Hospitality

When guests enter the Charlotte Marriott City Center, “they’re just jaw-dropped,” says General Manager Crissy Wright. It’s not only that it’s pretty, or that it’s modern — this hotel is the future of Marriott. Called M Beta, it’s the world’s first hotel innovation incubator, a working laboratory for testing new hospitality industry trends. 

Since M Beta opened in October 2016, what has this ambitious experiment revealed? Hamilton Beach Commercial spoke with Wright to find out.

The hotel lobby is rapidly changing from merely an entrance into a place that entrances. “We’re trying to make this more of an experience, a place to go to rather than a place to go through,” Alexandra Jaritz, global head for Tru by Hilton, told the New York Times.

But will you see a real ROI from transforming your lobby into a multifunctional hub for work, socializing and entertainment ? We spoke with Bob Bomholt, Director of Operations for hotel design-build firm Pinnacle South, to find out. Here are five reasons to consider a lobby revamp.

In the late 1960s, the height of hotel interior design (in Wisconsin, at least) was a collision of rough stone walls, purple wall-to-wall carpet, smoked-plastic chairs and circular waterbeds. The home of this mind-boggling décor was named the Gobbler, and it was “the ugliest, and somehow coolest, motel in America,” according to author James Lileks, who compiled a detailed tribute to the Gobbler on his website.

Your hotel probably isn’t that outdated. But is it time for a refresh?  

We spoke with Nicole Gould, Director of Interior Design for Vertically Integrated Projects, to get her advice on how to give a hotel property a fresh look while minimizing disruption to hotel operations. Vertically Integrated Projects is a North Carolina-based company that specializes in furniture, fixtures and equipment (FF&E) design for hotels throughout the southeast and mid-Atlantic.

GLō. Tru. Vīb. The hospitality industry is filling up fast with new hotel brands — almost all of them offshoots of large chains — that cater to millennial travelers. But reaching this coveted demographic requires more than a hip, monosyllabic name.  Here's a look at the hotel branding and service strategies that are most likely to succeed with millennials.