It seems that all of the signs of hospitality improvement are coming up in the positive Colum. The big chains are going ahead at neck breaking speed. There are dozens of new builds in India as well as Asia. I don’t think that there is an end in sight. Somewhere a while back we were in the same situation. The hospitality scene was rosy and we all went full boar ahead, and we all know what happened. I sometimes feel that we are throwing caution to the wind. I don’t begrudge developers from riding the progress train to profits. Sometimes we just don’t want to slow down because we might miss the next big projects. I won’t discourage clients from expanding or new build, I just offer a word of caution, to have the necessary information to make a wise investment, and that the return on investment does not outweigh the risk.
Time to think
I realize that there seems to be a rush to have one’s flag represented in the new emerging markets. If one waits too long, the opportunity will be gone. My consensus is that we take a step back and just do a little thinking before jumping in with both feet. I can almost say with certainty that the government will not do any more bail outs if banks go under. I don’t foresee any banks going under, for I hope that they have learned their lesson. The danger is in the fact that any recession will curb the tourist industry – they are the ones that support the hotel and travel industry. Even though the outlook now is good, remember that the economy is a fickle lady.
Time to Act
The industry has a responsibility to all of the people that work for them. The industry should be attentive to their employees, so as to provide the maximum protection possible. This is in case a downturn should occur. I hope it never happens again. When occupancy falls drastically, the first thing that suffers is payroll; it is not economically feasible to carry employees that the hotel can’t use. The losers here are those that while things were good gave their all to make each of those flags and properties prosper and become great. What happens to them? Where is employee customer service for them? We teach to never say “No” to customers, yet we can say “No” to them?
Food for thought from my rambling mind.
About the Author
Alan Campbell has been in Las Vegas for over 30 years and has worked for the major strip hotels. He has spent some time in California, Los Angeles where he worked for the Radisson and Sheraton hotels. Alan considers the hospitality industry the best job in the world – it is the only place that both king's and Paupers will visit you.
The Hotel Guy
