📗 Radisson's New Playbook

BIG STORIES

What’s Hot in Hospitality This Week

📉 Mandarin Oriental reports an 8% decline in FY2024 profits due to higher operating costs despite 7% RevPAR growth.

💼 Cvent's MICE sourcing volume reached record levels up 75% from pre-pandemic volume, driven by demand for tech and AI solutions.

👉 Visiting Media empowers hotel sales teams with stunning 3D virtual tours.

💳 Wyndham launches the first US debit card for travelers.

💰 Inn-Flow secures $45M to expand its AI-driven hotel accounting platform.

🏨 Oyo outlines plan to modernize Motel 6 in the US while moving upmarket in India.

🛡️ TFE Hotels says it’s still recovering from a major cyber incident.

TOOLS & TACTICS

❤️ Hotel Tech Tools Top Operators Swear By

✅ Visiting Media: Offer stunning 3D tours to drive more hotel sales.

✅ Inn-Flow: Simplify hotel finances with user-friendly accounting software solution.

✅ Hireology: Find and hire reliable staff faster to fill key hotel roles.

✅ Cloudbeds: All-in-one hotel management software at the speed of AI.

✅ Canary Technologies: Powerful but simple AI powered digital guest journey platform.

✅ SuitePad: Boost hotel revenue with in-room tablets for 1-click ordering and booking.

GOING DEEPER

1. Cloudbeds Report: OTAs Now Control 61% of Indie Hotel Bookings

Independent hotels continue to rely heavily on OTA channels to drive revenue, with 61% of reservations booked through third-party channels in 2024, up 1% from 2023. Branded hotels are less reliant on third-parties, capturing just 35% of reservations on OTAs. At the same time, travelers are searching for inspiration and advice on social media and AI-powered platforms like ChatGPT, offering new opportunities for hotels make connections with these potential guests.

🎯 Why it matters: Social media and ChatGPT can be cheaper acquisition channels that build brand awareness and funnel guests to your direct website. Increasing OTA share could foreshadow an increase in distribution costs for hotels that don’t develop a profitability-focused distribution and marketing strategy. OTAs continually invest in features to boost conversion and tap into changing traveler preferences, and if your direct website doesn’t also invest in these features, you’ll continue losing direct share.

🔑 Key takeaway: Hotels that adopt technology to enhance the booking experience and generate demand from the next generation of travelers can benefit not only from reduced reliance on OTAs, but also higher profitability. With 57% of Gen Z and Millennial travelers turning to AI for travel research, your hotel can stand out with AI-friendly content and personalized recommendations. A user-friendly booking engine, upsell and cross-sell capabilities, and responsive AI-powered communication can help you increase direct share. Read the report →

2. UK Hotel Labor Costs Jump 10%, More Increases Coming

In January, staff costs in the UK hotel sector increased by over 10%, impacting profits even before the scheduled rise in employers' National Insurance contributions in April. Total hotel payroll costs rose from 28.8% in December 2024 to 39.6% in January 2025. Starting in April, employers' National Insurance contributions and the National Living Wage will increase, adding approximately £3.4 billion annually to the industry's costs. UK hotels also saw an increase in ADR, but the increase in costs is moving faster than the increase in revenues, so ADR growth hasn’t influenced the bottom line.

🎯 Why it matters: Coupled with existing challenges like staffing shortages and high turnover, this increase in payroll costs signals that the current state of hotel staffing is unsustainable. With additional uncertainty around tariffs and fluctuations in demand for international travel, this trend may signal a broader shift toward leaner staffing models in the hotel industry.

🔑 Key takeaway: As payroll becomes a larger expense on the P&L, hotels should explore leveraging technology to shift repetitive, manual tasks away from valuable team members. Automation and AI can free up hours of time for staff to handle tasks that tech cannot replicate, from responding to guest inquiries to collecting payments. Read More →

3. Radisson Decentralizes Decision Making & Adds 40,000 Keys

Radisson is doubling down on its “owner first” approach with a flexible operating model and major investments in technology. Similar to our coverage of McDonalds last week, Radisson is decentralizing its organization to provide more flexibility. For example, in India an employee costs 1/20th of the cost of an employee in the Nordics - having a decentralized technology approach allows the organization to be more tech heavy in the Nordics and more staff heavy in India where costs are low.

🎯 Why it matters: One factor in Radisson’s rapid growth and positive returns for owners is the brand’s focus on technology, which unlocks lower operating costs and more flexibility to adapt to different regions and markets. Radisson partnered with an RPA firm to automate call center operations, distribution, and reputation management. And Radisson’s tech-driven pricing strategies have increased ADRs across all contract types. If you want to go deeper on Radisson’s digital transformation check out our episode of the Hotel Tech Insider podcast with Patrick Apostolo Director of Corporate Operations and Business Transformation for EMEA.

🔑 Key takeaway: Radisson recognizes that technology can be a competitive advantage and differentiating factor between brands. There’s no one-size-fits-all approach; by tailoring its investment in technology to the unique needs of the properties and markets in its portfolio, Radisson can deliver outsized value to owners. Radisson’s success underscores the importance of adopting tech to remain competitive, enhance operational efficiency, and effectively respond to regional market demands. Read More →

AROUND THE HOTEL INDUSTRY

Other hospitality happenings this week

🚀 Airbnb ramps up marketing and hiring as it prepares to relaunch Experiences product.

🌱 Meliá Hotels leverages AI and IoT to optimize energy efficiency and advance its sustainability goals.

🍸 Restaurant robots face challenges in efficiency and cost, but tech advancements may improve their viability.

🔗 Wyndham partners with Katanox to streamline hotel distribution, payments, and commission processing with automation.

🔌 Possible repeal of the CHIPS Act, which supports US semiconductor manufacturing, could lead to softer demand for extended-stay hotels.

🧑‍🍳 AI-powered kitchen automation and robot servers are already enhancing efficiency and guest experience.

💎 Luxury hotels leverage data-driven pricing and AI to maximize suite revenue.

HOTELIER SPOTLIGHT
🎙 The Hotels Network Founder on Optimizing Your Hotel Website

Are you truly maximizing your hotel’s direct booking potential? In this episode, Juanjo Rodriguez, founder of The Hotels Network, reveals the secrets behind driving revenue through innovative technology and personalization strategies.

Key Takeaways:

• Discover how personalization can significantly enhance the booking experience, leading to higher conversion rates on your hotel website.

• Learn about the importance of benchmarking your hotel’s performance against competitors to identify opportunities for improvement and growth.

• Explore actionable insights on how to leverage AI and data analytics to optimize your marketing strategies and enhance customer engagement.

👉🏼 Check out the interview on Apple Podcasts or Spotify

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