As a new year approaches, hotel executives are generally optimistic about the overall strength of both their companies and the industry.
In recent interviews with Hotel News Now, executives shared their outlooks and strategies for hotel development, investment and management.
Nikheel Advani, Principal and Chief Operating Officer, Grace Bay Resorts
Grace Bay Resorts, a developer and operator with a portfolio of luxury resorts in the Turks and Caicos Islands, had its best year ever in 2022, and Principal and Chief Operating Officer Nikheel Advani said he is bullish about the company's further success, HNN’s Sean McCracken reports.
"Looking into the crystal ball, unless something changes, we're looking to have an incredible 2023," he said, adding demand to Turks and Caicos and the Grace Bay portfolio remain more resilient because the company's hotels are on the "super high end of things."
Pat Mitchell, President, Hogan Hospitality
Hogan Hospitality has both resorts and select-service hotels in its portfolio after its acquisition of Marin Management in 2018, and President Pat Mitchell said the two mesh together better than one would think, McCracken reports.
"At the end of the day, revenue management is the same for all the market segments, and the sales support is the same," she said.
As the hotel management company seeks to grow its portfolio in both Hawaii and the Western U.S., Mitchell said Hogan Hospitality is optimistic it can build on a strong 2022 next year despite the threat of a recession.
Yoshiki Kaneda, Director and Executive Managing Officer, Seibu Prince Hotels Worldwide
The purpose behind Japan-based Seibu Group restructuring its hotel holdings in April 2022 to create two divisions — hotel operator Seibu Prince Hotels Worldwide and asset-holding company Seibu Realty Solutions — was to create a flexible, asset-light business model, HNN’s Terence Baker reports.
“The main reason why we incorporated an asset-light strategy is its tolerability against risk. Other global operators have shifted to asset-light after facing some sort of crisis. We thought it was the right time to shift our model,” said Yoshiki Kaneda, director and executive managing officer.
Kaneda said he believes room demand will return to pre-pandemic levels in 2023, as leisure demand at city properties is set to pick back up due to looser COVID-19 restrictions.
Greg Flynn, Founder, Chairman and CEO, Flynn Properties
Flynn Properties is taking its outsize portfolio growth — from fewer than 30 hotels to 115 hotels in one deal — in stride, HNN’s Bryan Wroten reports. The commercial real estate company is continuing to look for deals, particularly for branded select-service and extended-stay hotels.
“It delivers the best value for money, and therefore it's the largest segment and it’s the fastest-growing segment,” founder, chairman and CEO Greg Flynn said. “It did the best during the pandemic, is doing the best coming out of the pandemic, and so I'm just a big believer in the segment.”
Most of the hotels Flynn Properties acquired in its $1.1 billion deal with affiliates of Highgate and Cerberus Capital Management require some form of upgrade, and Flynn said the company has set aside the necessary funds to do so.
Sean Hehir, President and CEO, Trinity Investments
Trinity Investments President and CEO Sean Hehir said the company is now reaping the rewards of sticking with its strategy of targeting larger corporate- and group-demand-driven assets even as the COVID-19 pandemic affected those properties the most, McCracken reports.
“We still believed in [our investment strategy], and we’re seeing it now,” he said.
The Honolulu, Hawaii-based investment firm is evolving its strategy as well, expanding its portfolio past the Pacific Rim and setting its sights on Europe and Mexico for future expansion.
Thom Geshay, President and CEO, Davidson Hospitality
Davidson Hospitality Group President and CEO Thom Geshay said the hotel operator and the industry as a whole will remain strong in 2023 despite fears about an impending recession, McCracken reports.
"It's interesting because there's a little bit of a disconnect from the news headlines and what we're seeing in the performance data," he said. "What we're not seeing yet in our [profit and loss statement] is the impact of a recession, interest rates and a lot of the headlines you see. The good news is that it hasn't manifested itself yet — at least in our portfolio. We're not seeing it."