What Hotel Owners Want From Brands Right Now

Glenn: [00:00:00] Hey, everybody. It’s your hospitality friend Glenn, here at the lodging conference where I found my friend Mark Sergot, chief development officer with IHG. Before we talk to this guy, I want to thank you, and I want to send a little love to our friends over at Actabl. Actabl, they give you the power to profit. Please check them out. Mark eight months in this gig. Eight months. Pretty cool for you. I’m curious as to what it’s been like learning the position and creating the strategy that’s going to set you forward once you leave here at the lodging conference.

Mark: [00:00:29] I’m grateful that I’ve been with IHG for almost seven years, so knowing all the players in the company, knowing all the ins and outs of how things get done was of course critical. Very, very helpful.

Glenn: [00:00:39] That’s probably months and months and months of ramp up.

Mark: [00:00:41] Absolutely. Months and months, months and months of ramp time for sure. So now it’s been about just diving into the team, the team, the organization. How are we structured? Where is the opportunity really understanding what our owners are looking for, spending time at conferences like this to really get into those details and build those relationships and hear firsthand. Ultimately, I’ve been in the hotel business for over 30 years. The one thing that has remained true, and I think will always be true, I hope, is that that voice of the customer, no matter where they are in the lifecycle of the business is critical. So spending time with our owners, hearing what they’re saying, what’s working for them, what’s not. And times are a little choppy right now.

Glenn: [00:01:17] Times are a little choppy right now, that is for sure. And the funny thing is, just yesterday I was talking to a management company guy and he said he loved talking to the brands for just the same reason. It’s like, I don’t we’re not, it’s not about selling or being sold to. It’s just about a check in. Where are we today? Are we aligned? How can we get to know each other as human beings so we can continue to do business successfully, which I liked a lot.

Mark: [00:01:39] Yes, indeed. Yeah. That relationship piece, no matter where you are in the ecosystem, is important. It opens that door, it provides that comfort. And, you know, you kind of align on so many things before you even enter the business conversation. So it’s critical.

Glenn: [00:01:52] But once those doors are open, you hit milestones like 200 Indigo hotels.

Mark: [00:01:56] Open.

Glenn: [00:01:57] Right now and you’re crushing it with Garner, a conversion brand. I want to talk about both of those. But first Indigo I remember being there when that brand first launched, right. And it was really fun to find out what consumers thought the brand would be and what it would ultimately become. And ever since then, watching it kind of go up like a rocket.

Mark: [00:02:16] Yeah, it’s been exciting. It’s a lifestyle brand. It’s meant to be neighborhood focused in those kind of key locations where you can walk out the door and experience the community that you’re in. And, you know, as we think about why do people travel? Well, it’s not just to send the meeting or the business meeting or go to see a relative or family or friend. It’s to experience the locale. So the neighborhood brand is, which is what Indigo’s all about. And just terrific to see 200 of those all around the world and another 134. So signed with more to come. So it’s, it’s an exciting milestone for that brand. And then you mentioned Garner.

Glenn: [00:02:49] I did and listen, I just want to just set everybody up. We are in a conversion world. We are right now. Right. And a lot of owners are making decisions right now. And that’s why I think giving you a great opportunity to get this brand more to the forefront. The team has done a great job over the last few years, really creating visibility behind it. And you really seem to be hitting your stride now.

Mark: [00:03:11] We are. It’s been exciting to see Garner, you know, take off. And so what is this? What is the recipe here? What’s the recipe for success? Look, I think it’s owners are in different cycles. Many owners as I chatted with some today have been you know, with a competing brand for a number of years. I talk a lot about the commercial success and how is commercial success driven, and as we zero in on that point, putting aside all the things we typically talk about in development, are you giving me key money? What are the fees? What’s the term, etc.? Yes, those are important, but how are we going to drive performance, which ultimately drives the profitability for these owners? So that’s where the conversation has been really interesting, where every single one of them has said, I got a great deal before my term is ending. I want better performance. And so that’s what we’re driving through. Gardner. We’re driving that higher level of performance, and that’s what’s causing that, that shift. And we’re, you know, it’s our highest, fastest scaling brand in the history of IHG. So it’s catching on because owners are seeing a compelling value proposition.

Glenn: [00:04:12] That’s pretty that’s pretty amazing back in the day. And I mean, like 20 something years ago, the general theory was once you hit 100 hotels, that means critical mass. That’s still true.

Mark: [00:04:24] I would say we got to get a little higher than that. Yeah, that’s kind of.

Glenn: [00:04:26] What I’m thinking because I feel like there’s so many more brands, so many more companies, so many more everything.

Mark: [00:04:30] Yeah, exactly. And particularly when you look at travel being so much more global today. Yeah, so much more international today. You certainly want to see a broader number than that to be at some level of of scale. So we’re marching right along there. Garner has not only taken off in the US, though. We’ve got Garner’s planned for Canada. We’ve got Garner’s already open in in Japan and in other parts of the world. So it is it is a global brand and it’s taking off.

Glenn: [00:04:53] Awesome. Anything else that you want to mention while I got you over here?

Mark: [00:04:55] Well, I think one other thing I she’s 21 brands offer that kind of, you know, rung on the ladder for any need that they have. And the other one that I’m really excited about is our Ruby brand. Yeah. Ruby, we brought to the US just launched about a year and a half ago. We have New York and Chicago signed working on a few other deals. But this is the opportunity for owners that want to convert. And it could be an owner who’s in the apartment space. It could be an owner who’s in the who has you know, corporate buildings that they’re looking to repurpose the perfect brand, a micro brand, an exciting brand to get to know. So lots of exciting things happening here. Garner. Ruby. Indigo. My three favorite kids right now.

Glenn: [00:05:34] Excellent, I love it. Mark. So great getting to talk to you.

Mark: [00:05:36] Talk with you. Thanks.

Glenn: [00:05:37] So great talking to you over there. Please like share, subscribe, all that kind of good stuff. And for Mark and myself. See you next time.

Mark: [00:05:43] Take care.