Featured Columns
Dennis Nessler, Editor, Hotel Business
Having been in the lodging industry for roughly a decade now, I’ve covered more than my share of conferences and panels, and I’d be hard-pressed to think back to a single session where I haven’t heard the phrase, “barring any terrorist attacks or unforeseen circumstances.” In most cases, it was said in reference to momentum that the economy and, more specifically, the lodging industry, had been gaining.
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Dennis Nessler, Editor, Hotel Business
Anyone who has attended the last several ALIS (Americas Lodging Investment Summit) events can likely recite the phrase “cautious optimism” in their sleep.
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Jones Lang LaSalle Ups U.S. Market Share
CHICAGO—During his three-decade hospitality career, Arthur Adler has survived his share of economic cycles, but the depth of this most recent business cycle has put even more pressure on companies like Chicago-based Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL), where Adler has held the helm for the past decade as Americas CEO and Managing Director of the firm’s Hotels & Hospitality Group. The changing market has led Jones Lang LaSalle to diversify its services as a way to increase its share of the pie.
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CHICAGO—During his three-decade hospitality career, Arthur Adler has survived his share of economic cycles, but the depth of this most recent business cycle has put even more pressure on companies like Chicago-based Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL), where Adler has held the helm for the past decade as Americas CEO and Managing Director of the firm’s Hotels & Hospitality Group. The changing market has led Jones Lang LaSalle to diversify its services as a way to increase its share of the pie.
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Dennis Nessler, Editor, Hotel Business
As I sit down to write my last column for the year, I’m left wondering where the last 12 months went. It seemed like just yesterday I flew out to Los Angeles for the ALIS conference in January to kick off the year’s many industry events.
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Dennis Nessler, Editor, Hotel Business
I have to say I find it curious to see what passes for exciting TV in this day and age. The general public’s insatiable need to get a “behind the scenes” look at just about anything ranging from Las Vegas pawn shops to New York City restaurant kitchens, seems to be increasing by the day. And these industries have most certainly benefitted monetarily from the heightened attention.
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Jay Schultz, Sr. VP, Hospitality Group
Anyone who reads this column knows that I am a big fan of lists. In the past, I have referenced Forbes’ 100 Most Powerful Women; the Fortune 500 Annual Ranking of Americas Largest Corporations; and Working Mother magazine’s Best Places to Work. Now, it’s the June 2012 edition of Fast Company featuring its annual 100 Most Creative People in Business rankings that caught my eye.
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Dennis Nessler, Editor, Hotel Business
Last month, I had the privilege of going down to Atlanta and attending the annual Asian American Hotel Owner’s Association (AAHOA) conference, an event which included everything from a lively trade show to a question and answer session with former U.S. President George W. Bush.
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Jay Schultz, Sr. VP, Hospitality Group
Many of you are seeing this edition of Hotel Business while in New York City, attending the 34th Annual New York University International Hospitality Investment Conference.
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Dennis Nessler, Editor, Hotel Business
As of press time, Apollo Global Management had entered into an agreement to acquire waterpark resort owner/operator Great Wolf Resorts for approximately $703 million, including the assumption of debt, or $7.85 per share in cash, ending a public bidding war for the company.
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Jay Schultz, Sr. VP, Hospitality Group
Over the years, the positions I have held with HOTEL BUSINESS® have enabled me to meet and, in some instances, get to personally know some of the hotel industry’s most iconic figures.
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Jay Schultz, SVP, hospitality group
This is the fourth year in a row I’ve had the privilege of penning a column in which I can report, and perhaps even brag a bit, on HOTEL BUSINESS® being ranked as the hospitality industry’s number one publication in advertising market share. This time around, however, I do so with a considerably different mindset.
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Dennis Nessler, Editor, Hotel Business
The 11th annual ALIS conference returned to its Los Angeles roots late last month after a three-year hiatus in San Diego. The event’s new home is the JW Marriott and Nokia Theatre at LA Live, a venue that provided a much grander stage, both literally and figuratively, for the year’s first major industry gathering.
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Jay Schultz, Sr. VP, Hospitality Group
I'd like to take this opportunity to extend my heartfelt congratulations to Carlson EVP of Development Nancy Johnson, who officially became the American Hotel & Lodging Association’s (AH&LA) 2012 Chair last month during a black tie dinner at New York’s Mandarin Oriental.
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Dennis Nessler, Editor, Hotel Business
When hospitality veteran Jim Abrahamson walked away from his prestigious post as president of the Americas for IHG this summer to join third-party management specialist Interstate Hotels & Resorts, Inc., it raised more than a few eyebrows in the industry.
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Jay Schultz, Sr. VP, Hospitality Group
It’s hard to believe it is November again and time for the annual International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show in New York City. This will be my 24th straight year attending the show.
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Dennis Nessler, Editor, Hotel Business
Some have suggested the recent death of Apple co-founder and technology icon Steve Jobs was one of those rare “where were you when?” moments, such as when JFK was shot in 1963.
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Jay Schultz, Sr. VP, Hospitality Group
Sallie Krawcheck’s departure earlier this month from Bank of America Corporation is just one more example of the ongoing difficulty women executives have had securing, as well as maintaining, C-level jobs in the hospitality, finance and real estate fields. Krawcheck—whose job was eliminated after running the wealth management division of the nation’s largest bank for the past two years—leaves a noticeable void of women holding senior-level positions in the aforementioned industries. One could definitely say that Krawcheck’s untimely departure is a classic example of “taking one step forward and two steps back.”
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Dennis Nessler, Editor, Hotel Business
When construction began on the enormous CityCenter project in Las Vegas several years ago, there were many naysayers (yes you can include yours truly in that group) who wondered if the city could absorb the added supply of some four hotels and approximately 4,800 hotel rooms and ultimately see a return on this more than $9 billion investment.
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Dennis Nessler, Editor, Hotel Business
We’ve all had those moments in a downtown, high-rise hotel where we look out at the city below from our guestroom and say “wow, what a view.” And, at least in my case, that’s generally followed by a more sobering thought such as “this is really high up, if I fell from here I’d be a goner for sure.”
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Jay Schultz, Sr. VP, Hospitality Group
Who says you can’t go home?” It’s more than just a popular rock song from Bon Jovi, it was in fact my first thought upon hearing that Kirk Kinsell had been named president of the Americas for InterContinental Hotels Group, succeeding Jim Abrahamson who left the group to take up the role as president and CEO of Interstate Hotels and Resorts. But rather than a rock star singing about his New Jersey roots, this scenario has a high profile hospitality executive returning to the U.S. to take over a hotel company which boasts some of the industry’s most iconic brands, including Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express and InterContinental Hotels.
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Jay Schultz, Sr. VP, Hospitality Group
Congratulations to the Hilton family and Drew Nieporent, owner and founder of Myriad Restaurant Group—which operates Tribeca Grill, Nobu New York City, Nobu Fifty Seven, Nobu London, Nobu Next Door, Corton, Centrico and Crush Wine & Spirits—for being honored with the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration’s Third Annual Icon of the Industry Award and the Cornell Hospitality Innovator Award, respectively. Both awards were presented during a dinner held in each of the recipient’s honor on June 7, 2011 at the legendary Waldorf=Astoria Hotel in New York.
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Dennis Nessler, Editor, Hotel Business
One of the often-heard criticisms of the lodging industry is the fact that as soon as we start heading in the right direction in terms of demand, we start building hotels again and adding supply into the equation. But this current cycle is not like past ones in that it seems to be more protracted and the unprecedented dearth of lending has brought new builds to a virtual halt in the U.S.
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Jay Schultz, Sr. VP, Hospitality Group
Although not there yet, odds are a full recovery could be right around the corner. This current hotel industry economic recovery reminds me of the famous children’s story of The Little Engine That Could, the classic tale of inspiration to children and adults, where the protagonist spends an awful lot of time working its way up a hill using the semi-positive affirmation “I think I can.”
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Dennis Nessler, Editor, Hotel Business
Marriott International made a bold and controversial decision recently when it opted not to make adult content available at any of its new properties going forward, while also planning to phase it out of its existing hotels
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Jay Schultz, Sr. VP, Hospitality Group
On behalf of the entire staff at HOTEL BUSINESS®, I would like to thank you for making Hotel Business the Number One trade publication serving the hospitality marketplace for the third consecutive year.
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Dennis Nessler, Editor, Hotel Business
As we approach the holidays and the end of the year, it gives us pause to reflect on the past 12 months. For the industry, it was a year of progress to be sure, albeit slow and steady.
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Jay Schultz, Sr. VP, Hospitality Group
Every year at about this time college students well into their senior years are facing the reality that their lives are about to drastically change before too long. It’s a scary time for these young adults.
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Dennis Nessler, Editor, Hotel Business
I recently attended LodgeNet’s third annual Customer Technology Symposium in Boston. As I attended the numerous educational sessions, I tried to get my mind around concepts like cloud computing and converged IP networks. The industry has been criticized often for not being early adopters of technology and for having guestrooms that offer less than most consumers’ homes.
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Jay Schultz, Sr. VP, Hospitality Group
As the summer comes to a close and we look ahead to the more prosperous times that have been predicted by many, I think of several adages that appropriately describe the economic downturn that plagued our industry over the last few years.
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Dennis Nessler, Editor, Hotel Business
One of the staples of our annual Franchise Report is the comprehensive fees report culled together with the cooperation of all the brand companies. As I pour over the many numbers this year, one thing that jumps out at me is there are few meaningful changes from last year.
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Jay Schultz, sr. vp, hospitality group, Hotel Business
Within the past year-and-a-half or so, I’ve made literally dozens of presentations assessing market conditions for HOTEL BUSINESS® advertisers and readers. While the sessions included personal opinions supported by published data and research, the news passed along was rarely, if ever, positive.
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Jay Schultz,
sr. vp, hospitality group,
Hotel Business
We’ve all heard the expression “what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger,” and it certainly applies when it comes to the trials and tribulations that our industry continues to face. However, I wish when Friedrich Nietzsche uttered these words for the first time, someone could have whispered in his ear suggesting he replace “stronger” with “smarter.”
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Olivier Poirot CEO Accor N.A.-Motel 6/Studio 6
IXTAPA, MEXICO—Although gray skies and a steamy downpour greeted them, more than 300 Motel 6/Studio 6 franchisees and corporate Accor attendees yesterday were bent on seeing a brighter outlook for the U.S.-based economy brands during the next 12 to 18 months—using consistency as the key—as they kicked off the first day of Accor North America’s annual conference here in this coastal resort town at Club Med.
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