Inside HomeTowne Studios by Red Roof: Why This Extended Stay Model Works

Glenn: [00:00:05] Hey, everybody. It’s your hospitality friend, Glen. As you know, I am a fan of extended stay, so I haven’t had a chance to check out Hometown Studios here by Red roof. So I contacted my friend Hiten Patel of Dhruv Management, and we’re going to get a tour of this brand new hotel, their third. I’m excited. Great to see you, man.

Hiten: [00:00:25] Nice to meet you Glenn as well.

Glenn: [00:00:27] Nice to meet you. All right. So this is an absolutely beautiful property. First of all congratulations. I can’t wait to see what it’s gonna look like on the inside. But tell me a little bit about why. Because this is your third one now, why you decided to go with this brand, this particular prototype.

Hiten: [00:00:44] So absolutely, you know as extended stay hotels can provide tremendous value when they were developing the right locations. And from an ownership and operator standpoint, the model offer lower operating costs, reduce head of the operations and reliable customer base.

Glenn: [00:01:03] What is it about extended stay that you like? You’re you guys have 150 hotels, a whole panoply of brands. But why partner with Red roof? Why partner on this kind of property with these guys?

Hiten: [00:01:15] Okay, the Red roof has encouraged and updated the prototype for Hometown Studio. So it’s reduced the overall development cost along with the labor cost, you know?

Glenn: [00:01:27] Yeah. Well, the labor cost is low because how many full time employees are you going to have at this particular.

Hiten: [00:01:31] Eight of.

Glenn: [00:01:31] Them. Wow.

Hiten: [00:01:32] That’s including the general manager.

Glenn: [00:01:33] That’s. Yeah. And we just met Ashley and she’s off to a great start over here. I even ran into some happy customers in the lobby, which is pretty cool. So you’ve done three of these already? Are you going to do more?

Hiten: [00:01:47] Yes. So we signed up for eight of them.

Glenn: [00:01:49] You signed up for eight of them?

Hiten: [00:01:50] Yes. So the another one in pipeline, you know.

Glenn: [00:01:52] Excellent. So what are you really liking generally speaking about this category? In general about adding to your definite portfolio.

Hiten: [00:02:00] Hotels so you can see like, you know, after pandemic, like you have seen like, you know, not a lot of owners, they are changing from traditional hotel to extended stay models, you know, because people are traveling and they are looking for project works, you know, in house. And then all the amenities are available from extended stay models, you know, so you will have guest laundry, vending machines, everything, you know, and then you will get a bigger fridge, like what? You have it in a home.

Glenn: [00:02:26] So I got a little surprise for us. We got our friend Matt Hostetler over here, right? He runs development for our red roof before we meet him. What is it that you like about working with these guys over at Red roof?

Hiten: [00:02:36] So definitely, definitely. They have provided a support from, you know, when we break the ground until we open up this property. So. And also we have contacted Michael, that’s the development development guy. Yeah. And he provided the support to us until I supposed to open this one.

Glenn: [00:02:55] Excellent. So what do you think? Do you want to should we go meet up with him and get inside and see.

Hiten: [00:02:58] What’s It’s going.

Glenn: [00:02:58] All right. And by hospitality magic. We’ll see you in the lobby.

Glenn: [00:03:36] Or through the magic of hospitality.

Glenn: [00:03:37] I found out my friend Matt Hostetler over here, chief development officer over at Redwood. Matt, great to see you, buddy.

Matt: [00:03:42] Great to see you, Glenn, as always.

Glenn: [00:03:43] So we are here is brand spanking new hotel. And, you know, I’ve been following this story with you for a while, and it’s really great to finally be here with you to see one of those things. So how do you think about you guys together? Give me a little tour of the place. Yeah, well, listen, we’re we’re looking forward to showing you this wonderful hometown Studios by Red Roof in Bradenton. Oh, yeah. Hello, Bradenton. All right, I’m gonna turn this camera around and let’s get going. All right. Right. Let’s follow us. Yes! All. And look, it’s actually the general manager. Oh. Hello, Ashley. How are you doing?

Speaker 5: [00:04:16] Hey, how are you?

Glenn: [00:04:16] Great to see you. What’s it like operating a brand new hotel?

Speaker 6: [00:04:19] I mean, it’s fun.

Glenn: [00:04:20] Yeah.

Speaker 5: [00:04:22] You know.

Glenn: [00:04:23] I love it. You love that response. It is absolutely fun. And you know what, Matt? I like visiting a brand new hotel. So, Matt, tell me a little bit about why people are building these properties with you.

Speaker 7: [00:04:34] Well, there’s there’s a lot of opportunity in the extended stay space, frankly. Glenn. Yeah. All around the United States hometown studios is a great, great brand associated with red roof, obviously. And we’ve been in business for 53 years. So when we dove into this space, we were so excited to move this brand forward. And even with a new construction prototype to be able to partner franchise with Dhruv Management, one of the leading developers and operators, specifically in Florida and across the country with multiple brands. We were glad they chose us as well.

Glenn: [00:05:08] Yeah, and as we talked about earlier, this is their third one that’s opening. They were the pilot program. So let’s take a look in the room. All right guys, let’s go and follow us. Let’s take a look. So the first one we’re going to see here is a king right? Yes. So what are the essential parts of this gentleman.

Hiten: [00:05:24] So they have the open concept with the cabinets not like the traditional one. So that’s help us to reduce the labor cost. You know that’s easy for the housekeepers to clean the cabinets.

Glenn: [00:05:36] And I will also add it helps me as a guest not leave something behind behind. Correct. So that will also save your money because you don’t have to send back. Yeah.

Speaker 7: [00:05:46] It was very important, Glenn, to, to start, when we thought about the prototype, it was actually prior to Covid, when Covid hit, there were a lot of things that changed. Just the ability to get to raw materials. Drew management had that under control. We got together and we we revisited our prototype and we did it collectively together. And we’ve eliminated, we eliminated a lot of we like to say we cut corners. And in the construction business, we know corners cost money, but we also we. We excluded the drawers, the cabinets. Except for when we needed from a safety perspective for children. So if you take a look, all. We have a lot of cubbies. We have a lot of storage space here because it is an extended stay product. We have.

Glenn: [00:06:28] I love the. I love what you’re saying there. We really thought it through where you have the, the, the drawers down low because the children. These aren’t the things you necessarily think of. Also, I want to point out before we we talk a little bit more. Look at this beautiful floor mat. I remember you guys. I think with red roof plus was the first ones to even introduce this kind of flooring. It really ups the feel of for a guest when they’re staying in the hotel. Now, what did you want to show me?

Speaker 7: [00:06:53] Well, there’s a lot of space storage space, you know, extended stay is a is a segment of hotel business. So that means you typically will have more with you when you come along, when you’re traveling, traveling nurses, military you know, construction workers, people that typically aren’t here, but they’re going to be here for anywhere from 7 to 28 days. Right? So we brought a lot more.

Glenn: [00:07:14] They need to put their stuff away because you don’t want to sit around with that clutter, correct?

Speaker 7: [00:07:18] Right. Yeah. And we also have some great communal space in the hotels as well. But you want to make sure that you’re neat, clean. They have a place for storage for their clothing, works, work things. And and it is a beautiful and it’s just a beautiful, beautiful opportunity and a beautiful room.

Speaker 8: [00:07:34] It, it, it really is.

Glenn: [00:07:36] So how do you feel about the, the layout and operationally speaking, aside from the housekeeping, how does this work for you?

Hiten: [00:07:43] So you know, that help us to reduce our labor cost, first of all, and then also help us, you know, the red roof has design, the hometown studio prototype that help us to reduce the labor cost along with the operational cost as well. Yes.

Speaker 8: [00:07:58] Also.

Glenn: [00:07:59] Hey, I love the details. Either side of the bed over here, you’ve got you’ve got lighting, you’ve got outlets, you’ve got USB ports with a phone. And if you need a little time to reflect and read at the Bible as well, a nice piece of artwork. How long did it take? Guys for this to really come together and for you to really understand what this concept should be and wanted to be.

Speaker 7: [00:08:25] Well, the great part about it is Drew’s been in the industry for a long time. They understand the difference between transient and extended stay business and the model. When you hold true to the model, that’s when his operational costs really, really, really minimize themselves. You’re not getting daily clean, you’re getting weekly clean. So unless there’s a specific situation where they ask that’s the goal. So what does that reduce labor costs? It reduce obviously Head count and specifically whenever you’re talking with a multi-unit operator. Glenn. They like scale. Multi-unit scale. What’s that mean? They buy more product, less cost. So they’ll be and they’ll be able to deliver it to each and every one of their properties at a better price. And, you know, at Red roof, we always make sure that we’re doing the best things and the best interests of our owners and operators of the hotels.

Glenn: [00:09:18] Yes. And I will say also, I got I’m taking the guest side in this interview. So we have the good yin and yang. I like this little seating area that you guys have over here as well.

Speaker 7: [00:09:28] Well, Glenn, if you if you have an opportunity to make the food in your room, you have to have a place to eat the food in your room.

Speaker 8: [00:09:36] That’s, that’s great. So you have a two, two.

Speaker 7: [00:09:39] Two top barn burner. So that’s very safe. You have the hood for the cooking to be air ventilated out of the room.

Glenn: [00:09:50] And again, back to the flooring that prevents the the odors from kind of getting trapped in here. It helps with the maintenance, helps with the guest service scores. What about the the restaurant? Let’s see. All right, I’m gonna go in here. That’s nice. Beautiful.

Speaker 7: [00:10:07] And the nest.

Glenn: [00:10:08] Oh, look at the shower.

Speaker 7: [00:10:09] Beautiful shower. You have the true red on the wall. You have the soap dispenser and the shampoo. Very beautiful. Spa like shower head. And, you know, the nesting cubbies. Very proud of those nesting. If you if you understand nesting, that means home. So this is kind of the second home feeling because they’re on the road, they’re traveling for work and they’re away from their loved ones in some cases.

Glenn: [00:10:32] That’s awesome. All right. I feel like I’ve been away from my loved ones, so maybe I’m traveling with someone. I need another bed. Maybe we should go and check that out. Let’s go see a demo. All right, let’s go do it. I’m gonna snap my fingers. All right. Oh, magic. We’re in a double room. I love how that worked. Elevator service is for suckers, apparently. All right, so we got the double here. I’m curious what? You know, obviously there’s a lot of similarities. This room has two beds. What are any other notable differences that owners and operators should be thinking about?

Hiten: [00:11:05] We have the same amenities as king, king and single and doubles, but all the size of the bed are queen size, the entire floor. Yes. So we don’t have to buy bed sheets or, you know, mattress covers. Everything is the same size.

Glenn: [00:11:20] Oh, that’s really that’s really.

Speaker 7: [00:11:22] Yeah. So when we say double, it’s double queen.

Glenn: [00:11:24] Yes, that’s really important distinction. And I’m also again, really well thought out. You may spend a few more bucks on the bed at the beginning, but the customers will like it so much more. And the linen savings and that labor behind sorting them probably creates the ROI very quickly, correct? Yeah. All right. So I’m curious, what is the mix in this building between kings and the double queens.

Hiten: [00:11:49] So for King we have 46 and then we have 78 doubles.

Glenn: [00:11:53] Wow. So what is it about that market that you’ve got this particular mix?

Hiten: [00:11:57] So, you know, we have noticed after pandemic, like people were trying to book doubles a lot. Then King, you know, so people want more space, more spacious.

Glenn: [00:12:07] Right. But Matt say you, you, you close the deal when it’s near a data center, you got a lot of single people. Are you able to like, just create whatever you feel is right for your market in terms of mix?

Speaker 7: [00:12:18] You know, operational teams will always work with their either their own revenue management teams or they can partner with our team as well, just to understand what’s going on in the market, to be able to put that mix together. You know, during the development phase, because obviously that needs to be figured out early on. Well, this is still a very growing area. Bradenton, Florida. Tampa region. Sarasota on down to Naples. This is a very, very on the East Coast growing space. So there’s a lot of green space still and there’s a lot of opportunity still coming to this region.

Glenn: [00:13:06] Also, though, you’ve got a lot of opportunity throughout the country. And one of the things, Matt, that I love is that you have people there that are going to help take you through everything, including my guess is figuring out what the right mix is between the singles and doubles.

Speaker 7: [00:13:18] Absolutely. And, you know, we take a look at those markets across the country. There’s a lot of similarities for extended stay. So we can talk more about that.

Glenn: [00:13:25] All right. So you know what? I want to go downstairs. I want to see how everything kind of comes together to complete the resort experience for everybody here. Yeah, I’m calling it a resort because I’m living here and how it works for the back of house. So let’s go do that by the magic of the hospitality. Let’s go. See you downstairs. We checked out both the different room types that you have here. I want to learn a little bit about more of the facilities for the guests. I want to learn a little bit more how your staff works. Back of house. So, Matt, what do you think we should look at first?

Speaker 7: [00:13:56] You know what, Glenn? I think we should show. Look at the guest laundry. Let’s take a peek at that.

Glenn: [00:14:00] All right. So guest laundry, I guess, is really essential when you’re talking about people staying for 7 to 28 days and even maybe even longer or for five. Oh, sorry. I’m not good with math guys.

Speaker 7: [00:14:16] That’s okay. We have we obviously have an active guest laundry today, so the customers take advantage of it. So we have fantastic products. One of our brand partners here, Maytag, but we also have the washers and dryers. And the good part about it for the operator is it’s, it’s the ability to make some additional money. Oh, along with the guest.

Glenn: [00:14:38] Yeah, that’s really, that’s really important as, as well. And it’s the type of thing the guests would be spending money on anyways. So you could profit a little bit while adding a convenience that’s essential. I can’t imagine these people. I need to take time off to go to a laundromat. Right. I don’t even know if there is a laundromat around here. Plus, when I’m at home, I want to feel at home. And that’s essential. So, absolutely. Also, one of the things that I like to have at home is maybe a place to work out if you’ve seen any pictures of me lately, you know, like they use that. So what do you have here for those guys?

Speaker 7: [00:15:13] Well, listen, we actually have a fitness center. We’ll take you to see that and see where they pump you up.

Glenn: [00:15:17] I think it’s right around the corner. We’re gonna we’re gonna bulk up. But wait. Hold on, I need ice. So you got a great ice Florida here conveniently. Yeah, you got that? We’re gonna come back and say hello to everyone over here. Justin! Hey, everybody. All right? We’re headed this way.

Hiten: [00:15:34] So.

Glenn: [00:15:36] Oh, we need help with the fitness room. You see, this is why I don’t work out too many barriers of entry.

Speaker 7: [00:15:42] But you know what? It’s safety first. The right people need to. The right people need to be able to get into the right location. And I’m sure that we don’t want just we don’t want the underage that are too small on the equipment and potentially hurting themselves. We have we want to manage the risk as much as we possibly can.

Glenn: [00:15:58] Absolutely. So it looks like you have a few essential pieces of equipment here. And Matt, I can’t help but think about prototype design. This feels about the same as one bay. Yeah, that’s that’s.

Speaker 7: [00:16:10] That’s, that’s really, truly what it is. Glenn. It’s one bay out of the, out of the out of the hotel space. These are the basic requirements, right? Keeps people active, keeps, keeps people you know, pumped up, if you will, with the dumbbells. They named them after me.

Glenn: [00:16:24] I love it. So why choose this particular type of equipment? How does that build into the, the guest experience with the way that you have it?

Hiten: [00:16:34] You know, so the guests you know, they can work out easily so they can feel like they are staying at home, you know, and that’s the reason we also have all the amenities like gym. Then we also have guest laundry. We also have a marketplace if you need to check out that.

Glenn: [00:16:49] Oh, we’re gonna go check out the marketplace in one second because after a good working workout, lifting all these dumbbells over here I’m gonna need a little bit of snack. So let’s go check that out.

Hiten: [00:16:59] Yes.

Glenn: [00:16:59] Let’s go.

Speaker 7: [00:17:00] And I’m sure this room will get a lot of use.

Glenn: [00:17:03] Yeah. For for me, this is absolutely perfect for what I need with the added convenience of being down the hall. I’m absolutely loving that. But again.

Speaker 6: [00:17:12] Now I’m getting hungry.

Hiten: [00:17:14] Let’s go.

Speaker 7: [00:17:16] Marketplace.

Glenn: [00:17:17] The market is right over here. All your essentials. Also, what’s great is the, the fridge that you had here. So again, you could be creating, you could be supplying meals for people after a hard day’s work, right? Correct. So that’s why don’t you show me. I’ll come around this way.

Hiten: [00:17:35] Then we have a frozen food and then drinks. And then we also have the snacks, you know, on the go home. And then if somebody needs a change. We also have a change machine over here.

Glenn: [00:17:47] Beautiful. All right. Oh! Oh! Change machine. Great. Perfect. Absolutely right. Now you have a door right here to back door. Go right there and check out the back of house. So let’s do this here. And what I’m noticing, gentlemen, is that you really took care to limit the amount of footsteps and create maximum opportunity for staff to interact with the guest.

Speaker 7: [00:18:06] And not to mention Glenn, most importantly, it’s return on investment of that space. So the operator wants to make sure we want to make sure for the operator that every nook and cranny is a revenue generating opportunity, right?

Glenn: [00:18:19] So you’ve got the front desk that we’re standing right here, right next to it. You’ve got a profit center right there, and the general manager’s office is right there, security cameras. So you can see what’s going on in the properties of all time. Absolutely essential when I’m keeping.

Speaker 7: [00:18:36] Our guests safe.

Glenn: [00:18:37] Thinking of you’re right. Think about those kids again. And now right behind here I love is where the employees kind of get together laundry. Great. It’s used like that. Everybody’s chipping in today to try to keep this operation running. So how does this work? What function does it serve?

Hiten: [00:18:54] So it helps us to reduce, first of all, the labor cost you know, because the front desk can at night, they can do the laundry for the day, you know, so that significant cost, that’s the only reason we have only eight full time employees that can run the entire property. You know, that’s about like 124 rooms. Wow.

Glenn: [00:19:12] That’s that’s awesome. Matt, anything else that you want to add about this.

Speaker 7: [00:19:16] Area he’s hitting? He’s hit all the nail on the head with this one because again we go back to extended stay less service levels to the, to the guests reduced cost. And, you know, it just, it serves the purpose just all being together night ought to be able to work the same way. Keep those washers, dryers working for the next crew coming in the next morning.

Glenn: [00:19:39] All right. So let’s go let’s go back out front and just finish this bad boy up. What do you got? Let’s do it. All right. Yep. What a tour. What an experience. It was really fun learning about this this brand. Matt. After all this time, I finally got to see it. How do you feel about how things went?

Speaker 7: [00:19:53] Listen, I feel great. You feel great when you’re working with a great partner like Dhruv Management, and we’re excited. We’re looking forward to more. We’re looking forward to more coming out of the ground, getting open and serving the customer.

Glenn: [00:20:05] And you got five more so that you’re still building right over here.

Hiten: [00:20:09] It’s in your pipeline.

Glenn: [00:20:10] Oh, man. All right, I gotta check it out. But Matt, the one thing that I know to put a button on this whole thing is how do we learn more if we want to build one of these for ourselves? I got I got some property in my backyard. I might want to put one in.

Speaker 7: [00:20:22] Well, you know, you know how to find us. It’s red roof franchising.com. All of our contacts for our directors are on that page. My mug is on that page as well. You can always reach out to me.

Glenn: [00:20:33] Awesome. Thank you so much for watching this video. Red Roof franchising.com. That’s Red roof franchising.com. Look at this brand new beautiful hotel. I’m gonna get one for myself. So should you. Thanks, guys. See you later. Bye.