Hi everyone,
Happy Friday. I hope your Q4 is off to a great start.
I have some news: I will be publishing the 2025 season finale for the podcast in a couple weeks. The guest is an absolute legend, and I’m so excited to finish the season on a very strong note. I will be restarting the 2026 season with the goal to produce the absolute best hospitality business show with a line up of rock stars who are shaping the industry, one property at a time.
A hotel developer wrote to me recently saying: “I am a huge fan of the podcast and there aren’t many of us who see hotels as more than just real estate or operations, but as a creative business at the intersection of design, culture, capital, and risk. That’s what resonated with me when I first heard your podcast.” This captures exactly the spirit of The Stanza: a unique business media platform discussing both left and right brained aspects of the industry.
I’m incredibly grateful and humbled to have built such a fantastic and intelligent audience that appreciates discretion, elegance, and artfulness. Thank you for your support!
In today’s newsletter:
What the Polo Bar opening in London says about consumer behavior
In London: which hotel is consistently achieving occupancy in the 90s?
How can luxury train travel be better positioned to attract the right crowd?
Which fashion billionaire is acquiring EU hotels? (hint: not Arnault)
In New York: are wellness clubs emerging as the next wave after members clubs?
In Tuscany: who’s doing hospitality brand collabs best?
Struggling to stand out in a crowded market?
Your brand should be as memorable as your guest experience.
The Morris Project crafts bold, emotionally resonant identities and interiors for hospitality’s most visionary players. Founded by James Beard Award–winning designer Amy Morris, we’ve partnered with icons like Union Square Hospitality, The Plaza Hotel, Eataly, Hilton, and Google.
Get in touch here.
Investment Opportunity: Net Zero Hotel Brand/Platform, London
An iconic, fully vacant building in the City of London with hotel conversion planning —secured with a 140-year peppercorn leasehold—is set to be transformed into the industry’s first truly net zero carbon and wellness hotel. With 220+ keys across 120,000SF, this project combines best-in-class sustainability (75%+ less energy use, zero carbon operations) with institutional-grade real estate fundamentals. The platform sponsor is seeking ~£50M in equity, with acquisition secured below replacement cost and recent comparable trades, and capex of £250/key to convert to a hotel.
**Please note that only qualified buyers will be contacted due to the volume of inquiries.**
View all live listings here.
Have a luxury home to rent? A property to sell? Or perhaps a secondhand collectible watch? Advertise with The Stanza Classifieds: via classifieds@thestanzamedia.com.
Casafutura is an Instagram page documenting real estate listings in Milan with very cheeky captions:
“6th floor. A recently divorced french professor moves in with 2867 books, an old persian cat 28 silk ties and 6 bottles of Pernod. Feeling of arranging the books for weeks in alphabetical order (name of the author instead of last name), having dinner every night alternating galletto alla piastra with riso al salto at La Libera, four different pair of round glasses from Ottica Marchesi and a secret flirt with an old student of his with an impressively long ponytail. On the market for 1.800.000€”
