street, John St, 7th Ave, Harbourfront)
5. Extreme Nature  (Newfoundland or BC.....or anywhere in between)
6. Extreme Sports (Any hockey rink in winter, any whitewater river in Spring, Whistler anytime, cross-Canada biking, cross-Province snowmobiling, Stampede)
7. Extreme Food (St Lawrence Market, Atwater Market....Danforth, St Laurent blvd, Chinatown)
8. Extreme Culture  (Baie St Paul, Group of Seven, Toronto Cricket Club, Ann of Green Gables, Symphony, Stanstead Opera House, Toronto, Stratford & Niagara on the Lake theatres)
9. Extreme Kindness (Afghanistan, St Catherine St, Yonge St, Bas-Ville, Banff, PEI)
10. Extreme Non-American ( Houses of Parliament. This Hour Has 22 Minutes, Gun Registry, Multiculturism, Bi-Lingualism, -isms)

Sure Canada is blessed with a whole slew of major world destinations that include Niagara Falls, Banff, Tremblant, Whistler, but most if not all suffer from some saturation during some of the year and need some help in the area of Congestion Management.

What really needs to happen however or so Canadian Tourism Execs were told by the Japanese some fifteen years ago, "Give us some new product Canada, there's no space left in those other spots! and our people want to see the real Canada".

What we need is product development. The simple marriage of simple experiences for non-Canadians. Something as simple as a tour of  a few churches, a fruit market, a flea market, picnic in a park and a AA Hockey game with a stay in a B&B. Canoeing, hiking and bicycling clipped to some local wines or local brews...music in a park, a school concert, street performers or a fireworks exhibition. Anything that is simply .......Canadian.

Canada already enjoys the benefits of a public private partnership for tourism promotion, the CTC is the envy of countless countries...... including our neighbour to the south. We already are renowned for our creativity in countless industries and sectors.

All we now need is a little creativity in the 'product development' department to take Canadian tourism to the next level.

But isn't that just the case everywhere?!

For any additional ideas on how your product can be included in the tourism offering, contact [email protected]

SHOULD A BRAND BE GLOBAL, INTERNATIONAL OR LOCAL? OR JUST SUSTAINABLE?

....AND WHAT BRANDS ARE TRULY GLOBAL AND WHAT ARE INTERNATIONAL? THE MORE RELEVANT QUESTION IS.....WHAT GLOBAL BRANDS FEEL LOCAL.

Are the days over when communities yearned for an internatonal hotel to open? Or would they prefer a flagship demonstration of their own customs and culture presented by recognised brand? Either way, the choice of brand needs to go hand in hand with a conversation about community participation.

It is perhaps fairly understandable that a hotel brand that has grown up and matured in one country takes on certain customs and adopts certain tastes of that country.......and in some cases of the region or even of the district. There are excellent cases from the great mature hotel brands such as Hilton and Holiday Inn where they have adapted in style and taste to the customs and characteristics of the region well before they stepped outside their National boundaries.

Therein lies the key component for international adaptation. Are they capable of adapting their products to the local community or are they married to their base designs and operating philosophies of their mother country.....or even that of their General Manager?

In these contexts, I refer mostly to the development of hotels and resorts in developing countries or regions where markets are not mature and well developed.

This is not to say that a brand can not travel without adopting to the local culture. There are some excellent examples of successful brands that continue to flourish in foreign lands that have maintained their National identity and base concepts. This is largely because of loyal travellers from their home country who feel more comfortable in their home surroundings rather than risking the chances proffered by exposure to local cuisines and other idiosynchracies.

One good example in my view of a group of brands anchored in their mother country is the Accor Group that are, for all intents and purposes, French in style, character and delivery. They will have French restaurants, French managers and French amenities and generally make little effort to adopt any local touches.

Great examples of brands that have morphed internationally are Hilton, Hyatt and Four Seasons who are shining examples of how to go local globally. Why is that? What have they done that others have not?

Conversely and on the other hand, perhaps it is equally or more important that the property be viewed as local for, after all, the physical bricks and mortar are anquored there, the staff and secondary services are primarily local and the food is also mostly local.

It is in fact a business that needs to drive its roots into the community so that the local community feels, believes and acts as if it is theirs.

Does it represent them? Are they a part of it? Are their local artists displayed there? Are the managers local? Do they respond to local tragedies? Do they support local charities? Do they integrate into the issues of the local community or are they distant, detached and ....dare I say it, above all that.

Should a hotel be local before it is global or global before it is local.

Is it a 'glocal' hotel or is it 'lobal'? Here are my definitions of these two coined phrases,

1. Glocal.  A hotel that was global in design and texture when it opened but is gradually adapting to some local customs which includes some local department heads, some local food dishes, a few pieces of art and sculpture.
2. Lobal. A hotel that encorporated local customs and design into it's fabric from 'Day One' and which has raised the level of appreciation for those customs to appeal to its global audience. Expatriate staff who assisted to open the hotel have disappeared and been replaced by local managers, some of whom have been given opportunities in other countries.

Has management become proud of the local heritage? Are employees pretending to be something that they are not? Are locals using the restaurants and bars and do weddings take place in their halls with photos of brides and grooms in the gardens and lobbies? Do staff look down on local clientele or are they welcomed and made to fully feel at home.

Being part of an international family is one thing but is it everything? It was important in the days when 'chain affiliated' meant referral business but some of that aura has been weakened by the strength of the internet.

It is therefore my belief that the future will in fact see more development respecting local communities' customs, more 'local' design, more community involvement, more sustainable development....not out of government legislation but out of the need to protect the very reasons that people travel........to see and experience how the other half live.

See also http://www.glocalforum.org/

For assistance on community integration in the hospitality sector, contact [email protected]

BRANDS GOING TRULY GLOBAL.....HORIZONTALLY

TO AVOID CONFUSION IN MARKET POSITIONING, I THINK THAT WE CAN ALL TAKE A LEAF OUT OF EASYGROUP'S BOOK!

What on earth are we doing with our brands? Do we truly know what we want our public to think? Are we bent on confusion?

Hospitality Branding is one of my specialties. That does not mean that I know what the brands are thinking. It only means that I know what they are doing. I have no clue what they are planning, I only can see a past strewn with branding errors and changed directions.

Has the time come for a different approach to branding where the customer is owned from Monday through Sunday and from cradle to grave. Where we get to know his or her every need, their  cravings, their hobbies and their tastes.

Let us look at some simple examples.

1. Holiday Inn and their family of products.
2. EasyGroup and their growing list of products.

Holiday Inn is generally considered a mid-market brand. It appeals to families travelling by car,  travelling businessman and is well known for an unfortunate ad campaign some 25 years ago, "No Surprises". The brand was a brilliant idea of Kemmons Wilson, excellently executed & cleverly expanded to all corners of the earth.

Instead of going laterally with their brand to Holiday Air, Holiday Rent a Car, Holiday Taxis, Holiday Tours, Holiday Groceries, Holiday Cruises, Holiday Pizza and Holiday Cinemas, they went vertically to InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, Indigo, Select, Sunspree, Express, Garden Court, Family Suites, Staybridge and Candlewood where their public ranges from the company President to the truck driver. Can a brand truly be all things to so many people when their basic product is a hotel room?

EasyGroup, on the other hand is the brainchild of a young, brilliant entrepreneur who goes by his first name of Stelios. EasyJet was his first major venture which exploded into Europe under a new concept as a low-cost airline with some basic principles that appeal to an enormous 'on-line' audience. Rather than taking his brand up vertically, Stelios takes it sideways or laterally and so far as I know, has so far launched

• EasyInternetcafe
• EasyCar
• EasyValue
• EasyMoney
• EasyCinema
• EasyBus
• EasyHotel
• Easy4Men
• EasyJobs
• EasyPizza
• EasyMusic
• EasyCruise
• EasyMobile
• EasyWatch
• EasyVan
• EasyOffice
• ........................... all geared to the same market position.

Orange by style and substance in colors from airplanes to uniforms to hotel rooms, Easy is consistent, focused and deadly serious about what they do.........laterally.

Compared to green for the original Holiday Inn which at one time owned that colour but has since vered off to,

• Maroon for Crowne Plaza.
• Orange & Maroon for Sunspree Resorts
• Blue for Garden Court
• Orange, Green & Yellow for Family Suites
• Blue for Indigo
• Yellow & Blue for Express
• White & Green for Staybridge
• Blue & Maroon for Candlewood

Add to that the parental name changes which have moved from Holiday Inn to Bass to Six Continents to Intercontinental.

Now I am not suggesting that Holiday/InterContinental is not one of the greatest franchisors ever, I am just asking myself whether this growth form is the best way forward for aspiring creators of branded products.  It just seems to me that the future is anchored very succinctly into the credo of customer ownership, whether he needs a hotel room or a coffin!!

For advice and counsel on the most appropriate brand for your property, contact [email protected]

NB. From my experience, EasyJet still does the most thorough 'seatbelt check' of all airlines anywhere, bar none.....on every single flight, bar none.

HOTEL FRANCHISING PROCESS TURNED UPSIDE DOWN

GO AHEAD, BUILD YOUR OWN FRANCHISE PRODUCT!

Imagine a day when the basic concept for the hotel franchisor's product is developed in the field by the hotelier or product manager and then taken to the Franchisor and Licensed at a fraction of the amount of today's franchise fees.

Imagine a day when we are all recognised as individuals capable of preferences, special interests, hungry to learn and eager to interact with others with similar interests while we travel.

Imagine a day when the creativity needed to develop a brand product is leveraged from the many lifestyles of the huge public we serve and our suppliers.

It is clear to all of us who observe the industry from the inside that there is a clear trend that branding is highly successful in hospitality and is here to stay. It is also clear that there are a few major players who have become successful who franchise a high and growing number of hotel brands. They include Starwood, Marriott, InterContinental, Wyndham, Accor, Hilton and many more. Many smaller brands such as Shangri La, Kempinski, Taj, Fairmont, Jing Jang and many more are also branching out with their own versions of their brands' sub-segmentation although not actually franchising.

It is also apparent that franchisors are opportunistic in their approach to the development of new products which largely are the result of internal development and perceived or actual demand. It is clear also that gradually franchisors are removing themselves from operations and expanding rapidly as licensors.

Imagine therefore the day when a group of hotels across the globe decide to associate with each other under a common theme or product lifestyle. Allow me a brief  'fast-forward' to the days when a product idea will be developed in the field and then 'licensed' by a parent company who can provide the basic services of reservations, quality control, marketing and training.

For all intents and purposes, this would be turning the product development process upside down, or perhaps even.......the right way up!

Here are a few potential examples (with imaginary Licensors),

GOURMET  .........................by Starwood

Featuring customised foods, special beverages, gourmet snacks, culinary libraries, discussion groups, culinary lessons, customised ice creams, food art, special preserves, tours and visits to local producers, on-site spice gardens. Opportunity for suppliers in the 'Gourmet' market to reach out and touch their customers and for target advertising and rifle-shot promotional campaigns.

Some words that may describe this target guest, aficionado, connoisseur, connoisseur of food, connoisseur of wine, enthusiast, epicure, epicurean, gastronome, gastronomist, gourmand, gourmet, refined palate, social person

STYLE  .............................. by Marriott

Featuring breakthroughs in upscale, innovative local furnishings, tabletops, cutlery, glassware, bedding, clothing, etiquette, event planning, interior design and artwork. Opportunities for suppliers in the area of luxury, design and fashion to showcase their products as accommodation and public areas become platforms for the theatre of style.

Some words that may describe this target guest chic, comfort, cosmopolitanism, delicacy, dressiness, elegance, flair, grace, grandeur, luxury, mode, panache, polish, refinement, savoir-faire, smartness, sophistication, stylishness, taste, urbanity, vogue, élan

ASIANITY  ........................ by Shangri La

Featuring Asian furnishings and touches such as Feng Shui in rooms and public spaces, exotic teas, local community connections, Asian staff; japanese, filipino, korean, vietnamese, chinese, mongolian, malaysian, taiwanese, cambodian. Customised comforts, foods, scents

There are no current words that help us understand Asians or Asiatic or Asianity in the Thesaurus. However, those of you in the hospitality industry will know what I mean by now!!

This method of product differentiation would drive special interest travel to appropriate destinations, encourage educated choices by consumers who would be adding adventure and colour to their stressful travel schedules.

Once the concept has been embraced, it is simple to see how easy it would be to add and imagine products that would be geared to other potential hospitality products, such as

• Health
• Sporting
• Entertainment
• Classics
• Antiquities
• Art (Woops, already exists)
• Design (Woops, already exists)

Franchisors might be interested to add a dozen or so special interest brands each year to their portfolio in which they had no development expense, earned healthy licensing fees, expanded their reservations revenues, frequent stay data and opportunities for the ownership of special interest customer data.

Seems to me that the days of limiting creativity to the executives at head office are limited and that the entire travel world's creativity can be harnessed to the ultimate benefit of everyone. If you then add in the suppliers, you have a real force to reckon with!!

To comment on this or any other opinion expressed in this Blog, contact [email protected]

PS. Coincidentally, the news just broke that Ian Schraeger will join the Marriott fold to roll-out his 'Boutique' character hotels worldwide.  Not exactly bottom-up but moving in that direction.

http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=616&topicId=12552&docId=l:627212747&start=7&nid=3457

And while we are wondering what they will call a marriage between Mondrian and a Marriott, the news just in that GOURMET has already broken loose in Mexico, which I just happen to believe is one of the top cuisines of the world.

http://ehotelier.com/browse/news_more.php?id=D11298_0_11_0_M

We wonder how long it will take the 'big boys' to sub-segment that and take it global?

WHAT IS A GREEN HOTEL BRAND?

WHO ARE WE KIDDING? ECO-FRIENDLY HOTEL BRAND FEATURES ARE NOT NEW.

The recent launch of a major hotel investor group's "first luxury, eco-friendly global hotel brand" described as a green hotel  and a "revolutionary force for change" is encouraging and opportune since it not only coincides with the G8 meetings who are discussing Global Warming but is a major opportunity for our industry.

As the former CEO at the International Hotel & Restaurant Association, I was encouraged to read of the launch of the first environmentally friendly 5 Star hotel developed by one of the world's largest and most respected hotel investment groups. Much work has been done in this area over the years in our industry and the expectations therefore of a consolidation of all this wisdom in one brand were very high for such an announcement.

In spite of being over 30 stories high and next to a 'most cherished' park, both of which seem to fly directly in the face of the announcement, I read on.

Particularly looking for elements that are innovative and/or inpractical for use in their other hotels, I soon see that there is little that is new or creative .....other than the announcement or the overall intent. Perhaps the real meat of the product was not in the announcement or is still under development.

Here however are the principal environmental elements from the article and some perhaps cynical personal observations,

• "High performance building envelope". Obviously or possibly designed,
  • to keep out the cold in winter ....pretty standard in hotels of any category.
  • to keep out the heat in summer....also pretty standard.
  • to trap the rain for water...... OK, this could be interesting.
  • to rein in the sun's energy........not new but OK, a good move.
  • to capture daylight....... standard architectural norm for many years.
  • to contain the guests.......at 30 stories, some safety is definitely needed!
• "Keycards". Well haven't we had those plastic cards for 20 years or so? With the average loss of most plastic cards being high, we would have expected the 'green' property to move to the next generation of locks be they credit cards, thumb prints or even eyeballs.
• "Occupancy sensors". Unless this is designed to gauge the occupancy of the competition, this could be the sensors that turn off the airco, lights or heat when no-one is there, generally fooled by the reception staff issuing 2 cards because of complaints. Nothing beats the French system of hall and staircase lights that automatically turn off after or during your rapid sprint to your room or the exit!
• "Lighting control systems".  So what else is new? Even the lighting systems control people say the best control is switching them off when not in use.
• "Energy Star appliances throughout to save energy".  Sound investment decision since it leads to tax credits.
• "Extensive use of recycled content".
  • Furniture? I doubt it.
  • Fixtures? Bathrooms, lighting, kitchens, laundries....I also doubt it.
  • Equipment? Perhaps they can get some deals from other NYC hotels that are renovating?
  • Operating equipment? China, glass, silver, uniforms..... perhaps from the same source.
  • Operating supplies? Paper...yes. We all do it now.
• "Locally procured materials". Excellent strategy but might be difficult in a 5 Star New York City hotel to find such luxuries as caviar, oranges & lemons, scotch or even fine wine, unless California is considered local. Most hotels and restaurants try harder now but there will always be exceptions, I hope.
• "Low VOC emitting materials". Sounds sensible. Now the EPA says "The main indoor sources of this chemical are environmental tobacco smoke"......so the 'no smoking' rules are generally taking care of that part so we just have to concern ourselves with the paints and lacquers, paint strippers, cleaning supplies, pesticides, building materials and furnishings, office equipment, correction fluids, carbonless copy paper, graphics and craft materials, permanent markers, and photographic solutions. Should be fairly easy!
• "Renewable sources of energy for 50% of the energy used". Now we are talking!  Now if we can just work on the other 50%.
• "Greenhouse gases reduced by 30%". Not sure how one can reduce 30% when it has not been built yet! Assuming it is reducing by 30% from other hotels in NYC, I would hope that one might do better than those built in the late 1920s or 1930s.
• "Potable water reduced by 30%". Same comment as for greenhouse gases. However, we have had little satisfaction from those water saving showerheads and high pressure toilets and most water in a hotel is consumed in the laundry and the kitchen and progress made by the equipment manufacturers goes a long way to take care of that for everyone.
• "No potable water for landscaping". Although this is something I did in a 7 acre hotel in the Dominican Republic in 1977, I am happy to hear this is possible in a hotel up some 30 stories in 2010.
• "Irrigation water use will be reduced by 50%." Compared to what?
• "Non-toxic products for housekeeping". These are generally in use in most responsible hotel groups already and toxic products may not even be available in 2010!
• "One Percent of Profits to local environmental organizations" While this appears like a most generous strategy, most hotels put aside +/- 1.0% of revenues for charity and local PR purposes. Therefore one percent of profits in fact is a fraction of what is normally considered corporately responsible.

Perhaps the time has come for the industry to define our version of  green, eco-friendly and environmentally responsible. Perhaps the time has come for a global debate on global warming and the contribution hospitality will make to Kyoto. Perhaps the debate needs to to take place before we are mandated by governments, before there is a customer revolt, before international standards are inflicted.

Let us also be clear about who will be on the hook for the added expense of going green. Most investment in the hotel industry is done by investors, not the brands. Therefore any grand announcements by the brands themselves are sometimes in fact being made on behalf of others. Our debate must therefore take into account what we can and will do, not what others should do.

More importantly our debate needs to address some retrofitting of the existing inventory of hotels and their operations rather than a commitment only to new hotels in the future. Of this there are some excellent existing examples of Corporate Social Responsibility although some of the best examples of this give credit to their employees as the prime movers.  For more information,click on

http://www.fairmont.com/EN_FA/Articles/Environment

For more information on the opportunities for a global environmental hospitality debate, or if anyone has any good ideas on how to train room attendants not to replace used towels or how to read those little signs, contact [email protected]

FEASIBILITY STUDIES FOR DUMMIES

WHAT IS A FEASIBILITY STUDY?

It should be an answer to a simple question. However the question is rarely asked in a simple, precise fashion because there are so many silent drivers of a project ranging from ego, hidden agendas, unknown scenarios and ignorance to poor financing, weak knowledge of market potential or the industry's actual profit potential.

Here are some of the questions that could be asked when developers seek Feasibility Studies,

1. "Is this well-defined Project feasible? "
2. "Is this ill-designed Project feasible?"
3. "Can you Make this ill-defined project feasible financially?"
4. "Can you give me proof that this 4 Star 250 room hotel with a 3 Star budget will work?"
5. "Can you do a 'quickie' study for half-price by changing the name on the last study you did here?"
6. Can you produce a study that will convince my banker to finance my project?

There are other factors that need to be raised and discussed depending on the location of the project which involve exit strategy, alternate uses, tax implications, labour availability & unions. In addition there may be other things such as environmental, geological, cultural or religious implications as might be involved in such locations like Saudi Arabia, Greece, Israel or Peru.

Here are some of the Contents of a well-prepared Feasibility Study which may change depending on the location. Furthermore, should any of the components or assumptions change, the outcome will also change.

1. Executive Summary.
2. Proposed Project Outline (size, category, financing, facilities etc).
3. Regional Data & Comments.
4. Markets/Growth Drivers/Access.
5. Situation Analysis/Competition (local &/or global).
6. Historical Trends (occupany, rate, market mix).
7. Supply changes (past & future).
8. Demand changes.
9. Brand Analysis & Options/Recommendation.
10. Management & Branding Cost Assumptions
11. Development & Construction/Renovation Cost estimates.
12. Projections (10 Years).
13. Projected Market Segments & Pricing.
14. Risk Analysis.
15. Conclusion & Rationale.
16. Conditions for Conclusions.

It is possible that an architectural concept or program will have been prepared in which case it will be easier to ascertain the construction cost and operating cost levels and the eventual level of competitivity that it will reach in the local market place.

For more information on Feasibility Studies, contact [email protected]

CAN YOU IMAGINE TRAINING TO BE AN ASTRONAUT BARTENDER?

THE KIDS TOMORROW DON'T KNOW HOW LUCKY THEY WILL BE.

In 10-12 years, there will be space tourists only if there are space employees. For this we will need bartenders, cooks, housekeepers and tour guides.

As the industry struggles to find ways to attract employees to the industry and then keep them, I was forced to think back to my first task as a management trainee in which I was required to turn a huge block of ice into ice cubes with an ice pick and then deliver them to the hotel bars around the building.

Pitching forward to the 21st century, just imagine the difficulty that our successors will have in 20-30 years when they will be training as astronaut hoteliers to work in space in what many believe will be range of hotel products offering extraordinary experiences to clients and staff alike.

Only some 100kms from here, ice cube delivery will doubtless take on different challenges not the least of which will be keeping them grounded!

Will hoteliers in 2030 still suffer from the difficulties we face in attracting employees to our industry?   Or will they be lined up to fill the positions in the spacebound cocktail lounges (Mars Bars) and special revolving (earth) restaurants for which they will doubtless need some additional skills?

Something tells me that recruitment in the 21st century will become harder and harder as fascinating alternatives open up in tourism worldwide.

How will you retain your best employees and make their lives as interesting as NASA?

(Photos courtesy of Wimberley Allison Tong & Goo)

A Hotel is a Place.....

.......WHERE HOSPITALITY LEADERS NEED TO HAVE THESE FANTASTIC ATTRIBUTES.

What do the best Hospitality Leaders in the world have that sets them apart from the rest? What traits are important and what sets them apart from the rest of us who struggle through our careers scratching our heads as these 'bright lights' dazzle us with the simplicity of their style and the economy of movement in their success.

To answer this question, I listed the top ten leaders to whom I have been exposed in my career and described the most remarkable trait or attribute of each one. These qualities are probably not to be found in the Human Resources manual but most HR Executives that I know will identify with these traits and characteristics.

"Fun to be around".  Here is a man who has sown his seeds of experience in this industry on at least three Continents. He is fun to be with either in work or in play and whose sense of humour is infectious whether you are a client, an employee or a peer. The contamination of his humour and sense of fun effects all around him who become one in their pursuit of developing an entertaining environment. Even when things have not gone right and there is good reason for a change in mood, this good friend remains solid to his character and the pursuit of a better process is followed. This character attracts enormous loyalty from all sides.

"Yes, I can" My second candidate for mention in this column is also a 'party animal' but is remarkable for his ability to assume full responsibility for anything that can be thrown his way but is never seen to actually do anything himself. His secret is to ensure he has great people around him, most of whom have skated to where the puck is going to go and ready for his pass.

"Ambassadorial Role Model" As the host to the world and innkeeper to the masses, all of whom seem to have an ego, my third successful executive looks and sounds the part. Immaculately dressed at all times and sounding royal even when in private conversation with his wife or his pet, this leader epitomises the image of an ideal host. Small wonder that his employees style their behavious after their leader and the result is a palatial experience regardless of the surroundings.

"Delegate with Authority" Charged with the task of developing a global hotel brand from nothing, our next candidate for hospitality 'sainthood' used the power of passing the buck to create the most creative and lively hotel & resort products in the world. This he did by taking off the shackles of standardisation and living the life of a 'rockstar with taste' to ensure that his creative teams around the world built the product for which he was responsible. Small wonder that he was known by his first name only.

"Party Animal First Class" Also charged with the task of developing a global brand from nothing, my next candidate's claim to fame was cemented into the fabric of this upstart company through the style and creativity of the parties that were thrown and on which his enormous reputation was built. Emanating from this elegant debauchery was a creativity and attention to detail that soared over the competition and drove this company to levels that not even they could imagine.

"Quality Maniac" Perhaps the only person referred to by the 5 Star Community as the only 6 Star Operator, our leader was a stickler for Quality in every aspect of both work and play. As a successor to one of those described above, this 'stickler for quality' quality rubbed off on all that he met and many that he did not.....through those that he did.

"Hospitality is Entertainment" Driven by an inordinate level of creativity on which his company was founded, this leader has started the process of reinventing hospitality. Or, said a different way, reconnected Hospitality with Entertainment where it was originally born. Simply by challenging every status quo drives the troops to reinvent this mornings best idea into this evening's theme.

"Off the Wall Enthusiasm" Ideas that test the resolve of even the most creative employees has taken this executive to immense success wherever he has been. The stupidest off-the-wall ideas challenge his peers to develop more practical alternatives to this mile-a-minute ideas machine.

"Realist" My first employer spent the two full hours of my first interview telling me the worst things about working in this industry including long hours, low pay, working while others play and other very temporary irritations. The result was a challenge with which I was fully prepared and ready to address.

"Bar-Fly Extraordinaire" Long before MBWA was deemed to be effective, this Luxury Hotel operator was the first and last customer in his own hotel bar where he personally knew every patron and from where he built the heart of his hotel's patronage. Losing a fortune on his arrival in this great European Capital, this hotel's value was rebuilt from the bar outwards on the strength of this great Irishman's liver. Also one of the best standup comedians I have ever known!

"Back to Basics" Famous for the financial turnaround of countless upscale hotel restaurants and bars, my next extraordinary leader simply 'makes silk purses out of sow's ears'. As the second non-hotelier on this list, this creator and his team puts his finger on our self-made problems with great humility and extraordinary accuracy and then shows us the way home to the basics. Now basics have also never been this much fun!

For contributions to this inventory of the great and desirable traits in our leaders, contact [email protected]

Lifestyle Hotels

THE DEVELOPMENT OF 'LIFESTYLE' BRANDS.....ARE WE ADMITTING FAILURE

I am greatly disappointed by the trend of the big multinational hotel groups towards Brands that are suddenly focused on  'Lifestyle'. Disappointed because it is tantamount to admitting that their other brands are neither stylish nor for living. Disappointed because all of this confirms and virtually admits that over-standardisation of the design and operations of the big brands has fundamentally eliminated the ability of the local GM to add flavour and style to his operation. In other words, centralisation has gone too far. "If you have any style or life, you will have to go around the corner to our other brand".

I earnestly believe that it will take more than a corporate announcement and a headquarters' developed design strategy to create a 'lifestyle' product in 'my part of the city' without the creative input of the local manager and his creative mid-management team. A lifestyle is surely an evolution of differing experiences.

Where did we go wrong?

Are the big chains trying to emulate the small independent properties?

Why have we silenced our management teams' creativity?

Why have we fundamentally squeezed the fun out of operating a property?

Can 'panache' only be found in Head Office?

How fortunate I was to have lived in the days of the late Pete DiTullio, illustrious President of Hyatt International who charged his GMs with the responsibility of developing the 'touches' of Hyatt, of adopting characteristics from the local culture, of creating an environment in which innovativeness reigned and completely devoid of corporate  standards & procedures.  Small wonder Hyatt International was the leader of the international lifestyle brands at that time and so much fun that all of us worked all day and most nights.

How fortunate I also was to have been recruited to a leadership position with Cirque du Soleil in which we were re-inventing 'hospitality' in the same way as they had re-invented the Circus Arts. Literally designing the stage on which hospitality would take place and lifestyle would flourish, it was scenography not architecture, imagination and creativity not standards, interactivity not  automation, touch and feel, aromas and touching all the senses.

There are some positive signs on the horizon. One brand has recently announced a daily, global  'happy hour'. An hour in which management is mandated to be hospitable, un-connected to their E-Life and forced to face up to and get to know their guests. Now if Head Office can just figure out what to do with the other 23 hours, we may get this lifestyle thing licked!!

All comments are welcome at, [email protected]

DEVELOPMENT MYTHS

MCMILLAN'S TOP TEN DEVELOPMENT MYTHS

1. Hotel Companies invest in their hotels.
2. Busy hotels make great financial returns wherever they are.
3. Magnificent beaches are guarantees for successful hotels.
4. It's easy, add a $5.00 amenity and add $5.00 to the rate.
5. Hotel companies support new development.
6. My ideas and my friend the architect is the right combination.
7. My wife's ideas and a local interior designer is what this project needs.
8. Size matters.
9. The project needs an international brand.
10. Venture capital is easy to find.

For more cynical information on new development in the industry, contact [email protected]

TO BARTER OR NOT TO BARTER

MY OWNER NEVER HAS ENOUGH CAPITAL FOR THE THINGS WE NEED.

A common cry from most managers is that too many important capital projects get denied arbitrarily by the Owner.

A common cry from most Franchisors is that some owners bleed their properties and don't keep them up to franchise standards, resulting in eroding market share and reduced profits.

A common cry from Owners is that the Hoteliers think they all have deep pockets.

LET'S GET CREATIVE!

It is surely time to get creative and instead of using Cash for Capital Projects, use what all hoteliers have in their off-season, vacant rooms and leverage the value of those rooms to the benefit of the Owner.

Here is an idea of the value of those vacant rooms,

Hotel size        200 rooms

Occupancy     65%

ADR                   $100............ but the Barter company will give you say $70.00

Barter Value  $ 70.00 on 35% vacancy.......represents $1.8 million per year.  Over 5 years, the $1.8 million a year represents $9 million and that represents an amount that should get most people's attention and in my opinion is well worth investigating even if one only considers the use of one-third.

Assuming that the "Concept" of leveraging these empty rooms that have been built, furnished, equipped, heated (or cooled) and maintained is agreeable to your Owner, you now only have to deal with your Financial Controller and the Government Taxman and decide on the exact amount.

See also this article on "Turning Vacancy into Profits" by Lisa Baum of PricewaterhouseCoopers at,

Download Vac_profit.pdf

If you are interested in leveraging your inventory, contact [email protected]

HOSPITALITY & ENTERTAINMENT

CIRQUE DU SOLEIL REINVENTS HOSPITALITY

The idea of a world-class destination conceptualised, built and operated by world renowned Cirque du Soleil was too good an opportunity to pass up and so, in late 2001, I joined their ranks to head up this sector as Vice President Complexes, Hotels, Spas and Restaurants

Already several years into the creative process, the team was enormous, highly talented  and the extraordinary concepts were indescribable. In fact the product would have revolutionised our industry.

With plans and partners already beckoning from Hong Kong and London to Los Angeles and New York, the plan was to replicate the Show process of developing the product in Montreal, perfecting it first and then exporting it from there. Added to these great cities, financiers were also lining up and jostling in Barcelona, Toronto, San Diego, Tokyo and Las Vegas.

The roots for most of the brilliant major ideas and concepts were those of the Cirque's Founder, Guy Laliberte who, in my opinion was light years ahead of other leaders in the hospitality industry.

In the absence of a Strategic Plan, a Plan was needed. Things were moving at too rapid a pace and expenses were spiralling. Perhaps contrary to the process of developing and producing a show, the Plan was completed in a conventional fashion by a conventional group of consultants in a conventional way.......and crashed, unread.

Contrary to the opinions of some, the Pilot Project in Montreal was pursued with the idea that we would then perfect the concept and then develop the new destinations in the five or so top city resorts in the world. Not an easy task when the financial rationale for a conventional hotel In Montreal was doubtful.

The dreams and concepts were sketched, the storyboards written, the architects and stage managers added,  refined and perfected as discussions took place on the land and the financing, all of which was to be provided 'by others', a customary approach by those with the creative rights.

The decision to abandon the project was a natural one and fully justified at that time by the following factors,

1. Montreal was too small for a project of this magnitude.
2. An internal Cirque plan that focused all divisions on the core business of 'creative content' only.
3. The Montreal project was not being financed in a conventional way.
4. The change in Quebec's government & the loss of continuity in financing by the public sector.
5. The enormous 'order sheet' of core business show projects that took priority.

The link between hospitality and entertainment is a real opportunity that is only gradually being realised. The fundamental basics that Cirque du Soleil's founder, Guy Laliberte was demanding of his team in the development of these projects were bright, simple, ageless, flexible, theatrical and interactive. No-one has yet come close to creating anything like the products that we were creating and the millions who enjoy his shows will have to wait a little longer for the conditions to be right, which they were..........but not in Montreal.

The lessons that I learned from this superb experience in a terrific company are best described as follows,

1. In developing a plan, never lose site of the audience.
2. In creating a new product, listen to absolutely everyone.
3. Hospitality is changing but not fast enough.
4. Creators of successful businesses have what it takes in any business.
5. There are some projects that should be stopped or delayed for good reasons.
6. The link between hospitality and entertainment must never be overlooked.

The world will have to wait for Cirque du Soleil's first hospitality destination but, mark my words, when it comes, don't quibble over the rate and make your reservation fast.

For further information on this project, contact Cirque du Soleil.

For hospitality assistance, contact [email protected]

WHEN DEVELOPERS SHOULD 'FORGET ABOUT IT'.

THE CASE TO BE MADE FOR NOT DOING THE PROJECT.

The Project often starts with a great idea, a magificent plot of land or beach,  a new concept or an enormous ego.

The momentum grows as colleagues, governments, architects,  engineers, construction groups,  chains and brands climb on board and enthusiastically support the Project.

Part of the Project is financed and the momentum grows.

Consultants are hired and Market and Feasibility studies support the idea of the visionary.

The numbers support the pretty pictures.

Why is it that so many of these projects fail financially for the first and second owner? There are several answers to this question which include,

1. Enthusiasm and support initially comes principally from those who would benefit but with little at risk.
2. Consultants for market & feasibility studies generally conclude in favour of the client's opinion.
3. Projects sometimes start before the final financing is concluded. The last dollar is the hardest to find.
4. Pre-Opening Expenses and Starting losses are not properly financed, if at all.
5. Owners overlook that they do not generally represent a typical client but insist on using their personal tastes.

Developers that allow for the process to reach the point of 'go/no go' may save a fortune compared to those whose beliefs are so strong that there is no exit.

David McMillan has been lucky enough to have had the following experiences,

1. To open and operate hotels that have enjoyed enormous & surprising success.
2. To operate hotels that are poorly conceived and should not have been built.
3. To take a poorly performing property and turn it around.
4. To re-conceptualise hotels & resort facilities.
5. To participate in potential projects that were not built for good reasons.

I have also had the pleasure of advising several potential investors that their project is marginal or high risk from a business perspective.  The decision to 'go-no go' is then theirs.

Fo further information, contact [email protected]