“Doing hotels” vs “doing hospitality”
What’s the difference and why does it matter?
Hello everyone and happy long weekend,
As the age of information accelerates, we are constantly inundated with content from all directions. The amount of information that has been made accessible by the internet and social media is truly incredible, but I also think it’s important to have a critical eye on the media we consume.
I frequently get asked which writers in the travel space I follow regularly, and here’s my criteria for what I allow in my media diet:
Originality and uniqueness: The original is always better than the dupe.
Depth and credibility: I want to know the how and the why, not just the what.
Devotion to a mastery of their craft: I want to learn from those who strive for excellence.
That being said, here are my current picks:
Colin Nagy has been writing about travel (and the business of) for over a decade. He has a sharp column on Skift that often parallels what I write about on The Stanza. His work is read by C-suite at major hospitality groups and I appreciate the honesty and quality of analysis in his writing.
David Prior has an incredible eye for experiences and is able to translate that into beautiful, creative storytelling. I love opening his newsletters to see what destinations are on his radar, and how he would piece together a memorable itinerary.
Monica Mendal’s taste particularly resonates with me, and that could be because she started in fashion media. I appreciate how she articulates why hotels and destinations are worth visiting with clarity.
Marissa Klurstein might know every single cool or interesting hotel in Italy. The depth of her knowledge and passion for Italy is truly astounding.
Maria Shollenbarger doesn’t need much of an introduction amongst hospitality industry professionals and enthusiasts — she’s been a travel editor at FT HTSI for a while. What makes her work stand out is her unique editorial perspective on places that are less obvious, and her taste which has been developed through lived experience traveling to the places she writes about.
Best,
N
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In today’s newsletter:
€2,000 is the new €800. New supply is coming. And the ultra-luxury guest has a longer memory than the industry gives them credit for. This week, a direct question for every hotel owner and operator reading this: are you doing hotels, or doing hospitality? The difference matters more now than it ever has.
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“Doing hotels” vs “doing hospitality”: what’s the difference?
Hotel owners and operators love talking about “emotional connection” in hospitality, but actually very few realize emotional connection is earned after making the guest feel cared for. That feeling is the emotion, not the emotion created from good branding or good design.
I’ve been reflecting on the delta between perception and reality as it relates to the guest experience at all the hotels I’ve stayed at over the last handful of years. I’m arriving at the conclusion that the greater the delta, the more powerful the PR/marketing engine behind it tends to be. We’re currently in a bull market cycle for hotels, but obviously cycles don’t last forever (even if the general trending long-term pattern is up). At the same time, there is a lot of new supply, both coming online this year and in the near-term, €2,000 is the new €800, and there’s a growing sentiment of disappointment at hotels perceived to be “amazing”.
It really boils down to one question: is ownership “doing hotels” or “doing hospitality”? The former is there to clip a fee, earn a yield, or satisfy an ego desire to own a hotel. The latter genuinely cares about making every guest’s stay special and goes the extra mile, even when they don’t have to. You might immediately start thinking of capital structure, as there’s a common notion that family-owned and independent hotels are always better than flagged or private equity-owned. However, I don’t think the capital structure is the number one factor in answering this week’s question.
