Not every hotel can offer, literally, royal experiences —
but that makes it even more important that they treat guests like royalty.
Note: This article first appeared on Phocuswire.
INTERNATIONAL REPORT - The image projected onto the Center Stage screen at last
week’s Phocuswright Europe 2024 conference in Barcelona displayed a
narrow, ornate room that clearly had once served as a chapel fit for a queen.
Yet as Maud Bailly, CEO for the four luxury brands at
Paris-based Accor, explained, the room serves a different purpose today — as a
hotel experience.
The chapel at MGallery’s Domaine Reine Margot Paris Issy
near Paris serves as a gilded demonstration of the measures hospitality
businesses are willing to take to meet guests’ increasing appetite for
experiences. Listed as a historical monument in France, the property was once a
retirement home for priests and the royal country retreat of Marguerite de
Valois.
“At the same time [it] became a hotel offering to guests –
something which is quite unique, and we do that in a very creative way for many
other hotels,” Bailly said. “We try to protect their stories, identities, and
we transform them into quite memorable moments, unforgettable experiences because,
to us, luxury is about seamlessness. Everything needs to be fluid. There’s a
lot of work behind the scene but you don’t see it.”
As detailed during the executive panel, “Beyond the Bed – An
Experience You’ll Never Forget,” not every hotel can offer, literally, royal
experiences — but that makes it even more important that they treat guests like
royalty, the panelists agreed.
“For us,” Juan Carlos Sanjuan, founder and president of
Spain-based Casual Hotels, said, “we are looking to create a new ecosystem… a
happiness industry.”
Nils Korsvoll, vice president of customer journey and
product development at the Scandinavian hotel company Strawberry agreed,
emphasizing the culture his company tries to build from within.
“You have a cliche [that] you hire for passion and you train
for skills. We do that,” Korsvoll said. “Just one example is we don't do normal
recruitment; we do auditions. So, we actually have maybe 500 people at a time
in a given city going on auditions, where they have maybe five minutes to
present themselves, and that way we hire people with lots and lots of
passion.
“They also don’t have the skills,” he added with a chuckle.
“We really do have to train them, which can be a bit of a pain, but you do get
an amazing culture.”
Bailly seconded that notion, saying a successful brand’s
“secret recipe” is a successful culture and strong service commitment.
“Hotel and hospitality are far more than just places where
you sleep and eat scrambled eggs in the morning,” said Bailly, who oversees
Accor brands Sofitel, Sofitel Legend, MGallery and Emblems. “It's not a
commodity. We are emotions makers.”
Strawberry covers a broader range of price points in its
hotel offerings. One way the company found to still meet the desire for
experiences was through a partnership with a live entertainment company,
Korsvoll said.
“So, we have an agreement with Live Nation in all four of
the main Nordic countries and offer tickets, pre-sale access, VIP passes, mini
concerts to people, guests, members, also locals in the community,” he said.
“And we see that resonates really well across all our chain scales. So that’s
one of the things we’re trying to bridge and try to make our mother brands
stand out and not just our chain brands.
“Experiences is something that kind of transcends chain
scales.”
Watch the full discussion with Lorraine Sileo, the founder
of Phocuswright Research and a senior analyst for Phocuswright, in the video
below.
Beyond the Bed - An Experience You’ll Never Forget -
Phocuswright Europe