Lodging Magazine Jan 2014

THE OFFI CI AL MAGAZI NE OF THE AMERI CAN HOTEL + LODGI NG ASSOCI ATI ON JANUARY 2014
JOHN FITZPATRICK
PRESIDENT AND CEO
FITZPATRICK HOTEL GROUP

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THE RISE OF
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RECIPE FOR
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SEES A BRIGHT
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satisfactionYOULL KNOW IT WHEN YOU SEE IT
CONTENTS JANUARY 2014 | VOLUME 39 | ISSUE NO. 5
2 LODGI NGMAGAZI NE. COM JANUARY 201 4

FEATURES
34
An Innkeepers Story
John Fitzpatrick grew up in a 20-room
castle in Ireland that his parents trans-
formed into a successful hotel. Today,
Fitzpatrick runs the only two Irish-owned
hotels in New York City: the Fitzpatrick
Manhattan and the Fitzpatrick Grand
Central. As the AH&LAs new chairman,
he is eager to focus on advocacy, com-
munication, and education.
BY MEGHAN RABBITT
40
The State of Lodging
Four industry experts share their
thoughts on the biggest issues facing
the lodging industry in 2014, from living
wage initiatives and the health care act
to immigration and the visa process.
Other areas of concern include the
threat of overdevelopment, pushing
average daily rate, and the ongoing
dysfunction in Washington.
BY THE LODGING STAFF
46
Power Trip
Like it or not, TripAdvisor has redened
the connection between hotels and their
guests. The online travel review site
grew from a simple concept 13 years
ago into an industry giant that attracts
more than 53 million unique visitors
per month and employs nearly 2,000
people. Heres how to make TripAdvisor
work for you.
BY ERIC RASKIN
40
LEADERS IN LODGING
(From left) Ron Vlasic,
Nancy Johnson,
Jim Abrahamson,
and John Fitzpatrick
COLIN LENTON
True Detecti ve
SM
Treme
Looki ng
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Gi rl s
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Ja mi e: Pri vate School Gi rl
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True Detecti ve Cl oud Atl as Treme Gi rl s
Taken 2 Promi sed Land Warm Bodi es Sni tch
Sarah Si l verman: We Are Mi racl es
2013 Home Box Office, Inc. All rights reserved. HBO and related channels and service marks are the property of Home Box Office, Inc.
Getti ng On
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I denti ty Thi ef
FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT
homeboxoffice.com/bulkmarkets
ITS ALL HERE
Mama Admi ssi on
CONTENTS
OWNER S MANUAL SUPPLY LINE FRONT DESK

WEB EXCLUSIVE
13 Success Stories
Michael Doyle, EVP of
Capital Hotel Management,
exemplies how integral
asset managers are to the
owner-manager equation.
16 Quick Take
Google Business Photos
changes how consumers
shop for hotels online.
16 Good Housekeeping
Four safe lifting techniques
to prevent back injuries.
18 Checking In
Mark Carrier, president
of B.F. Saul Company
Hospitality Group, lives and
breathes hotel operations.
20 Washington
Dispatch
The patent reform victory
in the House demonstrates
the power of engaged
hoteliers.
Drink Up: Hotels Capitalize on Beverage Trends
Across the country, hotels are turning their attention to bar and restaurant beverage optionsand
shaking things up a bit. Bar managers are serving up region-specic beverages, house-brewed
beers, drinks with locally sourced ingredients, and modern twists on classic cocktails. A few ho-
tels are even offering do-it-yourself cocktail kits that can be used at the bar or in guestrooms. Top
beverage trends include onsite barrel-aged drinks, edible cocktails, and gluten-free beer.
23 Smart Strategy
Ways to make a smart
restaurant strategy pay off
for your hotel.
26 Market Report
Mixed messages for the
meetings market in 2013.
28 Breaking Ground
Latin Americas construction
pipeline reaches a new peak.
30 Startup
Healthy relationships
between owners and man-
agers propel growth.
32 Backstory
How a Residence Inn GM is
helping his guests navigate
insurance claims.
53 Guest Bathroom
From showers and sinks to
toilets and accessories.
56 Source Code
Manufacturers discuss
the latest bathroom design
trends.
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64 The William Hotel
Guest Suites
Inspired by ne paintings,
the guestrooms here are
saturated with monochro-
matic color palettes.
23
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13
64
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Meghan Rabbitt, Eric Raskin, Vanessa Sinders,
Anthony Stoeckert
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VICE CHAIR: Jim Abrahamson
TREASURER/SECRETARY: Mark Carrier
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FROM THE EDITOR
Labor Intensive
IT WASNT TOO LONG AGO THAT EVERY JANUARY outlook story started out with a ngers-
crossed plea for this to be the year that the lodging industry recovers. Now the same folks who
wrote those stories routinely ask if the industry has peaked yet. In businesses that have as many
moving parts as hotels do, these sorts of oversimplications come about from spending too much
time looking at everything through the prism of RevPAR and ADR.
When you delve into the issues behind the numbers, you discover a story thats much more
nuanced than the recovery vs. peak narrative allows. So we talked to four prominent lodging
industry leaders and AH&LA of cers to get their take on what lies ahead for lodging (see The
State of Lodging, page 40). One of the more interesting issues that came up during our interviews
had to do with the living wage initiatives that have been cropping up across the country. These are
increasingly successful grassroots eforts to raise the local minimum wage above the $12 per hour
rate set by the federal government.
Given how big a role labor plays in the lodging industry, these initiatives should be on the
radar of every hotel owner this year. Simply looking at the numbers, labor is the biggest expense
at most hotels, says Lodging contributor Robert Mandelbaum. Five cents of every dollar spent
to operate a hotel goes to salary, wages, and benets. As the director of Research Information
Services for PKF Hospitality Research, Mandelbaum has seen the ups and downs of industry
labor trends over the past 20 years.
Historically, hotel managers have done a pretty good job of controlling the salary and wage
component as a percentage of revenue, he says. This has averaged around 35 percent of revenue.
Managers and owners havent been able to exercise the same amount of control over the benets
component, but that has more to do with government mandated taxes and health insurance. If you
start mandating minimum wages, he says, then you take another cost management tool out of the
hands of hotel managers. According to PKF, employee salaries and wages rose an average of 2.9
percent in 2012, while the cost of employee benets grew by 5.4 percent.
With all the projections of a banner year ahead, understanding details such as how the min-
imum wage may change can help you take advantage of the overall growth in the industry and
provide some incentive to get involved with legislative issues at the national and local level. And
thats much better than worrying about whether RevPAR has peaked.
866-832-6574
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CONTRIBUTORS
Meghan Rabbitt
When Lodging tapped Ireland-based freelance writer and
editor Meghan Rabbitt to prole John Fitzpatrick (see An
Innkeepers Story), her Irish friends and family were ex-
cited. Everyone in Ireland knows and loves John because
of his appearance on the U.K.-based TV show Secret
Millionaire, she says. Johns generosity and kind spirit
really came through on that show, as it did when I had the
privilege of talking to him for this piece. Rabbitt has also
contributed to Womens Health, Fitness, Yahoo!, and more.
Colin Lenton
Colin Lenton is a commercial and editorial
photographer (and proud Kimpton inTouch
member) based out of Philadelphia. For this
issue he photographed John Fitzpatrick in
the Liam Neeson Penthouse Suite at the
Fitzpatrick Grand Central in New York City.
Lenton spends his downtime hanging out
with his beagle, Jefferson, and traveling with
his girlfriend.
Phil Hayward
Phil Hayward is a seasoned writer and editor living in Alex-
andria, Va. As the former editor of Lodging, he has nearly
two decades of experience interviewing hotel execs. If
you want to best understand and appreciate such people
of accomplishment, you need to get a feel for them in their
youth and rising through the industry, he says. Knowing
Mike Doyle (see Balance and the Bottom Line) aspired
to be a professional hockey player and now competes in
Ironman competitions says reams about his character.
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AT
FIRST
GLANCE
OPENED
SEPTEMBER
2013
ROOMS
800
OWNER
OMNI HOTELS
AND RESORTS
10 LODGI NGMAG A Z I NE . COM J ANUARY 201 4
JANUARY 201 4 LODGI NGMAGAZI NE. COM 11
WITH THE OPENING OF THE 1.2 MILLION-SQUARE-FOOT
MUSIC CITY CENTER LAST MAY, Nashville has emerged as a
hotel development hotspot. The debut of the adjacent Omni Nashville
Hotel marks an important milestone as the city establishes itself as a major lei-
sure and convention destination. The projects architectural and design teams,
including HKS Hill Glazier Studio and Looney and Associates, ensured that the
21-story, 800-room property captured the distinct culture and character of
Nashville. Vintage Nashville heirlooms accent the hotels warm, inviting spaces
that resemble a family residence. Hotel guests are surrounded by musical inspi-
ration, from old microphones and musical instruments to guitar- and musical-
note-inspired patterns, carpet design, and light xtures. Nashville-related art
in the guestrooms recalls postcards, travel sketches, and designs from Hatch
Show Print, one of the oldest working letterpress print shops in America. The
property offers more than 80,000 square feet of exible meeting space and
more than 49,000 square feet of pre-function space. In addition, it boasts
numerous dining and leisure options, including an all-day dining restaurant, a
steakhouse, a live music venue, a coffee house, a spa, a fourth oor pool deck,
and a luxury retail venue. An internal pedestrian pathway connects the hotel
to the expanded Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. Omni insists that
everything from the materials used throughout the property to the food served
and the art displayed there is reective of local cultural sensibilities.
MUSI C CI TY
NEWS, IDEAS, AND INSIGHTS
FRONT
DESK
IF MICHAEL DOYLE HAD SCORED JUST A FEW
MORE GOALS or blocked a few more pucks while
playing hockey at Cornell University, hotel asset
management might be missing one of its more
notable practitioners and industry proponents. A
die-hard hockey player, Doyle figured on following
his fathers footsteps into banking after a stint in
the NHL. When Cornell recruited him to its hockey
program, the pieces almost came together. Instead,
two factors derailed his plans. Doyle proved to be an
excellent collegiate hockey player but
just not NHL caliber. At the same time,
came the pull from another direction
in his familys past: lodging.
Doyles paternal grandfather had
operated a small hotel in Ontario in
the early 1920s to the mid-1950s and
the profession had always exerted a
gentle tug on him. To this day he keeps
a postcard on his desk of his father and
grandfather standing in front of the
property. In transferring to the hotel
school at Cornell, Doyle was not looking
any further up the road than a career in operations.
Asset management was not yet on his radar. After all,
one doesnt simply sign up as an owners representa-
tive and adviser and just get on with the business. But
after 22 years of operating branded and independent
full-service hotels in Toronto, Houston, New York, and
Boston, where he now lives and works, Doyle is now
the EVP of Capital Hotel Management (CHM) and the
outgoing president of the Hospitality
Asset Managers Association.
And yet it wasnt until after a ve-
year stint managing a collection of
ve-star golf resorts that Doyle was
ready to reassess his career path. I
thought about going back to the hotel
business as a general manager, he
recalls. It was a comfort I had as well
as a passion. But through his inter-
action with CHM Co-Founder and
President Chad Crandall, who was also
the head of Cornells New England
alumnae chapter, Doyle says he was
presented with an opportunity to apply
his skills toward learning the business
Balance
and the
Bottom Line
MICHAEL DOYLE EXEMPLIFIES HOW
INTEGRAL ASSET MANAGERS ARE TO
THE OWNERMANAGER EQUATION
BY PHIL HAYWARD
A good asset
manager must
have empathy
for the property
operations staff,
brand managers,
and his or her
colleagues.
BREAKAWAY
Michael Doyle, EVP
of Capital Hotel
Management, left
behind his hockey
aspirations long ago
to pursue a career
in the lodging
industry.
SUCCESS STORY
FRONT DESK
MAJOR MARKETS
Capital Hotel Managements port-
folio includes the Westin Diplomat
Resort and Spa in Hollywood,
Fla. (left), and the Hyatt Regency
Denver at Colorado Convention
Center (right).
through an owners perspective in the
asset eld. He joined CHM eight and a
half years ago when the privately held
company was four years old and still in
growth mode. Today, the CHM portfolio
includes 28 properties (14,463 rooms),
most either urban landmark hotels,
destination resorts, or convention
center hotels. In 2013, CHMs portfolio
of managed assets totaled $5 billion in
value, making it the largest third-party
manager of assets in the country.
WHEN ASSET MANAGERS UNITE
As hotel ownership broadened beyond
experienced owners in the 80s and
90s, when large portfolio investors
with no lodging experience began
to enter the field, third-party asset
managers came into their own. By the
time Doyle arrived at CHM, investors
in the hotel industry included insur-
ance companies, trade unions, pension
funds, real estate investment trusts,
and sovereign funds, which controlled billions of
dollars in hotels and resorts. In 1992, the Hospitality
Asset Managers Association launched to provide
the field of third-party asset management with a
collective voice as well as an educational vehicle to
further the professionalism of its members. Doyle is
the third executive from CHM to serve as president
of HAMA and has just completed his term. He will remain on the
board and return to his prior position in charge of internation-
al membership. Its a critical group, because its a tremendous
opportunity for those of us in the profession to network and share
the experiences we all commonly face, so we can better understand
The total value of Capital Hotel Management s portfolio
of managed assets in 2013. The portfolio includes 28
properties and 14, 463 rooms.
$5 billion
FRONT DESK
Society of Hospitality
Consultants and STR to
update the current levels
of monies recommend-
ed to be set aside for the
capital improvement of
hotels. History is proving
that its costing ownership
greater amounts of money
than what many of these
management agreements
are recommending be set
aside, Doyle says. Its an
area where we continue
to be challenged as asset
managers. Were working
to be an integral part of
the planning and oversight
process with the brands to
ensure that the monies are
being spent appropriately
and in a manner that brings
value to the business.
Currently, HAMA has
200 members responsible
for more than 1 million
rooms worldwide. It has
chapters in Japan and
Singapore and in 2014
will launch a Middle East
and Africa chapter. We
all know the brands have
expanded aggressively
internationally, and its no
surprise were engaging
with Japan and the Asia-
Pacific region, Doyle says.
They are facing many of the same issues,
and so were expanding our work in
sharing best practices and information.
The template has been found to be very
adaptable internationally.
While Doyle may have long ago left
behind his hockey aspirations, he never
lost his love of athletics. Today he com-
petes in Iron Man events, an all-season
undertaking he trains for in any kind of
weather. And, like asset management, he
studies and measures his performance. In
2013, Doyle logged more than 4,100 miles.
For 99.8 percent of the population, just
nishing it is an accomplishment, Doyle
says. Then, there is that little small per-
centagemyself includedthat is always
trying to do it faster.
While demand has been
slowing down, it is still growing
well above the 20-year average.
Supply is muted. When you
have this imbalance of demand
and supply, it bodes well for
the overall key performance
indicators.
VAIL BROWN
VP, Global Business Development
and Marketing, STR

Another year of economic
growth in the range of 2 percent
would typically suggest a
rather sluggish recovery. But
considering the sizable scal
headwinds, the fact that the
economy has sustained that
growth is actually pretty good.
WARREN MARR
Managing Director, Hospitality &
Leisure, PricewaterhouseCoopers

Business investment and
consumer spending correlate
closely with the change in
demand for luxury, upper
upscale, and upscale hotels.
Those segments are performing
at a much higher level than the
lower-priced hotels.
MARK WOODWARD
EVP, PKF Consulting
AT THE HOSPITALITY
LEADERSHIP FORUM,
the top data-collecting
agencies in hospitality dis-
closed industry statistics
and future projections.
POISED FOR
GROWTH
GOOD ADVICE
MICHAEL DOYLE SHARES SEVEN INGREDIENTS FOR SUCCESSFUL
ASSET MANAGEMENT.
Empathy. A good asset manager must have empathy for the
property operations staf, brand managers, and his or her
colleagues. Empathy comes with experience, which provides
credibility among all parties. It enables efective assessment
of a property or a brand well before the acquisition of a
property.
Experience. Without a sufcient level of experience you end
up in an adversarial relationship. You will not understand the
dynamics of why something may or may not work.
Collaboration. Through collaboration you earn respect
through ensuring that the teams you are working with know
you are there to support them. At the end of the day, you are
there to make them successful.
Know the owner. Some owners will only want to hold on to
an asset for one economic cycle while others prefer to hold
them through multiple cycles. Knowing which allows the
asset manager to better determine an approach with a new
acquisition.
Know the brand. Identify strategic initiatives to align the
brand to those strategic initiatives.
Know the property. Spend time with the property team in re-
searching and understanding how the property is performing
and what issues and opportunities may exist. How does the
property really function and operate and whats the person-
ality of each hotel?
Hold the property, brand, and owner accountable. Establish
objectives that not only ensure brand performance and hold-
ing the property accountable but also ensure that ownership
is going to do the things under its control to support those
initiatives.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
how to approach issues, Doyle says.
Most issues that HAMA deals
with are inherently embedded in the
industry. Brands put forth standards
and requirements that drive revenue to
their bottom lines but not necessarily
to the bottom lines of the asset owners.
Thats where the hotel companies are
always striving to improve the value of
their brand, and they are doing so at the
cost of the current owners, Doyle says.
So we need to ensure the level and
amount of spending is appropriate for
the property we are involved with, and
that it will not only bring benets to the
brands but for ownership as well.
For example, HAMA is current-
ly working with the International
WHEN APPROACHED BY GOOGLE in August about getting involved with its
new Business Photos platform, Dorothy Dowling, senior vice president of mar-
keting and sales for Best Western International, didnt think twice about signing
up. The new servicewhich uses Street View technologyofers businesses,
including hotels, the opportunity to show customers a 360-degree interac-
tive tour of their properties. We knew the technology was going to be a game
changer in how consumers shop for and book hotels on the Web, Dowling says.
Best Western expects to roll out Business Photos at its 2,200 North
American hotels by the end of 2014. Hilton is also following suit and will
launch the platform at 96 of its hotels as part of the pilot program. We track
our website, and the photo gallery is one of the most visited pages, says
Eduardo Chapoval, general manag-
er of the Hampton Inn and Suites
Miami/Brickell-Downtown, one of
the participating Hilton properties.
Guests are looking at the pictures
to make their decisions. Having that
360-degree view of an interactive
tour will only help us.
Hotels interested in taking advan-
tage of Google Business Photos need
to align with a photographer or agen-
cy that has been trained and certied
to ofer this type of technology. Rates
vary by region, photographer, and
project size, but there is no additional charge from Google to include the pho-
tos on the search engines listing page or to embed the virtual tours on property
websites. Best Western is ofering hotel owners and franchisees this service as
part of a bigger digital upgrade package that will run approximately $900.
Once hotels set up a shoot with a photographer, the process takes less than
a dayoften just a few hoursto capture the whole property. There is little
disruption to guests while the shoot is in progress, Dowling says. The nal prod-
uctusually available to hotels within a few weeksofers a detailed panoramic
view of guestrooms and public spaces that traditional photos cannot provide.
More and more people are driven to the Internet to make their booking
decisions, Chapoval says. The ability to have them click on the street, step
into our hotel, take the elevator up to our lobby, and walk through the property
like they are here is fantastic.
A New Point of View
GOOGLE BUSINESS PHOTOS CHANGES HOW CONSUMERS
SHOP FOR HOTELS ONLINE BY DEIDRE WENGEN
LOOK ALL
AROUND
With Business
Photos,
customers can
take virtual
hotel tours.
QUI CK TAKE
Back
Injuries
The number one workplace
safety challenge
BY WILLIAM D. FRYE, PH.D., CHE
Preventing back injuries is a major
workplace safety challenge. If employees
follow proper lifting techniques, the risk
of on-the-job lower-back injuries can be
avoided or minimized:
Tuck your pelvis. This will tighten
the stomach muscles and keep the back
straight and in balance while lifting. It also
shifts the weight of the employee more
under the object to be lifted or carried.
Bend your knees. By bending at
the knees instead of the waist, the back
remains straight and achieves a sense
of balance. The strongest muscles in a
humans body are the leg muscles and the
strongest bone is the femur or upper leg
bone. Therefore, let the legs do the lifting.
Hug the load. Keep the object being
lifted as close to the body as possible
while straightening the legs to a standing
position. Loads carried at arms length from
the torso place excessive and unneeded
strain on multiple parts of the body.
Avoid twisting. Never twist at the waist
or shouldersthis can overload the spine
and lead to serious injury. Move the load as
a single unit in conjunction with the entire
body. Always keep the feet, knees, and torso
pointed in the same direction when lifting.
William D. Frye is coauthor of
AH&LEIs textbook Managing
Housekeeping Operations.
GOOD
HOUSEKEEPING
Powered by a new app called Reputology, the social media dashboard HootSuite now
allows users to monitor reviews on all major sites, including TripAdvisor, Yelp, Expedia,
and Hotels.com. Businesses can keep an eye on activity for all of their locations simulta-
neously and customize each stream by ratings, review site, and location. By assigning a
status to a review, users can track how they are responded to. Other key features of the
platform include the ability to identify recurring customer issues.
APP
WATCH
To learn more, please call 1-888-474-7765. Visit www.pgpro.com or contact your P&G Professional representative today.
2013 P&G
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Games use P&G Professional
products to clean over 30,000
linens a day.
*Actual Tide variant used at Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games is Tide Professional powder (not Tide Professional liquid).
FRONT DESK
AS PRESIDENT OF THE B.F. SAUL COMPANY HOSPI-
TALITY GROUP, Mark Carrier lives and breathes hotel
operations. The former IHG Owners Association
chair relishes the opportunity to represent owners
interests and address the big issues that impact the
industry. In 2013, Carriers leadership as an advocate
on Capitol Hill garnered him the Kemmons Wilson
Service Award. Past recipients have included indus-
try icons Mike Levin, John Q. Hammons, and Tom
Corcoran. Now, as the new secretary and treasurer of
AH&LAs board of directors, Carrier looks forward to
making an even bigger impact on the industry.
LODGING: How did you get into the lodging industry?
CARRIER: I always had a food and beverage related job
to pay the bills. I joined B.F. Saul after I graduated from
Cornell because the company gave me a fast track to
become a food and beverage director. I started out as
a management trainee at a Hilton hotel we owned and
worked my way up to food and beverage director, then
regional director, and then I managed the companys
development eforts. For the past 15 years, Ive been
running the hotel side of the company.
LODGING: What is your companys growth strategy?
CARRIER: We have at least one new project on the
drawing board right now. But our base of properties is
largely in the Washington, D.C., region, so were a bit
conservative these days around new development. The
federal budget disruptions and the sequester have been
dampening the demand in our region, so were being
very careful about our future plans here in reaction to
the fact that, unlike the majority of the country, were
going through a pretty challenging period right now.
LODGING: Have you been busy with renovations?
CARRIER: Yes, we have had a signicant renovation pro-
gram across all of the brands we work with. Weve been
focusing on a broad range of issueseverything from
our guestrooms to repositioning our food and beverage
outlets to renovating lobbies and installing new tech-
nologies. Were maintaining the quality of the asset and
keeping up with our guests changing demands.
LODGING: Revenue management is one of your fo-
cus areas. Why do you nd the topic interesting?
CARRIER: The way distribution has changed over the
last decade has dramatically altered how we sell hotel
rooms. To me its a seminal subject for our entire
industry thats playing in the relationships of owners,
brands, and third parties. So many things are in a bit of
ux because were all dealing with what is a disruptive
timeframe in the industry.
LODGING: What are you looking forward to as
AH&LA secretary and treasurer?
CARRIER: I think we have a very exciting time ahead of
us at the AH&LA. The new structure of the organiza-
tion really brings together the interests of the major
brands, owners, management companies, independent
hotels, partner state associations, and allied members
around a combined vision for the future of the hotel
industry. Im just so pleased to see the tremendous
progress the organization is making and very proud to
be selected to be a part of that efort going forward.
LODGING: What issues are you passionate about?
CARRIER: Issues around government travel have both
a broader industry policy perspective and a specic
personal impact, so Ive been very involved in that.
There is a whole range of issues AH&LA is focused
on that impact my properties that we have concerns
about, everything from things that are happening at
the National Labor Relations Board, minimum wage,
and how the Americans with Disabilities Act applies to
hotels, to distribution and taxation fairness.
Checking in
Mark Carrier
The number of hotels B.F. Saul Company Hospitality Group owns and operates.
Its business class hotels are primarily afliated with InterContinental Hotels Group,
Marriott, and Hilton, as well as the storied Hay-Adams Hotel.
20
BOTTOM LINE
Title: President, B.F.
Saul Company
Hospitality Group
Years with
company: 30+
First hotel job:
Management trainee
Hometown:
Dennis, Cape Cod,
Mass.
Hotel must-haves:
Great exercise room,
fast and reliable WiFi,
and healthy and
diverse F&B options
Best advice he
ever got: Do it now.
FAST
FACTS
JOEL KIMMEL
*Time Warner Cable received the highest numerical score among wireline providers in the proprietary J.D. Power 2013
Business Wireline Customer Satisfaction Study
SM
. Study based on responses from 4,784 business wireline customers
measuring 6 providers and measures satisfaction among wireline service decision-makers with large enterprise U.S.
businesses. Proprietary study results are based on experiences and perceptions of consumers surveyed in October 2012 and
March 2013. Your experiences may vary. Visit jdpower.com. Products and services not available in all areas. Subject to change
without notice. Some restrictions apply. Time Warner Cable Business Class is a trademark of Time Warner Inc. Used under
license. 2014 Time Warner Cable Enterprises LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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FRONT DESK FRONT DESK
The Trouble
with Trolls
THE PATENT REFORM VICTORY IN THE HOUSE
DEMONSTRATES THE POWER OF ENGAGED
HOTELIERS BY VANESSA SINDERS
WASHI NGTON DI SPATCH
WHEN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES PASSED
VIRGINIA CONGRESSMAN BOB GOODLATTES
PATENT REFORM BILL on Dec. 5, it was a victory on
many levels. These patent assertion entities (PAEs),
also known as patent trolls, have had a big impact on
the U.S. economy over the past decade. In most in-
stances, these groups le frivolous, predatory lawsuits
against small end users of technology who cant aford
to wage expensive legal battles. This often results in
nancial settlements rather than court ghts, and these
suits cost the economy $80 billion each year.
Members of Congress may disagree a lot, but they
cant dispute the nancial impact of these patent
trolls which, according to a Boston University report
published last year, cost the U.S. economy $29 billion
a year in direct costs. The strong bipartisan vote of
32591 was a victory for Republican and Democrat
leadership and reected an understanding that this is
something that cannot be allowed
to continue.For one day at least,
Congress set aside their partisan
diferences in order to protect the
health and sustained growth of the
U.S. economy.
The successful passage of the
patent bill also came as a result of
a well-coordinated efort between
AH&LA and its coalition partners
in Washington. The level of sup-
port shown on behalf of hotels and
countless other small businesses
across the country demonstrated the
considerable impact of these lawsuits
on end users.
More important, the victory would
not have been possible without an
energetic grassroots efort by AH&LA
members. Through a variety of tools,
you have played a crucial role in relat-
ing the importance of patent reform
to the rest of our industry. Hoteliers
across the country sent emails and
letters to their members of Congress,
urging them to support the bill.Our
team received numerous calls and
messages from state association
executives, general managers, and
many others asking, What can I do
to help? Texas Hotel and Lodging
Association (THLA) General Counsel
Justin Bragiel was invited to testify
at a congressional hearing on the
impacts of patent trolls on his states
hoteliers.And 32 of our partner states
signed a letter sent to all 435 mem-
bers of the House, reiterating the
damage being caused by patent trolls.
We also successfully used our
media outreach capabilities to get
our message out in many public
A THREAT
TO SMALL
BUSINESSES
In the case of the lodging
industry, nearly 55 percent
of our operators are
small businesses, with
facilities offering 75 rooms
or less. These smaller
mom-and-pop properties
do not have the nancial
resources to ght [patent
infringement] lawsuits in
the courts, and in most
instances nd it necessary
to simply pay the settle-
ment amount to the alleged
patent holder and put an
end to the legal action. Here
in Texas, more than 100
hotels have been targeted
by patent trolls in just the
past year, and that number
is growing.
There also are signicant
repercussions of patent
troll activity on the national
economy. Since 2011, the
number of these lawsuits
has tripled for all types of
smaller businesses. The
cost to our economy is $80
billion each yearequal to
more than 40 percent of the
entire Texas state budget
for 2014-2015.
excerpt from Scott
Josloves Dec. 5, 2013,
op-ed in The Hill
Members of Congress may disagree a lot, but they can t
dispute the financial impact of these patent trolls which,
according to a Boston University report published last year,
cost the U. S. economy $29 billion a year in direct costs.
FRONT DESK FRONT DESK
After months of planning
and hard work, AH&LAs new
membership model is in place.
Moving forward, we are focusing
our work around advocacy,
communications, and education.
From a policy standpoint,
these are challenging times
for our industry. Despite key
victories by hoteliers in 2013,
the challenges this year will be
even greater.
This month, we will unveil our new lodging agenda, highlighting
our policy priorities and geared toward continued industry growth.
AH&LAs advocacy is focused in three key areas. Workforce:
More is happening in this space that can impact your bottom
line than ever before. Whether its House passage of immigration
reform, implementation of the health care law, or the introduction
of harmful new labor regulations, its important to ensure that
hoteliers continue to have access to a strong workforce. Travel and
Tourism: We will work collaboratively with our travel and tourism
partners to ensure policies are put in place to increase foreign travel
to the United States and to demonstrate the value of balancing the
continuation of government conferences and travel with responsible
stewardship of federal funds. Distribution, Tax, and Finance: Its
imperative that hoteliers be on a level playing feld with our friends
in the online travel agencies. While they are an important part of
the distribution system, our obligations to collect and remit sales
tax should be the same. There will be many other issues in the tax
debate in Washington that will impact your bottom line. And, of
course, we will continue our work in others areas, such as extension
of the terrorism risk insurance program and patent reform.
The continued success of the U.S. lodging industry relies on the
strong involvement of hoteliers from across the country. Whether
youre an independent mom-and-pop establishment or a 300-room
franchisee, theres a seat for everyone at the table in Washington.
Our upcoming Legislative Action Summit, April 12 in Washington,
is a great opportunity for you to engage directly with your
congressmen and senators and emphasize lodgings importance to
the economy. We look forward to working with each of you to make
AH&LA a visible, vibrant, and efective presence in our nations
capital. Happy New Year!
KATHERINE LUGAR
President and CEO, AH&LA
klugar@ahla.com
INSIDE AH&LA
forums.By publishing our releases and statements in
national outlets, from D.C.-based publications like
Politico to wire services like Reuters, we made sure
your voice was carried straight to the hometowns
of many members of Congress who rely on your
input.Social media was also very active, as a large
number of the nearly 7,500 followers of our @AHLA
and @AHLA_GovAfairs Twitter feeds shared the
information we posted on this bill and its importance
to our industry.
In an op-ed that ran in Washingtons The Hill news-
paper (see A Threat to Small Businesses), THLA
President and CEO Scott Joslove said the success
of Rep. Goodlattes bill is of great concern to hotels
and other businesses that purchase and use wireless
technology, and the nancial security of all businesses
and relief from unreasonable predatory lawsuits is at
stake. His comments were widely seen by members
of the House and their stafs, providing further strong
rationale for them to vote for passage.
Your efforts werent only reflected in the success-
ful House vote, but also in the appreciation shown
by Congress. AH&LAs governmental affairs team
heard from several members of House leadership,
Rep. Goodlattes staff, and the offices of other key
congressmen responsible for crafting the final bill to
express their thanks for all the association had done
to achieve this success.Each email and phone call
we received with the message great work wasnt
just for the team here in
Washingtonit was for
every one of you who sent
an email, wrote a letter, or
picked up the phone.
Work on patent reform
still remains. A com-
panion bill introduced
by Vermont Sen. Pat
Leahy is working its way
through the committee
process toward consid-
eration in the Senate.
But if our victories on
the Goodlatte patent bill,
passage of the Senate
immigration bill, and an
increase of the federal
per diem rates are any in-
dication, the influence of
the U.S. lodging industry
will only continue to grow in the halls of Congress
and around the country. And we have our members
to thank.
Vanessa Sinders is AH&LAs senior vice president and
department head of governmental afairs; ahla.com.
The amount that
patent troll law-
suits cost the U. S.
economy annually
in lost revenues
and productivity
$80
billion
OWNERS
MANUAL
Made to Order
FOR HOTEL RESTAURANTS AND BARS, IT PAYS TO BE ADAPTABLE BY SEAN DOWNEY
IN 2009, HOSTMARK HOSPITALITY renovated the
lounge of a DoubleTree property it owned near the
Tampa International Airport in preparation for the
Super Bowl coming to town, converting it into a sports
bar that featured 14 high-def atscreens and a menu
stocked with Black Angus burgers, prime rib sliders,
and chicken pesto paninis. Months later the company
found that the hotel restaurant wasnt getting as much
traf c as it had before the lounges renovation. For
many guests, the restaurant couldnt compete with the
sports bar, even though it featured an equally impressive
menu. The restaurant was often empty because we had
this new lounge experience and the guests wanted to
be in there, says Hostmark CEO Jerry Cataldo. It was
THE BUSINESS OF HOSPITALITY
more social and a more relaxed environment. Hotel

restaurants and bars arent as simple as assembling the
right menu items, he says, you have to really understand
what your guests are looking for if you want to turn a
prot. At the end of the day, our F&B bottom line went
up because we were delivering what our guests want.
When it comes to hotel F&B, it pays to be adaptable.
In the case of the DoubleTree Tampa, says Cataldo, he
didnt care where the guests were eating, just as long
as he was capturing more of their business inside the
hotel. You want to avoid a situation where your guests
come to the hotel to do their business and then go out to
restaurants in the area to meet friends and hang out, he
says. Or if theyre staying in, then they dont really want
SMART STRATEGY
OWNERS MANUAL OWNERS MANUAL
to sit in a traditional restaurant environ-
mentthey need something more lively.
While it worked for the DoubleTree
Tampa to serve up lunches and dinners in
a sports bar environment, this obviously
isnt a one-size-ts-all F&B solution.
Each property needs to understand
the specic value drivers of the guests it
serves, says restaurant consultant Arlene
Spiegel. For some hotels a grab-and-go
option in the lobby is a better choice than
a white glove full-service restaurant.
Speigel says the key to success in any
F&B ofering is to be relevant and in that
respect, traditional F&B concepts often
dont hit the mark for guests anymore.
Does the customer really need white
tablecloth dining anymorenot really,
adds Cataldo.
Speigel says theres
also a larger trend at work
with many hotel brands
looking at F&B difer-
ently to gure out what
customers want. New
brand F&B concepts are
being conceived to broad-
en both the capabilities
and the exibility of the
restaurant to incorporate
more grab-and-go products or late night
comfort food. This gives hotels more
tools to capture revenue and to reinforce
a propertys personality.
But it isnt as simple as rolling out a
new F&B concept and hoping it sticks.
With the proliferation of lifestyle and
boutique hotels over the last 10 to 15
years, hoteliers have learned how to
use F&B to establish an awareness and
identity for their hotels, says Cataldo.
Traditionally hotel operators looked at
these areas so separately that the F&B
staf didnt work together with the rest
of the staf at all. Now, he says, in many
recently opened hotels, the F&B ofer-
ings set the tone for and are integral to
what the entire hotel experience will be.
For example, when Hostmark added
the Ravello Lounge to the Amal Hotel in
Chicago, the company concepted the bar
around the Amal Coast in Italy, both in
look and menu items inspired by region.
The extra concepting work paid of when
Hostmark eventually sold the property
because the hotel had been able to make
this limited-service operation feel like a
full-service experience for guests.
Theres more data available to us
regarding what our customers want than
there ever was before, says Cataldo.
For instance, I can look at my compe-
tition and nd out the one thing guests
love about a particular hotel is its large
beer selection. This makes me
more aware of what my poten-
tial guests might be interested
in. If hoteliers arent taking
these things into consideration
when designing new products
then theyre going to miss the mark.
It isnt going to get any easier
either. I watched a child at a restau-
rant playing with an iPad in his high
chair and wondered what were going
to deliver to that kid in 20 years, says
Cataldo. What his generation will be
looking for is going to be completely
diferent than what my generation or
my childrens generation expects.
CheckMate, a new service focused on innovative hotel check-in and other hospitality services,
recently announced the beta launch of its platform to help hotels and online travel agencies
improve and enhance the guest check-in process. The white-labeled technology allows hotels
and distributors to provide a better experience for hotel guests through mobile services.
Travelers can request room preferences, communicate arrival times, receive last-minute
upgrade offers, submit loyalty numbers, and receive room status alerts and other direct
communication from the hotel in advance of arrival. Hotels can even use CheckMate to
streamline check-in and allow guests to bypass the lines and wait at the front desk.
FRESH
INC
F&B Concept
The overall theme or impression that a
restaurant, bar, or lounge is intended to
convey. A well-designed F&B concept is
reinforced by the architecture, the furni-
ture and decorations, the menu items, and
by the staff. As such, concepts are more
than just cookie cutter approaches to
hotel F&B, they are identity reinforcing
features. Hotel brands are now
considering F&B concepts at
the earliest stages of develop-
ment, says restaurant, retail,
and foodservice consultant
Arlene Spiegel. No longer
is F&B an afterthought
whereby architects reserve
space for a restaurant and
gure it out later in the design
process. The restaurateur is now
brought to the table from ideation to
execution. This collaboration creates a
mutually benecial partnership where
its in everyones interest to do the right
thing. Speigel points to this relationship
as what governs the menu, services,
style, marketing and branding decisions
for the life of the operations. Sean Downey
EXPLAI NER
With the proliferation of
lifestyle and boutique hotels,
hoteliers have learned how to
use F&B to establish an identity
for their hotels.
JERRY CATALDO, CEO, HOSTMARK HOSPITALITY
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THE U.S. MEETINGS MARKET has lagged in its recovery
from the depths of the recession. While transient
demand started to grow during the latter part of 2009,
it wasnt until 2011 that signicant gains were seen in
group room nights. After two years of steady growth
in the number of group events hosted by hotels, PKF
Hospitality Research (PKF-HR) has observed some
recent volatility in the volume of meetings being
planned. According to the rms annual poll of meeting
planners, the percentage of event organizers reporting
an increase in the number of meetings they are respon-
sible for rose from 2012 to 2013, but so did the number
of planners reporting a decline in events.
This is one of several mixed messages found when
reviewing the results of PKFs 2013 survey of meeting
planners. In October of 2013, a total of 66 planners
located across the country answered questions about the
events they were organizing for the year. While the sur-
vey focused on events held in the southeast region of the
nation, the meeting planners were located throughout
the country. The ndings cast some light on all the rea-
sons why 2013 was ckle for the U.S. meetings market,
as well as what planners see in the future.
In addition to the mixed message regarding the
change in number of events planned from 2012 to 2013,
attendance levels improved for some planners but de-
clined for others. More than half the planners surveyed
(54 percent) indicated that the number of delegates at
their meetings was up from 2012 levels. Roughly one
quarter of these fortunate planners said their atten-
dance increased greatly. Conversely, 18 percent of the
respondents saw attendance at their meetings decline.
However, it should be noted that none of the respon-
dents indicated that attendance decreased greatly.
Both of the percentages of planners reporting increas-
es or decreases in attendance are greater than what was
reported in the prior years survey, indicating volatility,
not stability, in the meeting attendance gures. With
event volume and attendance vacillating, it is not sur-
prising that 46 percent of the planners surveyed report-
ed an increase in their meeting expenditures during the
year, but 41 percent said their expenditures remained
the same. Rising event costs (venues, food, beverage,
hotel rooms, travel) were cited as the main reason for
any growth in expenditures, as opposed to a deliberate
increase in the investment for meetings.
Fickle
Forecast
MIXED MESSAGES FOR
MEETINGS MARKET IN 2013
BY ROBERT MANDELBAUM AND GARY MCDADE
Given the lack of intentional increases in expendi-
tures, its interesting to note that food and beverage
was ranked as the number one rising cost. This is in
sharp contrast to last years poll that cited food and
beverage expenditures as an area that planners were
cutting back on. Part of the reason for this change in
food and beverage spending trends may be attributable
to the attitudes of hotel operators. The planners in
our survey indicated that hotel managers were most
willing to make price concessions for Internet access
and meeting space. However, food and beverage and
meeting services were much further down the list.
Other items not frequently up for negotiation were
cancellation fees and resorts fees.
A change in the perceptions of meeting planners
toward hotel room prices and availability is yet another
indicator of the changing environment for meetings.
In 2013, hotel room rates were ranked as the most im-
portant criteria planners contemplate when deciding
on a meeting venue. This is an increase from the No. 4
ranking this criterion received in 2012.
One reason for the increased sensitivity toward room
rates is a decline in perceived value. While 47 percent
of the planners believed hotel rooms were fairly priced,
42 percent felt they were too high. Another reason is an
MIXING AND
MINGLING
Attendance levels improved
for some meeting planners but
declined for others.
MARKET REPORT
OWNERS MANUAL
The percent of planners who in-
dicated their number of meeting
attendees was up from 2012 levels
PKF HOSPITALITY RESEARCH
MEETING PLANNER SURVEY
54%
acknowledgment by planners that market conditions,
and therefore negotiating leverage, have turned in favor
of the hotel sales managers. The percentage of planners
nding it more dif cult to locate available hotel rooms
for 2014 than it was in 2013 went up from 18 percent
to 23 percent. Conversely, the percentage of planners
nding it easier to book rooms declined from 35 percent
to 28 percent for the same period of time.
Despite the acknowledgment that hotel rooms are be-
coming scarcer, we see additional mixed messages when
looking at planner expectations regarding the length of
advanced time required to book a meeting. As expected,
the percentage of planners indicating an increase in the
length of the booking window rose from the 2012 to the
2013 survey. However, we also saw a rise in the number
of planners reporting a decline in the booking window.
One historical issue that appears to have subsided is
the incidence of attendees booking their hotel rooms
outside of the of ce group block. Only 10 percent of the
survey participants cited this as a signicant problem.
A majority of planners did indicate that they encourage
hotels to limit the availability
of alternative discounted
rates. This is a solution that
potentially benets both the
meeting planners and the
hotel sales manager.
We believe the volatility
shown in 2013 is just a reac-
tion by meeting planners to
the inevitable stability that
will occur in the market-
place as the lodging industry
approaches the top of the
recovery curve. Of course,
while at the top, market conditions will favor hoteliers.
This could explain why a growing number of planners
believe the overall health of the meetings industry will
be worse in 2014 than it was in 2013.
PKF-HRs September 2013 Hotel Horizons forecasts
call for occupancy levels in excess of 70 percent in the
luxury, upper-upscale, and upscale lodging categories.
These are the chain scales in which most meeting
hotels operate. Accordingly, we expect sales managers
will continue to become more aggressive with their
group-room rate pricing and less compelled to ofer
other price and service concessions.
If meeting planners were mixed in their attitudes
in 2013, they are becoming unied in their frustration
toward hotels in 2014 and beyond.
Robert Mandelbaum is director of research informa-
tion services and Gary McDade is a research associ-
ate for PKF Hospitality Research (www.pkfc.com).
Special thanks to Marlane Bundock, managing editor
of ConventionSouth, for sponsoring the survey.
A growing number
of planners believe
the overall health
of the meetings
industry will be
worse in 2014 than
it was in 2013.
2012 to 2013 2013 to 2014
SURVEY OF MEETI NG PLANNERS
OWNERS MANUAL
C
O
N
V
E
N
T
I
O
N
S
O
U
T
H
,

P
K
F

H
O
S
P
I
T
A
L
I
T
Y

R
E
S
E
A
R
C
H

L
L
C
60%
40%
20%
0%
Better Worse Same
2013
vs. 2012
2014
vs. 2013
2012
vs. 2011
2011
vs. 2010
2010
vs. 2009
44% 44% 43% 43%
33%
59%
46%
49%
5%
9%
42%
49%
7%
15%
13%
PULSE CHECK
A look at the overall health of meetings industry.
SHORTER
SAME
LONGER
0% 20% 40% 60%
ADVANCE NOTI CE
Planners send mixed signals regarding the length of the booking window.
16%
22%
72%
59%
12%
19%
Majority of hotel room
rates are still a great value
rates are fair priced
rates are too high
0% 20% 40% 60%
QUESTI ON OF VALUE
Results show an increased sensitivity toward 2013 hotel room rates.
11%
47%
42%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Increased Decreased Stayed the Same
Meetings from 2012 to 2013 Meetings from 2011 to 2012
32%
13%
55%
38%
SPEAKI NG VOLUMES
The change in number of events indicates some recent volatility.
14%
48%
OWNERS MANUAL
AT 735 PROJECTS AND 121,163 ROOMS, the Latin America construc-
tion pipeline reached a new peak at the end of the third quarter. Its
a year-over-year (YOY) increase of 10 percent by projects and 11
percent by rooms. The total pipeline has been growing consistently
since the recessionary bottom in early 2010 and now exceeds the
pre-recessionary peaks established in 2008.
Projects and rooms under construction, now at 345 projects and 56,961 rooms, are
close to pre-recessionary levels with new project announcements driving the pipeline
numbers up. These numbers have been at near peak for six quarters. However, new
signs point to a potential economic slowdown throughout the region. With the excep-
tion of Brazil and some recent improvements in Mexico, economic growth during the
recovery years has only been modest and incremental if at all. The availability of -
nancing, high interest rates, and a lack of cross-boarder investors have been the main
restraints to Latin American hotel development. Potential cutbacks in bond buying
by the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank are looming large for the future. Efects of a decline
in stimulus could ripple through the region, further dampening economic growth and
slowing both hotel operating statistics and new hotel development.
As the worlds seventh largest economy, Brazil is the primary driver of pipeline
growth in the region. The country has 56 percent of the total pipeline of rooms in
the Latin America region and 78 percent of all pipeline rooms in South America. It
also has a record high 401 projects and 67,787 rooms in the pipeline. Two world-class
events, the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympic Games, have propelled
development forward to accommodate a record ow of incoming tourists. Under
construction counts have reached a new high in preparation of these events. At 175
projects and 29,797 rooms, the under construction stage for Brazil is 50 percent higher
than its pre-recessionary peak.
The pipeline in the remaining countries in South America stands at a total of 111
The Latin Boom
THE CONSTRUCTION PIPELINES IN CENTRAL AND
SOUTH AMERICA REACH NEW PEAKS BY PATRICK JP FORD
BY THE
NUMBERS
Construction
Pipeline by Region
Latin America Q3 2013
PROJECTS ROOMS
(+/- Variance from Q3 2012)
LAND OF
OPPORTUNITY
Home2 Suites by Hilton
enters Latin America with
its rst hotel in Mexico.
BREAKI NG GROUND
401
67,787
B
R
A
Z
I
L
+22%
+20%
111
15,019 O
T
H
E
R

S
A

C
O
U
N
T
R
I
E
S
-13%
-11%
106
16,059
M
E
X
I
C
O
+20%
+41%
75
14,593
T
H
E

C
A
R
I
B
B
E
A
N
-4%
-4%
42
7,705 C
E
N
T
R
A
L

A
M
E
R
I
C
A-14%
-14%
735
121,163
T
O
T
A
L

L
A
T
I
N

A
M
E
R
I
C
A+10%
+11%
56,961
The total number of rooms
under construction in
Latin America
OWNERS MANUAL
projects and 15,019 rooms, which is a YOY decline
of 13 percent and 11 percent respectively. Under
construction totals at 71 projects and 9,832 rooms
are still in a bottoming formation. Far distant
from Brazils totals, Argentina has the next largest
pipeline in South America with 37 projects and
3,952 rooms, followed closely by Colombia with 30
projects and 5,336 rooms.
Total pipeline rooms in Mexico have rebounded
50 percent in the last three quarters, though they
are far from pre-recessionary peaks. Supported by
an eight-quarter uptick in new project announcements, the countrys
total pipeline currently stands at 106 projects and 16,059 rooms. An
unusually high 83 percent of all pipeline projects are in the upscale
and midscale chain scales. The number of hotels under construction
has also bounced back and currently stands at 40 projects and 6,105
rooms.
The Caribbean pipeline bottomed out in the rst quarter of 2011
and now stands at 75 projects and 14,593 rooms, which is a 4 percent
decline YOY. Since the bottoming, project counts in the pipeline have
varied from a low of 65 to a high of 82. New product announcements
have been at for an extended period of time as have been projects
under construction. As larger economies such as
North America and Europe have recovered, so too
has travel to the Caribbean. Hotel operating statis-
tics in the Caribbean should exceed pre-
recessionary peaks in 20142015 and begin to
spark developer interest shortly thereafter.
In Central America, the recovery for hotel oper-
ating statistics is stalled as the region has experi-
enced YOY declines in both 2012 and 2013. Early
last decade there was a surge in development in the
region precipitated by the expansion of the Panama
Canal and the development of a number of new resort projects. Since
then the region has been focused on the absorption of that new supply,
which is proving to be dif cult.
The Central America pipeline stands at 42 projects and 7,705
rooms with Panama accounting for 62 percent of the project count.
New product announcements in the region have been weak for seven
quarters. At 21 projects and 4,249 rooms, the number of hotels under
construction remains near area lows.
Patrick JP Ford is an SVP of Lodging Econometrics; info@
lodgingeconometrics.com.
512
82,806
T
O
T
A
L

S
O
U
T
H

A
M
E
R
I
C
A+12%
+13%

Rooms Currently
Under Construction
BRAZIL
10 11 12 13
3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3
11,434
29,797
OWNERS MANUAL OWNERS MANUAL
Win-Win
HEALTHY RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN
OWNERS AND MANAGERS
PROPEL GROWTH BY MARLA CIMINI
WHEN A HOTEL OWNER PUTS A PROPERTY IN THE
HANDS OF AN OPERATOR, cultivating a positive
working relationship is vital to the performance and
long-term success of the asset. But it isnt always easy
to achieve a balance thats equitable for everyone
involved. For David Duncan, president of Denihan
Hospitality Group, his companys success largely
depends on cultivating long-standing relationships
with property owners. The fact that Denihan has own-
ership in 60 percent of the 14 properties it currently
manages helps foster these solid business partnerships.
Denihan has grown from six to 14 upscale properties
since 2006. Its client base of hotel owners ranges from
publicly traded companies to private equity funds, and
they provide a wealth of valuable information, such as
benchmarking data and current industry observations.
We use this as a mirror every day regarding how we
are operating our hotels, Duncan says.
As part of Denihans business model, the family-run
management company deems it essential to have its
own capital, specically allocating funds to fuel growth
and further solidify its alliance with the property own-
ers. Having our own capital is a key to our success,
Duncan points out. If we invest alongside of our
owners, then our relationship is successful because
we truly are partners. We work closely together, and
together we determine the right allocation of capital
and resources to maximize the real estate value of the
hotels over time.
In addition, Denihans ownership base is comprised
of seasoned hotel industry pros who are tech-savvy,
forward-thinking, and committed to continually
enhancing the companys initiatives. The interesting
part about our business is that our Internet presence
is not only important to the guests but to the owners as
well, Duncan notes. They can go on their iPads, lap-
tops, or smartphones in the middle of the night and see
how their property looks to the world, validating their
condence in our companys ability to properly market
and position our hotels.
Currently, siblings and co-CEOs Patrick Denihan
and Brooke Denihan Barrett are at the helm, and they
are committed to the companys philosophy and views
about key management-owner rela-
tionships. Today, Denihans portfolio
of boutique lifestyle hotels features 11
New York City properties, including
The James, The Benjamin, The Surrey,
BUSINESS PLATFORM
The James Royal Palm in Miami -
South Beach is owned by private
equity rm KSL Capital Partners
and managed by Denihan.
STARTUP
If we invest alongside of our owners, then our
relationship is successful because we truly are partners.
DAVID DUNCAN, PRESIDENT, DENIHAN HOSPITALITY GROUP
and several Afnia locations, as well as The James
Chicago, The James Royal Palm in Miami, and the
Liaison Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.
Duncan says the company is committed to doubling
its size in the next ve years. Growth plans involve a
major U.S. expansion to the West Coast, where Denihan
opened an ofce in 2011. The company is pursuing
between 200 to 500 key urban core, conversion, and
repositioning opportunities in major destinations such
as Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, and
Portland. We will be adding new propertiesbut only
if they are the optimal partner, location, or extension of
our brand, Duncan says.
Having an ongoing, quality relationship with an
owner is just one element that bolsters a management
companys success. There are also the guest rela-
tionships. We spend an incredible amount of time
educating our 2,500 employees to respect our guests,
and we make sure we spend the same amount of efort
to ensure that our management team respects the
owners, Duncan says. We listen to our employees and
owners, and respond to their needs accordingly. Its
been proven that the value of those relationships will
help propel our growth.
2014 AAHOA Annual
Convention & Trade Show
March 19 - 22, 2014
Pennsylvania Convention Center & Philadelphia Marriott Downtown
At the Annual Convention and Trade Show,
AAHOA will excite and engage you with must-
hear keynote speakers, general sessions, educational
workshops and more!
Dont Miss a Minute!
Daymond John
Founder & CEO of
FUBU
and TV Personality
Featured speakers during the
Convention will include:
Mike Walsh
Leading authority on
building business for
the 21st century
Fred Thompson
United States Senator
from Tennessee,
1994-2002
Robert Gibbs
Former White House
Press Secretary,
2009 - 2011
Register Today! Visit www.AAHOA.com/Convention
7000 Peachtree Dunwoody Rd. NE, Building 7
Atlanta, Georgia 30328 | (404) 816-5759
An informative and robust
debate featuring:
OWNERS MANUAL
Call to Action
HOTEL GM HELPS GUESTS NAVIGATE INSURANCE CLAIMS BY ANTHONY STOECKERT
IN HIS JOB AS GENER-
AL MANAGER of the
Residence Inn Scripps
Poway in San Diego,
Calif., Trent Selbrede
noticed that many of his
customers had some-
thing in commonthey
had been displaced from
their homes. Though
not the result of natural
disasters, guests were
booking hotel stays
due to house res and
ooding. And attempting
to put their lives and
homes back together
after experiencing such
devastation often proved
dif cult. As I walked
around and talked to our guests, I saw
many extended-stay guests kind of
dealing with the same issues over and
over of trying to navigate their way
through the insurance claim process
with their homes, Selbrede says.
BACKSTORY
At the time, Selbrede was enrolled at the San Diego State
University L. Robert Payne School of Hospitality and Tourism
Management. Part of his coursework included a capstone project
where he was tasked with making an impact on the organization he
worked for, ideally in regard to ef ciency or revenue. Initially, he
came up with ideas that he says were generic. But Selbrede was soon
challenged by the programs director, former Burger King CEO J.
Jefrey Campbell, to come up with a plan that was bigger. Selbredes
thoughts turned to those displaced guests.
I thought, if I could find a way to serve them better and help
them understand some of the lessons from previous guests or
direct from a number of sources, it would help them navigate their
way through the process, Selbrede says.
Trent Selbrede did a terrific job in our program from start to
finish, and his capstone project was an example of his powerful
drive to succeed and his deep knowledge of his industry, says
Campbell, who prides himself in the highly personal and interac-
tive nature of the masters program.
Selbrede called his project a Thrival Resource Guide and made
it available to guests at the Residence Inn Scripps Poway. He says
he started working on the guide about a year ago, and now its being
used in his hotel as well as the Residence Inn located in Carlsbad,
Calif. Plans are underway to get the guide into all Residence Inns
within San Diego County.
According to Selbrede, the guide provides information about
water damage and restoration, along with questions to ask contrac-
tors and insurance adjusters. It addresses questions such as: If I
had an inch of water in my house, why do I have to take out 4 feet of
drywall all around the house? People really dont understand how
damaging it is, he says.
The guide does not offer specific advice about issues but is de-
signed to get people on the path to solving their issues. Its strictly
questions and prompts that might help you get through your proj-
ect maybe a little bit quicker and maybe with less of a headache.
Selbrede makes it clear that hes not giving legal advice. He says
he received feedback from about 25 guests about problems they had
with insurance companies. As he heard similar stories, he started
collecting ideas. I collected information from in-house guests,
about 25 of them, and a few restoration companies that actually
restore homes after a disaster, as well as insurance agents who were
very customer-service oriented, he says. I used all of them as a
resource to put together a collection of information for our guests.
The guides first format was a trifold brochure of basic informa-
tion, and now its a three-ring binder. Guests who check in through
their insurance or restoration company are told about the guide.
The program has helped the Residence Inn Scripps Poway bring
in business, particularly through restoration companies that have
referred customers to the franchise. The restoration companies
are what we envision as our best referrers, Selbrede says. Just
interviewing three restoration companies, we got another $25,000
bookings out of one of them.
I saw many extended-
stay guests kind of
dealing with the same
issues over and over
of trying to navigate
their way through the
insurance claim process
with their homes.
TRENT SELBREDE,
GENERAL MANAGER, RESIDENCE
INN SCRIPPS POWAY
April 24, 2014
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGION
Wyndham Orange County | Costa Mesa, CA
Early Bird Rate (until Feb. 19, 2014): $149
Full Rate (after Feb. 19, 2014): $298
May 22, 2014
SOUTHEAST REGION
Orlando, FL (Call for hotel information)
Early Bird Rate (until March 27, 2014): $149
Full Rate (after March 27, 2014): $298
June 19, 2014
SOUTHWEST REGION
Omni Dallas | Dallas, TX
Early Bird Rate (until April 24, 2014): $149
Full Rate (after April 24, 2014): $298
July 17, 2014
MID-ATLANTIC REGION
Wyndham Philadelphia | Mount Laurel, NJ
Early Bird Rate (until May 29, 2014): $149
Full Rate (after May 29, 2014): $298
Current Schedule of LODGING Regional Events and Early Bird Rates:
(All registration fees include breakfast, lunch, refreshment breaks and evening reception.
Attendee rates shown below are for qualied non-suppliers. Supplier attendees pay a at rate of $595.)
The LODGING REGIONAL INVESTMENT &
DEVELOPMENT CONFERENCES are designed with a
focus on selected hotel markets identied as active for
investment and future development.

These ONE-DAY regional conferences will run the gamut from
the ABCs of hotel ownership, franchise law and hotel nancing
to operations management, site selection and regional economic
information for that area. There will be a two-hour session for
speed meetings prior to the evening networking reception.

Network and share best practices with regional hotel owners,
commercial property owners/investors, franchisees from other
industries, hotel brand executives and market consultants.

If you are interested in hotel ownership
and development, you cannot afford to
miss the event in your region!
SEE LODGINGEVENTS.COM FOR ADDITIONAL DETAILS AND TO REGISTER AS AN ATTENDEE. SUPPLIERS MAY CALL
PUBLISHER BILL CORSINI AT 215-321-9662 EXTENSION 41 TO INQUIRE ABOUT SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES.
S
AV
E
B
IG

Register today!
2014 LODGING EVENTS
PRODUCED BY LODGING MEDIA
publisher of Lodging magazine
C O N F E R E N C E S
WHO SHOULD ATTEND?
Hotel owners and investors | Commercial property owners | Non-hotel franchise owners looking for
hotel ownership opportunities | Commercial real estate brokers | Commercial lending institutions
Property management companies | Professional service providers (law rms, nance and
accounting firms, title companies, architects, general contractors, etc.)
John Fitzpatrick is the consummate
hotelier, and hes taking his expertise to a
whole new level as the 2014 AH&LA chair
INNKEEPERS
STORY
AN
34 LODGI NGMAGA Z I NE . COM JANUARY 201 4
BY MEGHAN RABBI TT
2014 AH&LA CHAIR

COLIN LENTON
Fitzpatrick enjoys a properly
poured Guinness from the
Wheeltapper Pub at the
Fitzpatrick Grand Central.
While they spent their free time at local playgrounds
building sand castles, Fitzpatrick played in an actual cas-
tle. He practiced hurling, a Gaelic game most Irish kids
play, on the castles sprawling green lawn. He dodged the
chef after grabbing a few sausages or a piece of chocolate
cake of a plate while he ran through the massive kitchen.
Fitzpatrick wasnt royalty. His parents, Paddy and
Eithne, owned Killiney Castle, a property they bought
as a small guesthouse and turned into a 20-room hotel
when Fitzpatrick and his three siblings were growing
up. Some of my earliest memories are running around
that hotel, says Fitzpatrick. While other
kids my age were hanging around play-
grounds, Id be up in the corridors with
my dad, watching walls come down for an
expansion. The hotel was a big play-
ground for me. My whole life has been
the business, really, and I knew from an
early age this is what I wanted to do.
And so even before
Fitzpatrick was old
enough to work, he was
doing what he could to
help his parents around
the castle. He cleaned. He
mowed the lawns. At 16,
he landed his rst real job in the kitchen,
peeling potatoes, washing dishes, and
causing the same kind of trouble he did
as a 7-year-old. John was just like all
kids whod rob the sweets shop; you had
to keep a close eye on the food once he
started working in the kitchen, says
Sean Dempsey, who was a junior chef
when Fitzpatrick worked in the kitchen
and whos still with the hotel (now called
Fitzpatrick Castle) to this day, as exec-
utive chef. And while a sausage or two
mightve gone missing when Fitzpatrick
was working, he was a great help, says
Dempsey. In the evenings, John would
IN THE EARLY 1970S IN KILLINEY,
IRELANDA TOWN JUST SOUTH OF
DUBLIN AND NEAR THE IRISH SEA
YOUNG JOHN FITZPATRICK WASN T LIKE
MOST OF HIS GRADE SCHOOL FRIENDS.
2014 AH&LA CHAIR

From a very early age,
my father said to me,
Remember, no matter how
big you get or how many
hotels you own, youre still an
innkeeper. If you remember
that, youll never go wrong.
JOHN FITZPATRICK, PRESIDENT
AND CEO, FITZPATRICK HOTEL GROUP
work at the hotel after school. I think he
worked every job there was.
Fitzpatrick was carrying on a family
tradition. His father worked in hotels
all his life, taking his rst job at the
Gresham hotel in Dublin when he was
17 and climbing the ranks quickly. After
managing hotels in County Clare and
in Wexford, he headed back to Dublin,
where he managed the Doyle group of
hotels. My father started his career in
the hotel industry from the ground up
and insisted the rest of the family do the
same, says Fitzpatrick. Dad always told
us, You cant ask someone to do a job you
havent done yourself. The advice Fitzpatricks father
gave him as a boy growing up in a hotel has helped John
in his current role, running the only two Irish-owned
hotels in New York City: the Fitzpatrick Manhattan and
the Fitzpatrick Grand Central. These are hotels in which
everyone from Irish dignitaries to Irish rock stars have
stayed. Theyre hotels where the Irish in New York City
whether visiting or living thereknow they can get a
decent pint of Guinness, real sausages, and brown bread,
which Fitzpatrick ships over from Ireland because, he
says, the U.S. versions just dont taste the same.
Perhaps thats why in the aftermath of 9/11, the
Fitzpatrick hotels became a refuge for stranded Irish
travelers and even the Irish looking to locate relatives
living in New York City. In the days after the attacks
on the World Trade Center, calls from Ireland poured
in to the Fitzpatrick hotels from Irish parents with
children working in New York. When they couldnt
get in touch with their kids because cell phone service
DUBLIN AND NEAR THE IRISH SEA
DUBLIN AND NEAR THE IRISH SEA DUBLIN AND NEAR THE IRISH SEA
was out, they knew they could call the place where their kids
would go for a drink or two after work. Likewise, regulars
rushed to the Fitzpatrick hotel bars, asking Fitzpatrick to take
their names because they knew their worried families would
call. Fitzpatrick then worked
with the Irish embassy,
exchanging lists of people
who were accounted for and
helping to put many Irish
mothers minds at ease.
Its something Fitzpatrick
says his father wouldve done.
From a very early age, my
father said to me, Remem-
ber, no matter how big you
get or how many hotels you
own, youre still an innkeeper. If you remember that, youll
never go wrong. Fitzpatrick says he owes much of his success
to the inuence of his father, though hes quick to add that his
mother Eithne was also an important role model and driving
force in the growth of Fitzpatrick hotels. My dad wouldnt
have been the success he was without her, says Fitzpatrick.
Dad would bring her into the nal deal at the last minute and
shed clinch it. When his mother died in 1994, Fitzpatrick
founded the Eithne Fitzpatrick Memorial Fund in her honor,
with the mission of making a signicant impact on the lives of
those in need. When his dad died in 2001, the fund became the
Eithne and Paddy Fitzpatrick Memorial Fund. I didnt want
my parents to be forgotten.
Fitzpatrick says hell always admire the guts it took for his
parents to build their rst hotel. After my father had a row
with his boss at the Doyle hotel group, my parents decided to
branch out on their own, says Fitzpatrick. They mortgaged
everything to buy the castle guesthouse that my father turned
into the Killiney Castle.
When Fitzpatrick nished secondary school, he worked
as a junior manager at Killiney Castle. But his father decided
John needed more schooling, so he sent him to the prestigious
hotel management course at UNLV in Las Vegas. I think it
was really just an excuse for him to visit me, because my father
caption
I call [John Fitzpatrick]
the energizing bunny.
He fires up everyone around
him because of how he is.
JOE SPINNATO, PRESIDENT, HOTEL
ASSOCIATION OF NEW YORK CITY
2014 AH&LA CHAIR

was a big gambler, says Fitzpatrick with a laugh. At UNLV,
Fitzpatrick studied nance and hotel entertainment. He
even took a class in which Sammy Davis Jr. and Liberace
made guest appearances.
Upon graduation, Fitzpatrick returned to manage the
Killiney Castle, and yet he still wanted to go back to the United
Statesand to work for someone other than his father. So he
moved to Chicago, where he had successful stints with both an
area Holiday Inn and a Hilton. But those were big hotel chains,
and Fitzpatrick wasnt getting the experience he needed in
order to run the kind of small, boutique hotels that were the
Fitzpatricks specialty. After a few years, Fitzpatrick returned
to Ireland again to work at the family hotels in both Killiney
and Bunratty and in 1991, he and his dad decided to open a
property in New York City.
Dad had a dream to open a hotel in the States, says Fitz-
patrick. He also realized my desire to return. So we went to
New York City. The bankers looked at us like we were crazy
for choosing New York, the toughest city in the world. And my
dad looked at them and said, Its like the Frank Sinatra song: If
you can make it there, you can make it anywhere! Fitzpatrick
worked closely with his dad to nd the site that would become
the Fitzpatrick Manhattan hotel, and when they nailed down
(LEFT) Fitzpatrick
Manhattan
(RIGHT) Fitzpatrick
Grand Central
(FACING PAGE) The
Wheeltapper
Pub patio at
Grand Central
continued on page 60
(FROM LEFT) Jim Abrahamson, CEO, Interstate Hotels and Resorts;
Nancy Johnson, EVP of Development, The Americas, Carlson
Rezidor Hotel Group; Ron Vlasic, Regional VP of Hotels,
Kimpton Hotels and Resorts; and John Fitzpatrick, President
and CEO, Fitzpatrick Hotel Group
COLIN LENTON 40 LODGI NGMAGA Z I NE . COM JANUARY 201 4
STATE
A LOOK AHEAD
THE STATE OF THE INDUSTRY IS GOOD, BUT IT COULD
BE BETTER. SO WHAT ARE THE MAJOR IMPEDIMENTS
TO GROWTH? WE ASKED FOUR INDUSTRY EXPERTS TO
SHARE THEIR THOUGHTS ON THE BIGGEST ISSUES FACING
HOTELS THIS YEAR. HERES WHAT THEY HAD TO SAY
STATE
OF LODGING
THE
2014
BY THE LODGI NG STAFF
A LOOK AHEAD
L
What issue facing the lodging industry do you
think is the most crucial to address?
V
The biggest thing coming up is this whole living wage
thing. I was recently in Australia, addressing the na-
tional association and a few of the state ones, and their gov-
ernment has been dominated by the labor party and politics
for so long that it has changed their work rules and their liv-
ing wage. So if youre a waiter there, you typically dont re-
ceive tips and you get an hourly rate of like $25. Then what
the government put in place is this penalty ratefor when
an employee works weekends or evenings outside of that 9
to 5 shiftthats almost double time, which means the same
waiter now makes $50 an hour. And if its a holiday,
the rate is triple. Now in Australia everything is
closed during of shoulder hours, and there
isnt a whole lot of development going
on down there. They want to get the
hotel industry going but American
developers dont want to go down
there because the operating costs
are so ridiculous. Now this liv-
ing wage thing is starting to
creep up in the U.S. and the
Australians said you have
to be careful about this
because it happened to
us down here and now
its really killed business-
es, and were having a hard
time attracting developers
down here.
L
So how do you think
the new AH&LA
membership model is
taking shape?
V
Its going well. Probably
my biggest anxiety was
how do you get an entire industry
thinking the same way youre thinking?
How do you convince all of these stakeholders that what
were trying to accomplish cant be done without them?
Historically its always been maybe 20 percent of the hotels
in America had an active role and the other 80 percent
beneted. Whats interesting is we put together this whole
model and the big brands like Marriott, Starwood, Hilton
all those guys said, were in support. It was a bit of a gamble,
but I think its paying of.
L
Last year you mentioned that you
wanted AH&LA to work with other
associations. Can you talk a little bit
about that?
V
Yeah, I think AAHOA is probably still
the most important one to align our-
selves with, and it seems like theyre open
now more than ever to try and partner with
us. Were also talking and working with the
National Restaurant Association on how we
could figure out how to do some co-ops or
something like that. Theyre really open too,
so we have a good dialogue with those guys.
L
How about the health of the lodging
market, industry-wide?
V
The East and the West Coasts are still
on re. New York and San Francisco
have some strong projections and other
markets like Seattle are going to be strong
next year too. Cities like St. Louis, Minneap-
olis, all of these second- and third-tier cities
are seeing some growth. So developers are
seeing that theres some big upside to whats
going on in the middle of the country. And
other cities benet from that too. Milwau-
kee does well, Indianapolis, St. Louis, all
those feeder markets, back and forth the
trade really picks up so its cool to see.
Also, I think Brand USA has done a great
job in trying to promote tourism externally.
What were trying to say is take that same
brand effort and then use it internally in the
states to try and get people to do those old
fashioned road tripsgo see the parks, go
check out what else America has to offer. I
think that might have some legs going into
2014 as well.
L
Hows your hometown
Chicago looking?
V
Chicago has on the radar like 20 hotels
being developed in 2014-2015. So the
demand is there. And the Choose Chica-
go initiative combines the efforts of city
hall and the convention bureau to create
one entity that goes out and markets the
city. Basically theyre trying to steal some
market share from the coasts. They have the
right leadership over at the bureau bringing
in the international business, and theyve
had some nice short-term bookings, which
are filling in the gap months where were
usually slow here.
RON
VLASIC
2013 AH&LA CHAIR
AND REGIONAL VICE
PRESIDENT OF HOTELS
AT KIMPTON HOTELS
AND RESTAURANTS
L
Whats your take on the economic
impact from the ongoing dysfunc-
tion in Washington?
J

The American people are getting so
tired of it, and I just hope that they
dont become so frustrated that they bow
out because nows the time to get engaged
and get involved. This is a great democracy
and it works when people make it work. I
think thats really what AH&LA is set up for
now is to really create grassroots eforts to
get our issues addressed. With the member-
ship [model] now with the individual hotels,
were able to have those individual hotels
writing their legislators. And I think that is
really critical because its the voice of the
individual that is going to make the biggest
diference in the next election.
L
How do you see the health care act
afecting the lodging industry, and
what is AH&LA doing to shape it?
J
What AH&LA is lobbying for is really
to make sure that the standards that
are written are understandable, that the
technologies that are provided are accessi-
ble, and that businesses understand exactly
what their choices are. Whats happening
now with the insurance companies being
dropped because they did not comply with
these new standards is a concern for our in-
dustry. AH&LA wants to make sure [the reg-
ulations] are cost efective from a business
standpoint and benecial from a compliance
standpoint. Its the most signicant concern
we have and one we will continue to watch.
L
The other big issue foating out
there is the living wage initiatives.
Can you speak to them?
J
We are seeing it come up in spots
across the country, Seattle being the
most prominent and one thats happened
recently. The issue, the concern is, taking it
up to $15 an hour. Well, that starts making
the business scenarios of those hotels less
attractive. Can you imagine if you were
applying for a mortgage or renancing and
all of a sudden your bottom line is hit by
this new added expense? So those are the
things that we just need to continually lobby
Congress and the Senate and legislators
across the country that they need to under-
stand from a business perspective what this
means. In that particular instance, I dont
think they gave enough consideration to
what they were doing.
L
But, do you think there will be anything accomplished between
now and the next election?
J
I think to pass the big thingsto pass immigration and to really get the
debt ceiling and the budget crisis under a good long-term solutionis
going to be difcult with the political climate in D.C. right now. So youre going
to see big issues, such as immigration, broken apart into smaller issues that
we can get done. We have nearly 100-something signatures on the JOLT Act,
and if we get that up to 160, thats a slam dunk. That will help on the visa issue
and the waiver country issue.
L
With lodging, the fundamentals are good in terms of being able to
capture rate, but theres always the specter of overdevelopment
hanging over everything. Do you see that as a danger?
J
You sure do see pockets of it, such as New York City. The number of
rooms theyre adding this year is astronomical. In a city like New York
it might be sustainable, but it still takes a while to absorb those rooms. There
are those pockets of the top 10 markets that may get into an overbuilding
status, because there is so much private money and foreign money coming
into those cities. We still are growing at a slower
pace in secondary and tertiary markets, which
is controlling the supply to a certain degree,
but mark my word the minute the money
becomes available it will start becoming
a supply problem again.
L
So fnancing is still keeping
development a bit in check?
J
It is. Well, its certainly keeping
the occupancy up. Also, hoteliers
have been reluctant to be aggressive
on rate. The rate is now starting
to come back up, but we had the
supply demand ratio in a favor-
able situation for the last two to
three years, and the industry
still didnt raise the rates
enough. Thats the catch-22 of
the brands giving relief during the
recession on upgrading their hotels. Its
difcult to raise the rates when you hav-
ent put money back into the business.
L
So you see that changing?
J
It is changing now. The brands are
saying, OK, we gave you time, now lets
get back to improving the quality. If you have a new hotel opening up down
the block from you, then you better be putting money into your property that
makes it look as good as new.
NANCY
JOHNSON
2012 AH&LA CHAIR AND
EVP OF DEVELOPMENT
FOR THE AMERICAS AT
CARLSON REZIDOR
HOTEL GROUP
ILLUSTRATIONS BY JOEL KIMMEL
A LOOK AHEAD
L
How is 2014 looking for the Fitzpatrick
Hotel Group?
F
Its all about rate this year. The market is very strong,
especially in New York, and occupancy has been high for
the last couple of years. Now its about getting the ADR back to
where it should be. People say New York rates are expensive
but if you compare them to the rates in London, youd fall of
your chair, so I think New York is still a good value.
L
Are you concerned with all the new hotels
being built in New York?
F
Yeah, there are another 20,000 hotel rooms coming
online over the next two years. But New York has always
been like that. We always absorb the extra supply. Its
amazing how quickly peoples memories change
because ve or six years ago hotels werent sexy
and now they are, which is why
everyone wants to get back into them.
So there is denitely going to be a
saturation point out there.
I am worried a bit about the
illegal hotel situation going
onthere are over 40,000
rooms [apartments and such]
in New York City alone
that are not up to code.
Look, we have no problem
with Airbnb and everyone
swapping their apartments
that sort of thing has been going
on for yearsbut when people
take 20 or 30 apartments and
basically run a mini-hotel, then
they need to operate them on
the same level playing eld and
have the same requirements as
the rest of us. That means, for in-
stance, that they need to use the same
re and safety codes, and they need to
pay the same taxes that a hotel does.
L
Do you ever worry about the high taxes on
hotel rooms in New York?
F
Unfortunately, hotels seem to get hit rst when it comes
to taxes, and thats because its revenue from people who
arent living in the city. Raising hotel taxes wont afect the
politicians votes. In New York, we just had a room tax that was
supposed to sunset last November, but the new mayor has to
make his budget so the tax has been extended
for two years. Look, were happy to support the
new mayor, but we still want this to eventually
go away, because putting extra taxes on our
hotel rooms just makes it more expensive for
corporations and events managers to do a
convention, conference, or meeting in our city.
Every dollar that goes on that room makes it
more dif cult for us to compete with the
hotels in other cities.
L
Do you think being an independent
hotel owner changes your approach
to your new AH&LA duties?
F
A bit, because I look at the issues as an
owner and operator would. So, for me,
the business is still about looking after
people. This is a very personal industry and
we need to make sure we keep it that way.
Running a hotel today is so diferent than it
was 30 years ago. Now its so much about the
numbers because big investment companies
now own so many properties. All that is
important, but we always have to remember
that its our guests that are paying those bills.
Thats why, no matter where Ive owned a
hotel, Ive insisted that my general managers
of ce is right of the lobby. It cant be up on
the sixth oor because thats where you get
bogged down with paperwork and accoun-
tants coming after you.
L
Given your immigrant experience,
do you feel like you have a personal
connection in pushing our government
to improve the visa process?
F
I was lucky enough to get a Morrison
Visa back in the early days and come into
this great country. Though when I rst
emigrated from Ireland, I felt like I was in no
mans landI couldnt vote here or in Ireland.
And my card said I was a legal alien, which
really put me of. When I received my
citizenship, it was great to get my passport and
be able to vote. Now when I see other people
having issues I understand how much we need
to push this issue. The government needs to
realize that these people arent going any-
where. Also, because I have an Irish hotel I like
to have some Irish in here and every year it
gets harder and harder to bring them over and
get temporary visas. And yet we need them
and their foreign experience. So we need to
keep ghting to x this.
JOHN
FITZPATRICK
2014 AH&LA CHAIR AND
PRESIDENT AND CEO
OF THE FITZPATRICK
HOTEL GROUP
L

So hotel transactions are heating
up. Will this continue in 2014 or
are you seeing some more nuances to
the market?
A
Weve come of of a couple years of
strong RevPAR increases, and after
periods of time where we were unable to
get substantive rate increases, were seeing
ADRs continue to rise, which is a positive
sign for our industry. There are a lot of good
dynamics going into 14, so we have had good
momentum over the last couple of years.
Weve seen inbound international travel
continue to increase, and weve seen some
signs of group business beginning to show
recovery, which is the last segment that
weve been looking for in terms of recovery.
So I think were poised to have another good
year with another 5 to 7 percent range of
RevPAR increases that were looking at and
a lot of it driven by rate.
L
Is there anything else the
industry needs to worry about?
A
If you look out to the upcoming year,
I think there are still a lot of risks in
the market and typically the risks that weve
seen over the last few cycles have been ex-
ternally generated risks, meaning not neces-
sarily an economic cycle. Both 9/11 and the
Lehman brothers crash in 2009 hit at times
when the industry was coming of highs and
rather unhealthy. We werent in great shape
at the end of 2000 and through 2001 and
going into 9/11, and I think we were coming
of of peaks in 2008 when the nancial
crisis hit. We dont see a sign of that right
now, and probably a part of the rationale is
that were still in an economic recovery. We
think a lot of the fundamentals are solid, low
interest rates are encouraging that, and new
development has yet to rear its head. Supply
issues arent necessarily taking root right
now, and that would disrupt this in 2014.
L
Do you think thats going to
be a problem in the next
couple of years?
A
As revenues continue to increase and
should we see raw materials and other
factors continue to be at and land costs
continue to be at, I would not be surprised
that youd see new construction start to go
on the rise again. Usually as we come out
of these periods of time where new construction has been abated there is a
period of time before that ramps up into a space where supply growth has a
restraining inuence on overall occupancies and rates.
L
It seems like it was also being held in check by being able
to get new construction fnanced?
A
Yeah, our industry is still coming out of a position where replacement
cost has been higher than transaction costs. Were going to start hitting
that spot in the next two to three years where we could nd those balances
coming back into place, but I dont think theres going to be a sizable move
up and nor does new construction ever come on with alacrity. I dont see
that being a challenge right now in the foreseeable future, although well
start seeing some of it selectively, and it will happen in markets where there
are strong dynamics. Urban, select service has been very strong; there are
areas in New York where weve seen a lot of new construction coming on in
the select-service, mid-block developments. Probably what we wont see are
any major project, big full-service, city-center type hotels
or big airport full-service hotels. I think that kind
of new supply in the full-service, upper
upscale segments is probably still some
time away. I think upper midscale and
upscale select service will see the
rst signs of increasing. Right now,
the growth rates are fairly low.
L
Best Western CEO David
Kong mentioned an inter-
esting factoid recently about
recessions always happening
in the third year of a presi-
dents second term. Is there
anything to that?
A
There could be correlations
but I dont know that theres a
correlation or a coincidence there.
Were in a cyclical business but the
cycles are typically inuenced by
encouraging new construction. In
the 1980s, we had tax breaks, and in
the 1990s, there were a lot of strong
economic factorswe had a balanced
budget in the last part of the 90s, we
were in full recovery, and we didnt have a
warand there had been no new construction for
such an extended period of time. You look at the late 90s
when new construction started coming back, which really peaked in 2000,
2001, creating that unhealthy environment, it came out of a robust economy.
JIM
ABRAHAMSON
2014 AH&LA VICE CHAIR
AND CEO OF
INTERSTATE HOTELS
AND RESORTS
continued on page 62
RISE OF TRIPADVISOR
SOCIAL REVIEW GIANT TRIPADVISOR
IS RESHAPING THE TRAVEL INDUSTRY
AND HOTELS NEED TO ADJUST
TO THE NEW GROUPTHINK
TRIP
POWER
BY ERI C RASKI N
T
heres no Aaron
Sorkin script and
no Trent Reznor
soundtrack associ-
ated with the little
website Steve Kaufer
started in 2000. But
before there was a Facebook to take
the term social media mainstream
and eventually turn Mark Zuckerberg
into an iconic lm character, there was
TripAdvisor. It is the hospitality indus-
trys original form of social media. And
13 years into its run, it is consistently
among the 250 most heavily traf cked
websites in the world, an industry giant
employing nearly 2,000 people and re-
dening the connection between hotels
and their guests.
TripAdvisor was one of the early
adopters of user-generated content,
giving the consumer a place to review
and rate all things travel-related.
From that simple concept grew a site
attracting more than 53 million unique
visitors per month. And from it grew a
publicly traded company that reported
revenues of $255 million in the most
recent scal quarter, up 19.9 percent
from the same period a year ago.
Adele Gutman, the vice president of
sales, marketing, and revenue for the
Library Hotel Collection in New York
City, recalls that she rst started paying
serious attention to TripAdvisor in
about 2004 or 2005. Soon after, she
was at an industry event and found
herself standing next to a sales and
marketing executive from the Sotel.
I said, Youre No. 1 on TripAdvisor,
thats so awesome! And she didnt have
a clue what TripAdvisor was, Gutman
remembers. But nobody doesnt know
what TripAdvisor is now. It is a phe-
nomenal tool if you can embrace it as
an opportunity to drive incredible traf-
c to your hotel. Its recognition that
you dont have to pay for, but rather you
have to earn.
LONG, STRANGE TRIP
TripAdvisor wasnt actually intended
to be a travel review site at all. CEO and
Founder Kaufer was just a family man
with young kids trying to plan a vacation
to Mexico, struggling to nd substantive
information online about the property
at which he was considering staying. So
he was inspired to build a search engine
that would aggregate all the mentions of
a property, with a business model based
around syndicating that feed to larger
portals. It didnt prove especially lucra-
tive at rst. But there was an additional
component to the site that Kaufer added
almost as an afterthought, a feature that
allowed travelers to comment on their
experiences at the various properties,
and that element of the site was gaining
traction while the Massachusetts-
headquartered startup was otherwise
sinking. So Kaufer redirected the ap-
proach and made traveler feedback the
focal point.
With its new direction TripAdvisor
took of, and in 2004 it was purchased
by the New Yorkbased Internet com-
pany InterActive Corporation, which
made TripAdvisor part of a group of
travel businesses under the Expedia
banner in August 2005. But even after
it was apparent that the website was a
success, many corners of the hotel in-
dustry were slow to embrace it. In the
mid-2000s, some hoteliers were notic-
ing how TripAdvisor was
helping their business,
but most were simply ig-
noring it, hoping it would
go away, says Daniel
Edward Craig, founder
of the marketing, social
media, and reputation
management strate-
gy company Reknown (which lists
TripAdvisor as a client). TripAdvisor
Head of Industry Relations Brian Payea
remembers attending a conference of
small properties in 2007, where there
was a lot of resistance and negativity
to the idea that travelers had the right
to say anything that they wanted about
their experience.
With time and a preponderance of
evidence about how the review busi-
ness had evolved, however, eventually
even the hotel industrys equivalent
of at-earthers came to accept and
Everybodys always asking me what the trick
is. The trick is, there is no trick. We just pay
attention to every single complaint.
Adele Gutman, VP of Sales, Marketing,
and Revenue, Library Hotel Collection
{REVENUE REVIEW}
Where TripAdvisors
revenue comes from
$189.3 million
Click-based advertising
$30.5 million
Display-based
advertising
$35.3 million
Subscription/
transaction/other
TOTAL: $255.1 million
NOTE: FIGURES ARE FROM THIRD QUARTER 2013
74%
12%
14%
RISE OF TRIPADVISOR
MOVING
TARGET
Top-ranking hotels
can never rest
on their laurels
A higher TripAdvisor ranking means
more visitors to your page, more
trafc to booking channels, and
greater demand for rooms and
services. So what are the secrets
to climbing the ranks? Here are
eight key strategies that managers
at top-ranking hotels shared with
Daniel Edward Craig, a former hotel
GM and founder of Reknown.
Provide truly remarkable service.
Often its not the lavish gestures that
travelers mention in reviews but the little
details, unexpected surprises, and special
attention from staff.
Be true to brand. Its not about being
the most luxuriousits about staying
true to your identity. That requires strong
leadership and a clear vision.
Be refreshingly honest. Rather than
overstating benets or omitting realities,
manage guest expectations by being pain-
fully authentic when describing the hotel
on your website.
Mobilize the whole team. Give every-
one a stake in the property by posting
reviews and letting front- and back-of-
house employees know when they are
mentioned by name.
Offer great value. Top-ranking hotels
steer clear of surprise fees and are
generous with extras, such as free WiFi.
When making these decisions, hotels
must now factor in the costs and benets
to reputation.
Do it with passion every day. Find
employees with a positive attitude who
will treat guests as though they are family
in your home.
Focus on traditional hospitality. Set
the guest experience as a top priority
and engage every department in a formal
reputation management program.
Prevent escalation. Train and empower
staff to identify and resolve on-property
issues before they escalate to online
complaints.
embrace TripAdvisor. The company
was spun of from Expedia and went
public in December 2011. In April 2012,
it launched a connection with Facebook
that enabled users to sort reviews to see
those written specically by friends,
providing a tting formal link between
the two social media titans.
WORKING THE SYSTEM
Taking an if you cant beat em, join
em approach, hoteliers have stopped
ignoring or rejecting TripAdvisor and are
now asking, How can I get it working for
me? Thats a question for which Adele
Gutman has quite a few of the answers,
as the four Library Hotel Collection
propertiesLibrary Hotel, Hotel Girafe,
Hotel Elyse, and Casablanca Hotelare
all consistently rated in the TripAdvisor
top 10 for New York, and even enjoyed
a remarkable three-week run in 2010 in
which they ranked No. 1 through 4.
Everybodys always asking me what
the trick is, Gutman says. The trick is,
there is no trick. We just pay attention to
every single complaint. We dont need 25
people to complain about the same thing
before we respond. If one person com-
ments on a problem, we work as a team to
address it so the reviews can get better.
Craigs experience backs that up: Ho-
teliers are looking to crack the code and
think theres some mysterious way about
how the popularity index works. But
its really quite simple: running a great
hotel, setting realistic expectations, then
exceeding them. That drives positive
reviews, which increases rankings.
Gutman does single out two common
mistakes she has seen other properties
make that can negatively impact their
standing. The rst is issuing customer
surveys, which Gutman says dilute the
volume of reviews online. My feeling is,
whatever you have to say about us, good
or bad, please put it on TripAdvisor. The
more reviews I have, the better. The sec-
ond is that hotels will assign a junior em-
ployee to respond to reviews rather than
someone capable of making management
decisionsa sign that they still dont take
TripAdvisor and the online community
seriously enough.
That ties into a larger ofense many
hotel operators commit: responses for
the sake of response. The rate of man-
agement responses to TripAdvisor user
comments doubled from 2011 to 2012
and continued to increase in 2013; one
out of every four new reviews now gets a
management response. But it doesnt get
you very far if you ofer empty responses.
The external response must be accom-
panied by an internal response, using the
feedback to drive decisions and make
improvements within the hotel.
You need a management response
that really addresses hospitality, candidly
and transparently, Payea says. Man-
agement should be mining the reviews
for ideas on how to perfect the guest ex-
perience, instead of just looking at them
as something where they can just check a
boxI did a management response, now
Im going to have an improved online
reputation. Just showing up isnt going to
move the needle. It has to be substantive.
It has to give the customer condence
and address the issues.
CASH FLOW
TripAdvisors revenues come from
a variety of sources (see Revenue
Review), but the primary one has
always been click-through advertising.
Display-based advertising is growing
more rapidly than click-through, up
29 percent in the third quarter of 2013
over 2012, compared to 13 percent
growth for click-based.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Then there are numerous other
sources of revenue, including a subscrip-
tion model, notes TripAdvisor Global
VP of Sales Julio Bruno. We also have
partnershipsfor example, when we do
syndication of our product. And we have
business listings, which is when a prop-
erty is putting up a listing with a special
ofer. We also have the vacation rental
side. One thing we dont do is act as a
travel agent. We never take a percentage
of a booking.
Though TripAdvisor doesnt make
money directly of bookings, it is now
ranked as the No. 1 source of traf c for
online bookings. And with the rollout
of its TripConnect service in October,
independent hotels with a business
listing can compete alongside online
travel agencies and large chains and
drive direct bookings from TripAdvisor
to their own propertys website.
Part of TripAdvisors popularity with
consumers is based on its reputation
as an unbiased source of reviews and
rankings. You cant be at the top of
Expedia unless youre booking a lot of
business on Expedia. Thats true of any
OTA; theyre biased toward hotels that
book more, says Gutman. TripAdvisor
is the most unbiased place, because
it is agnostic of how you booked your
reservation.
Naturally, much of TripAdvisors
overwhelming success relative to other
sites stems from it being rst to market
in this particular space, though it takes
much more than that to grow at the rate
TripAdvisor has. TripAdvisor was at the
forefront of a huge trend, and theyve
managed to dominate the market, Craig
says. There are several reasons for that,
I think. One is the traf c it receives.
Second is the volume of contenta huge
volume of new reviews posted every day.
Content is king online; it helps their
search ranking and drives new traf c.
And the third is consumer condence.
RISE OF TRIPADVISOR
TRIPADVISORS
BIGGEST
ANNOUNCEMENTS
OF 2013
MAR
Becomes frst travel
site to reach 100 million
reviews and opinions, a
more than 50 percent in-
crease year-over-year
APR
Introduces Green-
Leaders program, which
highlights U.S. accom-
modations engaging in
environmentally friendly
practices
JUN
Launches all-in-one
Hotel Price Comparison
search, which allows
visitors to TripAdvisor
sites to see real-time room
rates and availability from
various booking partners
at the same time
OCT
Unveils TripConnect,
a self-service platform de-
signed to help independent
owners drive more direct
bookings
NOV
Forms partnership
with Bing.com to embed
its price comparison tools,
traveler reviews, and pho-
tos into the search engine
results display
DEC
Added to the Nasdaq-
100 Index of the largest
non-fnancial stocks.
TripAdvisor joins Expedia
in the index just two years
after it was spun of
The Screening Process
From the start, the most common criticism of TripAdvisor (not to mention the
impetus for the occasional lawsuit) has been that consumer reviews posted
on the site can potentially be fraudulentthat a hotel employee can write a
dishonest positive review of his/her own property or a dishonest negative
review of a competitors. The integrity of the content is obviously a top
priority to TripAdvisor, so the company employs more than 100 people who
speak more than 20 different languages, most of them with a background in
credit-card fraud and/or military intelligence, to try to identify instances of
review fraud.
So how does the process work? First, every piece
of new content on the site goes through a battery of
automated tests and lters. According to TripAdvisor
Head of Industry Relations Brian Payea, when a post
is agged as questionable, the anti-fraud team
springs into action and investigates the post
and where its coming from. All reports are
acted upon within 72 hours.
But theres a separate line of de-
fense thats every bit as important as
the automated process: the TripAdvisor
community. Anyone using the site can ag
a review as objectionable, and TripAdvisor
takes every such ag seriously.
If travelers didnt trust the information they
found on TripAdvisor, it would cease to be a useful vehicle,
Payea says. Its imperative to understand that our growth
is largely linked to the success of that content integrity
process.
Social media enables people to easily connect
with the advertising source that they trust
most, which is other consumers.
Also, TripAdvisor ofers varied func-
tionsplanning, sorting, and ltering
functionsthat really help you plan a trip.
Thats something other review sites dont do
as well.
TRIPADVISORS NEXT JOURNEY
TripAdvisor may be the leader in its not-
so-little niche, but there are certainly some
powerful competitors in the travel-planning
market, such as Google, which has its own
hotel nder, and Pinterest, which recently
announced its travel planning and booking
channel.
Our competitors are not staying put, so
we are going to continue innovating and
see what the consumer wants and what the
suppliers want and match those two, Bruno
says. Were going to be focusing heavily on
our growth in mobile going forward. We have
108 million unique monthly users in mobile.
The growth is staggering. And we need to
monetize that much better.
TripAdvisor announced in late Octo-
ber that it would begin taking direct hotel
bookings on smartphone apps in 2014, a
clear sign that, indeed, there will be a major
emphasis on the mobile side. When planning
travel at home or in the ofce, consumers
may be more likely to use their laptops and
desktops, just as they have since the advent
of TripAdvisor. But when theyre actually
traveling, when theyre at the property and
in the midst of the experience, their reviews
and reactions will often be phoned in.
Of course, we mean that literally, not
guratively. TripAdvisor has become too
inuential for anyone in the industry to
phone in their interactions with the site in
a gurative sense. It seems counterintuitive
that a property could provide a truly personal
touch when communicating with 53 million
monthly users at once, but thats exactly what
hoteliers need to strive for if theyre going to
make TripAdvisor work for them.
80
2,800
Every Minute
More than 80 new
contributions are posted
to TripAdvisor
On Average
nearly 2,800 new topics
are posted every day to the
TripAdvisor forums
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ESSENTIAL PRODUCT KNOWLEDGE
The first products in the new Vola Round Series, the waste bin and tissue dispenser, are suitable for hotel and
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wall. It can be opened by gently pushing the front with a hand or knee. Its easy to empty and need not be moved
for cleaning. The tissue dispenser has a concealed spring that ensures the tissues are always pushed to the front.
Washroom staff can easily see if the dispenser needs refilling, and new tissues can be inserted by simply pulling the
cylinder forward. VOLA.COM
Universal Tub and Shower from Spectrum
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walls and replace valves when renovat-
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According to a recent report, more travelers are taking note of hotel
bathroomsin a good way. TrustYou, a travel data company that is an
aggregator and analyzer of online reviews, recently looked at a sample
of more than 1 million online sentiments from 250-plus websites to fnd
out travelers top complaints and praises. TrustYous report revealed
that the hotel bathroom had a 148 percent increase in traveler praises,
moving up two spots in the rankings to achieve the number 10 spot.
With 17,542 positive mentions, bathrooms got four times as many com-
pliments compared to complaints.
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reclay ceramics but with greater exural strength, which
allows greater design freedom and creativity. They can be used
in combination with chunky, elegant, and transparent plastic
furnishing accessories that are available in seven color choices.
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The hotel bathroom has evolved into an
essential component of the guests overall
experience. What once functioned as a
utilitarian space has become a relaxing,
luxurious retreat that goes far above
and beyond what guests have at home.
In general, hotels are stepping up their
game in the bathrooms to bring spa-
like experiences to their guests, says
Jody Rosenberg, president of sales and
marketing for Watermark Designs, a
Brooklyn-based
manufacturer of luxury
faucets, showers,
and bath accessories.
Items like upgraded
scented shampoos,
multifunction
showerheads, and
hand showers all add
to the spa experience.
Utilizing exotic fnishes
like oil-rubbed bronze
and brushed fnishes
add a sense of luxury
even to moderately priced chains. Over
the past couple of years, hotels have
begun revamping their room dcor and
layouts with an eye on slightly smaller and
more contemporary designs, says Martin
Siwy, western regional sales manager
of ThermaSol, a manufacturer of steam
baths and saunas. Bathrooms seem to be
losing tubs but at the same time, showers
are gaining more gadgets, Siwy says.
We are seeing upgrades to linear drains,
thermostatic valves, rain showerheads,
and steam systems in many of the higher-
end suites. Lighted mirrors seem to be
standard now, which is another upgrade
that helps any bathroom look more up
to date. When it comes to selecting
fxtures, Pedro Uranga, national director
of THG-USA, manufacturer of handmade
luxury plumbing products, says many
hotels desire a cohesive, seamless look
throughout the bath. Hotels are about the
frst impression, and
for many it starts with
the bath, Uranga says.
A guest will notice how
the fxture feels and
looks as they are going
to wash their hands
and use the sink many
times throughout their
stay. A truly luxurious
bathroom is something
guests appreciate
and will remember.
To standout and help
defne their brands, many hotels are seeking
out products that ofer comfort, fexibility,
and a sleek look, says Javier Korneluk, U.S.
managing director of the Swiss bathroom
specialist Laufen. We work with many
hotel designers who say their customers
want to feel as though their bathrooms are
familiar yet not, which means that they
appreciate seeing designs that they might
not necessarily have in their own homes but
yet ones that they would want.
Black in the bath makes
a strong statementits both
sophisticated and glamorous. Icera is raising the bar on this
dramatic bath trend with the debut of its new black toilets.
Available on most of its premium models, the high-gloss
black gives designers a new contemporary option for an
often-overlooked xture. Iceras EPA WaterSense compliant,
high-efciency toilets use less than 1.28 gallons per ush.
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The average person spends three years
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The average American uses 57 sheets of
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There are more toilets fushed in the U.S.
during the Super Bowl halftime show
than any other half hour of the year
SOURCE: CINTAS CORPORATION
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The Crackle Series of decorative bath accessories from
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crackled glass and metal with a matte nickel nish.
The series includes a soap dish, tumbler, toothbrush
holder, soap pump, tissue holder, and
wastebasket with tted liner.
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Aroma Sense by Opus International LLC is a
showerhead that emits Vitamin Cequivalent to 3,000
lemonsduring a guests shower. The natural lemon oil
inside the vitamin lter provides an aromatherapy effect.
Aroma Sense also reduces water consumption by about
25 percent while optimizing water pressure 1.5 times more
than a regular showerhead. Fragrances in lavender and
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The miniLoo from Neo-Metro, designer and manufacturer of
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the building on Lexington Avenue and 57th
Street, Paddy handed his son the keys. As I
grabbed them, my dad said, Of you gonow
dont mess it up, says Fitzpatrick.
Fitzpatrick took his fathers directive to
heart. To wit: Soon after the Fitzpatrick
Manhattan opened, one of their rst guests
was Gregory Peck, and the Academy Award-
winning actor requested a private line when
he checked in to the penthouse. We all pan-
icked, says Fitzpatrick, but then I came up
with an idea. Fitzpatrick had a private line in
his ofce on the second oor; the penthouse
was on the 17th oor. So he ran to Radio
Shack, bought all the telephone cables they
had in stock, connected all of them, and then
ran the line out his ofce window and up to
the penthouse. Then, I phoned all my friends
to tell them not to call my number because
Gregory Peck might answer the phone.
Considering feats like this, its no surprise
the Fitzpatrick Manhattan was an instant suc-
cess. In fact, it did so well that just two years
later, Fitzpatrick opened a second location in
New York City, near Grand Central station.
Also like his father, Fitzpatrick has given back
to the industry to which hes dedicated his life.
Hes served three terms as chairman of the
Hotel Association of New York City, and is
now serving as the chairman of the AH&LA.
Fitzpatrick is ready to step up to the na-
tional level. I call him the energizing bunny,
says Joe Spinnato, president of the Hotel
Association of New York City. He res up
everyone around him because of how he is.
Spinnato points to 2001, when Fitzpatrick
opened a new property in Chicago and com-
muted back and forth to get it of the ground.
He was so energetic in getting that hotel to
become the success that it was. Fitzpatrick
sold the property in 2006 to Denihan Hospi-
tality and now its an Afnia Hotel.
Unfortunately I bought the Chicago
property just before 9/11, so the rst two
years of getting it of the ground were really
tough, says Fitzpatrick. But the hotel
eventually did well, and I sold it at the top of
the market just before the crash. He used the
prots from the sale to buy his family out of
the two New York properties. Up until then
the hotels here and in Ireland were all part of
the family business, he says. So owning the
hotels outright gave me independence. Fitz-
patricks sister, in turn, bought him out of the
properties in Ireland. My family is still very
close and we work well together, but it was
a personal goal of mine to have 100 percent
ownership in the New York hotels because it
would allow me to do management contracts
and bring in other investors.
Fitzpatrick is putting the energy hes used
to establish his hotels toward reshaping the
lodging industrys preeminent association.
AH&LA is going through a really exciting
change right now, says Fitzpatrick. Were
attempting to grow from 10,000 to 55,000
members and really focus on advocacy,
communication, and education, he says. Im
proud and honored to be chairman. Is he a
little nervous? I think if youre not a little bit
nervous, youre not on your guard, says Fitz-
patrick. But what I dont know, Ill learn.
Fitzpatricks work ethic and humility
doesnt surprise his old boss, chef Sean
Dempsey. Hes still the same Johnall
of his success hasnt changed him, says
Dempsey. When hes home in Ireland,
he always comes into the hotel here in
Killiney to say hi. And hes still robbing food
off the plates as hes running through the
kitchen. You turn your back and the piece
of chocolate cake is gone.
continued from page 39
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And economic health really depends on so
many diferent factors. I think lodgings
particular risk has been new construction,
and that risk right now is a little bit more
external than internal. There are concerns
about the general political climatewe saw
what happened for a couple of weeks when
the government shut down. I dont think
were out of the woods there. And we havent
seen large-scale crises coming in the past.
We wouldnt have foreseen the S&L melt
down in the late 1980s, we didnt foresee a
lot of these issues, 9/11 obviously or Lehman
Brothers. We never saw those coming.
L
How can the industry protect itself
from some of the dysfunction com-
ing out of Washington?
A
I served as the national chair for the
U.S. Travel Association [last year], and
[Im] the vice chair [this year] of AH&LA,
so I put my money where my mouth is. Our
industry needs to have a strong voice in
Washington. If youre not involved, and if
you dont have a voice, then when things
do take an unexpected turn, youre left
unprotected and unheard. I think its critical
for us to be able to underscore the economic
impact of travel, the job creation elements
of our hotels, and the fact that these shut-
downs or these other disruptions really hurt
small business owners, they really hurt jobs,
and theyre an economic deator.
L
What do you see being able to be
accomplished in Washington that
can help out the travel industry?
A
Speaking on behalf of the U.S. Travel
Association, were very focused on the
economic impact of inbound international
travel, and weve been heavily lobbying for
items like Brand USA, which is a promotional
vehicle for the United States as a destination,
reducing wait times in major markets, par-
ticularly in China, India and Brazil, and also
instituting improvements in customs and
border control in order to create a better
welcoming experience and get people
through lines faster, which will make the U.S.
a more desired destination.
Weve really had a lost decadeweve seen
how we lost [travel] market share over the
last 10 years in the United States to other
countries, and while security is critical, vital
and important, we believe that the elements
of that have sometimes created a discour-
aging factor on travel. We think thats an
important component, and investing in our
infrastructure is absolutely critical as well
to be able to welcome these travelers. Its
important that we view this as a job creator,
and so increasing the amount of travel inter-
nally in the U.S. and inbound international
travel is at the forefront of everything we do.
At AH&LA, were working and lobbying hard
for an immigration billnot the immigration
bill. Embedded in the Senate version of the
bill theres the JOLT Act, which has tremen-
dous advantages for the hotel industry, and
so were pushing hard for that. Its embedded
in the immigration bill thats been passed by
the Senate. The House hasnt decided to take
up an immigration bill yet, and may break it
into pieces like path to citizenship and illegal
entry and other various components rather
than a comprehensive bill.
L
Whats the likelihood of
that happening?
A
Ill let you speculate. Our history hasnt
been good in that area, but I do think
both parties have been focused on address-
ing immigration issues. I think theres a
desire that something gets accomplished,
the question is in what form.
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nancial turnarounds, asset and third party management.
SOCIAL SEATING
The multifunctional furnish-
ings in black and gray tweed
offer a neutral complement
but maintain a playful
aesthetic. We wanted the
furniture, in this environment
of serious minimalism, to
have some personality, says
Wickman. The furniture is
sculptural, but its also really
gestural. The pieces have a
social nature to them.
THE MINIMALIST
The architectural design plays a big role in creating a minimal
backdrop that allows the bold shades to pop. We were
heavy-handed with suppressing the architecture. Its very
structural, very tectoniceverything is frameless and ush,
says Wickman. We did that specically so that the planes of
color could have prominence in the room.
CHECK OUT
AT THE WILLIAM HOTEL, a 20th-century mansion that once
functioned as a private clubhouse for Williams College
alumni, the guest suites are saturated with monochromatic
color palettes. Mason Wickman, principal at In Situ Design,
says the hues used in the 33-room boutique property were
inspired by ne artist William Engles paintings. Wickman
and fellow designers Edwin Zawadzki and Lilian Bakhash
shared a studio space with Engle during the development
phase and allowed their individual artistic processes to con-
verge. We wanted to turn the [design] process upside down
and work together simultaneously for a diferent kind of
product, says Wickman. The hotel really comes out of the
paintings and the paintings really come out of the hotel.
IN LIVING COLOR
Each guestroom oor features a unique colorway that takes its cues
from Engles original artworks that were commissioned specif-
ically for the hotel. We really went out on a limb with color. Its
unapologetic, emotional, and really visceral, says Wickman. Bills
paintings are the heart and soul of the hotel.
The William Hotel Guest Suites
COOKED TO PERFECTION
To give the in-room kitchenettes a high-style boost, the team pumped up the counter
height and designed a stainless steel shelving unit that conceals the range hood and
provides impactful lighting. The area is also accented by an ethereal, smoky mirror
backsplash that ties the space together. We didnt want the kitchenettes to corrupt
our concept, says Wickman. Theyre very high functioning, theyre compact, they do
everything you need them to do, but theyre also a little bit mysterious.
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HAVE YOU JOINED AH&LA?
YOU NEED TO. TODAY!
WERE WORKING FOR YOU TO HARNESS
THE FULL POWER OF THE INDUSTRY.
Be part of an ADVOCACY and
COMMUNICATIONS POWERHOUSE that delivers:
Owners, REITs, brands, franchises, management companies,
or independent properties the new AH&LA drives results
and delivers VALUE TO YOUR BOTTOM LINE.
The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA)
is the only association in the U.S. solely focused on the
NEEDS OF HOTELIERS.
Elevated government advocacy on the issues that matter to you
Access to a world-class team of legistrative, regulatory, and communications experts
Special pricing to industry conferences, including the Legislative Action Summit
Just a few of
our satisfied
customers:
BEST WESTERN
CLARION
COMFORT INN & SUITES
COURTYARD BY MARRIOTT
CROWNE PLAZA
DAYS INN
DOUBLETREE
ECONOLODGE
EMBASSY SUITES
FOUR SEASONS
GRAND HYATT
HAMPTON INN
HILTON
HILTON GARDEN INN
HOLIDAY INN
HOLIDAY INN EXPRESS
HOMEWOOD SUITES
HYATT REGENCY
LA QUINTA
MARRIOTT
MOTEL 6
QUALITY SUITES
RADISSON
RAMADA
RENAISSANCE
RESIDENCE INN
RITZ CARLTON
SHERATON
SLEEP INN
WESTIN
WYNDHAM
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Magnuson Hotels
is the fastest growing
brand in history.
Theres a reason
$1,598,395
$6,450,259
$7,345,839
$1,571,179
$1,579,129
$2,245,683
Over 3/4 $Billion in bank approved brand loans
Renovation fnancing available up to $1,500,000
Free web based PMS system
Complete national branding
Dedicated hotel revenue specialist
Based upon a 70 room hotel at 55% annual occupancy with a
$60 average daily rate. Comparison data sourced from Smith
Travel Research, HVS US Hotel Franchise Fee Guide.
$1,923,938
Wyndham Brands
Choice Brands
Best Western
M-Star
Wyndham Brands
Choice Brands
Best Western
InterContinental Hotels
Magnuson Hotel
Choice Brands
Best Western
Inter Continental Hotels
Carlson Brands
Magnuson Grand
ECONOMY
2-YEAR ROOM REVENUE AFTER BRAND EXPENSES
MIDSCALE
UPSCALE
2-year room revenue before
adding brand $1,686,300
$1,376,469
$1,442,552
$1,306,603
$1,723,602
$5,935,328
Best Western includes (Economy) Best Western, (Midscale) Best
Western Plus, (Upscale) Best Western Premier. Carlson Brands include
(Upscale) Raddison. Choice Brands include (Economy) Rodeway Inn,
Econo Lodge, (Midscale) Comfort Inn, Sleep Inn, Quality Inn, (Upscale)
Cambria Suites, Ascend Hotel Collection. InterContinental Hotels include
(Midscale) Holiday Inn Express, Holiday Inn Select, (Upscale) Crowne
Plaza. Wyndham Brands include (Economy) Days Inn, Howard Johnson,
Knights Inn, Super 8, Travelodge, (Midscale) Baymont Inn & Suites,
Hawthorn Suites, Howard Johnson, Ramada, Wingate
$1M
$1M
$4M
$6,032,386
$6,004,974
Magnuson Hotels is a partner working with hotel owners to
maximize their potential, not to mandate hundreds of thousands
in updates to owners already feeling the crunch of weak
economies and rising overhead. Magnuson Hotels is a revenue
generator and a helping hand. Find out more and read about
success stories online at owners.magnusonhotels.com.
For a free quote call: 866.904.1309 magnusonhotels.com

Lodging Magazine Jan 2014

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Lodging Magazine Jan 2014

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THE OFFI CI AL MAGAZI NE OF THE AMERI CAN HOTEL + LODGI NG ASSOCI ATI ON JANUARY 2014

was awarded Highest in Guest Satisfaction

2 LODGI NGMAGAZI NE. COM JANUARY 201 4

OWNER S MANUAL SUPPLY LINE FRONT DESK

loyalty program, enable us to capture

more social and a more relaxed environment. Hotel

2014 AH&LA CHAIR

2014 AH&LA CHAIR

2014 AH&LA CHAIR

800 359-4913 STERIFAB.COM

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