Our key takeouts from the Annual Hotel Conference 2022
At the beginning of October, Colin and I attended the Annual Hotel Conference and what a whirlwind of speakers, networking and insights it was. We know our niche – it’s the hospitality industry, so attending something like AHC gives us valuable knowledge that we can take into our projects for the coming year.
This year, there were two key things I took away, and so I thought a short piece outlining what I learned might be both informative and reassuring for our partners and clients large and small.
Takeout 1: Economic uncertainty is not yet affecting travel
Despite the cost-of-living crisis and continual restraints being placed on the general public’s purse, it seems that, at the moment, people are still unwilling to cut back on travel. This could be driven by the travel restrictions brought on by Covid, that there’s still pent-up demand, but regardless – this is great news for the hospitality industry.
A recent Consumer Sentiment Survey organised by PWC backed up this claim, with results showing that consumers were more willing to cut back on smaller niceties, like eating out.
Barclaycard spend data also concluded the above, with spend on hotels, resorts, and accommodation actually increasing by 4.1%. This data also pulled positive conclusions for those operating in the UK tourism market, showing that domestic travel within the UK was significantly increased on previous years.
In fact, an incredibly positive picture was painted for UK Tourism, as Thomas Emanuel, Senior Director at STR told attendees that UK hotels had seen rapid recovery and average occupancy of 75% - a favourable comparison to other European markets.
Takeout 2: Consumer expectations for hotels are high
Given that it appears plenty of consumers have protected “pots” of cash saved up for travel, it also seems that this is driving higher expectations for holidays, especially when it comes to accommodation. Data also shows that people are less likely to go for the cheapest option now, when choosing where to stay. This puts pressure on hotels to keep their spaces relevant and tailored to offer an exceptional guest experience – this is fast becoming a necessity to compete in such a competitive marketplace.
What does this mean for hotels? It may mean taking the time to make improvements, large or small, and examining how your customers use your space, how could it better serve them, or provide an optimised experience. The data shows that the future is bright for hotels and hospitality, particularly in the UK, so there’s really been no better time to create exceptional spaces for your guests. If you need a little inspiration for how to tackle a refurbishment, simply take a look at our existing and past projects.
To conclude – we thoroughly enjoyed our time at AHC and we hope to return next year. To everyone we met, networked with, and learned from – thank you for making it an incredibly informative and valuable experience!