The Who’s who of hospitality technology providers and implementers to float & party aboard Sunborn Yacht during WTM


Hotel technology experts HotelsCombined, Sojern, Travelport, RateTiger & LiveOS have teamed up to host an exclusive yacht party for hoteliers on Tuesday, 7 November 2017 in London. The event, to be held at the Sunborn Yacht Hotel, will bring together peers from the hospitality industry to unwind and network over cocktails.

The event is aimed at providing hoteliers and technology companies an interactive platform to exchange ideas and explore collaboration possibilities. The luxurious Sunborn Yacht Hotel is located right outside the ExCel centre, providing a perfect venue for the networking reception after a busy day at the show.
 
“We are excited to be organizing a networking reception with some of our key partners. WTM is an important date in the annual calendar for the travel fraternity and it gives us a perfect opportunity to host our clients, partners and prospects, to talk about new technologies and explore collaboration possibilities, and most importantly, spend a fun evening together,” commented Reuel Ghosh, Chief Executive Officer, eRevMax.

eRevMax has been a regular exhibitor at WTM London and will be present at Stand TT550 from 6 – 8 November 2017. For more details about the event, please contact marketing@erevmax.com.

eRevMax Christmas Party in London


The eRevMax UK team took time out on Thursday 13th December to get together for an afternoon lunch at an Argentine restaurant. The EMEA sales team descended on the London office, armed with Secret Santa gifts and their best festive spirits. 
The team ate as much meat as they could before simply crossing the road in London Soho for a traditional English pub, where we spent the evening exchanging gifts, and stories fueled by great beer (and for some whiskey). 
We spent most of the evening on our feet dancing to an eclectic mix of music ranging from pop, to rock, and classic Christmas records chosen by our own Caroline Faries who pestered the DJ until he gave in and rammed up the volume to drown out our singing. 

Here is our message for everyone this Christmas –

Ryan C Haynes is VP – Marketing Communications at eRevMax. He presented ‘The Distribution Challenge’ research findings during ‘The 3 Ps of Hotel Sales’ session. Ryan is based out of London and can be reached at ryanh@erevmax.com

Boutique Hotel Summit: Post-Olympic debrief


On Monday 3rd September the Boutique Hotel News held a panel discussion to review the effect of the Olympics and the results for Independent and Boutique hotels during the period. Held at The Hempel, the session looked at what can be learned from the London Olympics and what to expect over the next 12 months.

The panel consisted of:
Gareth Banner, General Manager, The Hempel
Marie Baxter, General Manager, Town Hall Hotel
Chris Foy, Head of 2012 games unit, Visit Britain
Ruth Mortimer, Editor, Marketing Week
Moderator: Jonathan Langston, Managing Director, TRI Hospitality Consulting

The overview
The London Olympics 2012 is about the long game; promoting and reintroducing Britain back to the world, building the profile of the country across the world. The panel noted that it drew the best of Britain through the media, that was replicated across the world. The mass number of volunteers demonstrated the country’s hospitality and the ability to be welcoming hosts.

Ruth Mortimer said it is hard to say yet how the legacy will be fulfilled, “however the immediate success can be seen in the interest in the Paralympics.”

For The Hempel, the hotel sold out to a single booking which helped them meet their revenue needs. While Town Hall Hotel experienced good occupancy and ADR, but “in all honesty conferencing and banqueting took a dip – we had no weddings or other entertainments because of so many events were happening with the Olympics.” However Marie Baxter noted that the hotel could continue to get success “off the back of marketers, who will bring more people into London.”

The panel noted how boutique properties are good for hospitality events with the right amount of space (40-60 rooms) that adds character and history of London through the original building structure that feels historically different.

The underlying theme though was to truly understand what the customer wants from you! With thousands of hotel room nights opening in London that have more luxury capacity and as the Olympic spotlight fades hoteliers need to begin being creative rather than taking everything for granted.

Boutique hotels will need to work hard and be very smart and creative otherwise 2013 will be a difficult year. The UK has had its fair share of international events over the past couple of years with few to come except the Rugby World Cup 2014.  


As hotels in the UK will need to market rates inclusive of VAT, at 20%, the country may start to look expensive, especially to Europeans with the low value of the Euro.

#empty13
The panel talked of the year of 2013 that has little to look forward to. More budgeting, people needing to work harder and hotels to find those hidden gems and stories. The industry will need to look closer at the potential of providing a more personalized experience. By 2014 the country is expecting an additional 4.5 million visitors, a commitment made by VisitBritain.

Distribution
For the hotels, OTA is a dirty word as direct sales are more profitable. However OTAs are needed in January, February and Sunday nights. The Town Hall Hotel works with the Kiwi Collection, Mr and Mrs Smith and other very specific boutique brand agencies, doing the marketing on their behalf. Marie said she works hard to qualify whom they work with and there is a growing understanding with consumers that the best rate is a direct rate with the hotel.
For working with the large OTAs like Expedia and Booking, for them it is a listing, to be on the hotel search engine, but keeping an optimum price on these channels positions them correctly in the market.

Ruth talked about how other industries have lost control over their inventory Insurance for example – where everything is done through price comparison websites. “People’s behavior in how they look has altered and what the hotel suffers from when people are just looking at the big number. It is totally rate driven.”

For the hoteliers in the room being a boutique hotel means they can stand above the rest because they are unique. “We have a unique quality, an independence. We shouldn’t be competing on rate but marketing ourselves on distinct differences. We’re not cheapest out there and this is why we are not being ashamed of it because we give out more than others.

As for Social Media, Ruth believes it is great if using it for the right reasons. Some for specials, some quick enquiries, some as communities. Such an individual aspect for each business it needs to be considered on how it works best.

There’s a lot more to come from the Olympics, if hotels, the country and everyone works hard enough to bleed as much from the international profile gained as possible.


Ryan C Haynes is VP – Marketing Communications at eRevMax and is responsible for driving all PR and Marketing activities for RateTiger and eRevMax brands globally. Ryan is based out of London and can be reached at ryanh@ratetiger.com

HOSPACE 2011 Conference

HOSPACE is the annual conference and exhibition hosted by HOSPA (formerly BAHA) – the UK’s leading educational organisation for hospitality professionals. The event took place on 24th November 2011 in UK and saw approximately 400 delegates attending it. 

The event opened with an overview of the industry and the upcoming Olympics, post which it moved on to a panel discussion on key issues, trends and developments facing Finance, Revenue Management and IT professionals followed by the Hospitality IT Debate and a Revenue Management Session.

There were some educational workshops lined-up as well. My colleague Casey Davy did a presentation on Online Distribution and Channel Management which was very well attended.


Overall it was a very successful show as the turnout was great. It was a good mix of suppliers including hotel technology and the buyers which comprised of large hotel groups as well as standalone properties which made it more interesting.

Not only did the event receive excellent feedback from all exhibitors, but the delegates too shared positive reviews and found it a worthwhile platform for business.

Sunaina Jagtiani is Sales Manager – UK at eRevMax and is responsible for sales of RateTiger products in the region. She is based out of London, UK and can be reached at sunainaj@ratetiger.com

IoH announces Aspiring Manager Awards 2011

The Annual Chairman’s Ball & Aspiring Manager’s Awards organized by the Institute of Hospitality, London branch took place on 28th October 2011 in a glittering ceremony at the newly re-opened Four Seasons Hotel, Park Lane, London.

I was there to attend the same as part of RateTiger’s partnership with IoH. The audience comprised of many of London’s top hoteliers and elite hospitality industry professionals. The event was interesting with this year’s theme being ‘Masked Ball’. The evening started with guests pleasantly posing for photos upon their arrival, thereby moving on to their dinner tables and soon the much awaited Aspiring Manager Awards were announced.
 

The winner of the evening was Nikki Goodwin (picture right) from Ramada Southport, who unfortunately could not make it to the event. The hotel GM Enda Rylands collected the Award on Nikki’s behalf.  Once the excitement of the awards was over, guests had the pleasure of masked dancing and enjoyed the live band, Versatility.
Overall a well organised event with lot of excitement and fun as well as opportunities to connect with friends from the industry.

Pictures from the event courtesy Chris Mann: http://www.cjmann.com/2011/10/ioh-chairmans-ball-awards-at-four-seasons-park-lane/
 

Casey Davy is Sales Manager – UK at eRevMax and is responsible for sales of RateTiger products in the region. He is based out of London and can be reached at caseyd@ratetiger.com