NEW YORK—In keeping with its modus operandi of frequent reinvention, the Pod Hotel brand is expanding with a second property in New York.
Located in midtown on the east side—like the first property, which has 350 rooms and is well-situated on East 51st Street—the new 369-room hotel is on 39th Street between Lexington and 3rd avenues. The second hotel, which will open next summer, could be called Pod Too, though that and many other details are still to be finalized.
During a news conference Tuesday at the original Pod property on East 51st Street, managing director David Bernstein said plans on the technology front for the second hotel are firmly in place.
“In each guestroom we’re installing a console whereby you can watch your own movies on the television, which will be high definition, and you can plug your laptop or smart phone into the TV,” Bernstein said. “We’re also playing with interactive devices for guests to communicate with each other; we are hoping to make that available.”
Additionally, he said, the team behind the new Pod is working on expanding the technology to allow hoteliers to welcome all arriving guests with an in-room voicemail. The voicemail system also will allow guests to leave each other messages inviting one another to various activities at the hotel.
But guests of the first property needn’t have tech envy, according to Bernstein. “After we put everything in the new hotel, we will put it in the existing property,” he said.
The Pod evolved
Unlike the first hotel, no rooms at the new Pod will share bathrooms. “This was a business decision,” Bernstein said. “I can get about (US)$40 more a night by including a bathroom.” The second property, a converted building that was initially housing for single men when it first opened in 1916 and then became housing for the Salvation Army, will feature a rooftop bar and an as-yet undetermined restaurant concept in the lobby.
The décor and any theme aspects are still to be determined, but if the first Pod is any indication, it will be chic yet welcoming, and cutting-edge. Room rates for the hotel, like the original property, will remain low at around US$150 to US$250 on average, said Bernstein.
“The fact that we keep the rate down has a lot to do with our success. I want all of our guests to walk out feeling that they got a good deal,” he said.
Beyond New York, the Pod brand will soon be coming to Washington, D.C., and Chicago, where owning company BD Hotels has taken over existing buildings for conversions, according to Richard Born, a partner at BD Hotels.
“I’m sure Pods six and seven will be new builds. The concept works for new construction, too,” he said. “But we want to get going sooner rather than later, and it’s faster to use existing buildings.”
Keeping up appearances
BD Hotels is keeping its original Pod Hotel up to speed with a social network for guests, new features on a blog written by the hotel’s concierges, an interactive map in the lobby and a lobby restaurant that opened in the spring featuring locally sourced food and beverage items.
A discerning clientele inspires the Pod to offer new and unique services, Born said.
“Certain people would rather say they’re staying at the Pod than the Holiday Inn. Some people do care about style, and we’ve built a place that people say they’re proud to be in. It’s not a concern for everyone, but it’s amazing how many people—and foreigners, in particular—care about it.”
The hotel has continuously added features to its customized community blog, where guests can engage with one another online, even before arrival. New features are added in the space all the time, such as the recent “perfect day in New York” blog posts written by the hotel’s concierges.
This spring, the hotel expanded upon its outdoor-only restaurant concept to create an in-lobby dining experience. The new Pod Café is “aggressively priced,” with no item above US$12, in part because everything is locally sourced, said managing partner Eliot Silver. In addition to keeping the prices down, this gives guests a “celebration of New York,” he said, as the menu options all come from well-known New York establishments, including Balthazar’s pastries, bagels from H&H, pickles from the Pickle Guys, Brooklyn Lager’s beer and Murray’s Cheese.