Noteworthy quotes from the week's past stories, including Hyatt CEO Mark Hoplamazian referencing Bill Gates previous comment about COVID's expected impact on business travel.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“Bill Gates got it wrong when he said business travel would
drop 50% long-term [due to COVID]. Business travel has New York City booming,
while our leisure travel is still growing (despite softening as revenge leisure
travel fades). Our corporate business is up 12% year-to-date and our business
transient is up 6%.” – Mark Hoplamazian, Hyatt Hotels Corp. Read story
“We think it’s a very compelling financial offering to
franchisees. That’s where we see a competitive advantage from a franchising
perspective.” – Noah Silverman, Marriott International, on the launch of
Project Mid-T by Marriott Read story
“We have seen a bifurcation in hotel performance over the
first four months of the year, which we don’t believe will abate soon. The
increased cost of living is affecting lower-to-middle income households and
their ability to travel, thus lessening demand for hotels in the lower price
tier.” – Amanda Hite, STR/CoStar Read
story
“Our team’s deep understanding of the hospitality industry,
combined with our partnership with Bain Capital, allowed us to structure a deal
that met the needs of our borrower.” – Brendan McCormick, Smith Hill Capital Read story
“This is what Choice does. We grow brands and get them to
perform. So, there is a bit of a marriage in what they’ve historically needed
and what we do as a company.” – Indy Adenaw, Choice Hotels Read
story
“Expectation earlier were that we’d see five to six rate
cuts. Now I think there’s an expectation that it’s anywhere from zero to two
cuts. So, as a general matter, I think the markets are assuming status quo from
a rate perspective and people are making investment, acquisition and sale
decisions based on status quo from a rate perspective.” – Kevin Davis, JLL
Hotels & Hospitality Read story
“Your property's taxable value is the one place you have a
measure of control over your expenses, and the outcome of exerting that control
can be very significant.” – David Wilkes, Cullen and Dykman Read story
“We’ve been growing and getting our systems in place and
right-sizing our organization for the tremendous growth that’s already
occurred. We’ve been franchising, but we’ve been waiting until we felt like we
had all our ducks in a row to take on third-party management.” – John Murray,
Sonesta International Hotels Corp. Read
story
“Hilton’s lifestyle brands are aspirational, design-led, and
experiential with authentic points of view reflected in every aspect of the
stay. I look forward to building on the category’s success and continuing
Hilton’s commitment to pushing the boundaries of what it means to be a
lifestyle brand.” – Kevin Osterhaus, Hilton
Read story
“Having established our first locations in Montreux and
Detroit, we're steadfast in our commitment to meeting the evolving desires of
upcoming generations. This marks the genesis of Project HQ, and we eagerly
anticipate unveiling more exciting initiatives in the months ahead, alongside
Geoff Ballotti and his tremendous Wyndham team. With our sights set on the
future, we aim to build tremendous momentum as we continue to innovate and
inspire.” – Sam Nazarian, sbe Read story
“The trend thus far has skewed towards trophy assets but
we’re starting to hear more about foreign investors looking for possible distress
opportunities which thus far have been somewhat limited. Our view, though, is
that luxury will remain the most in favor and we expect to see more of a push
towards must-have urban assets, particularly across Europe.” – Zach Demuth, JLL
Hotels & Hospitality Read story