CONCIERGE THE CONSULTANT


HARD-EARNED LESSONS ON MAKING THE MOST OF A HOTEL RENOVATION


Written by hospitality consultant: PETER VENISON


During my career in hotel management I was directly involved in and, in most cases, responsible for the renovation of more than 20 hotel and casino properties, the largest being Paradise Island Resort Bahamas, which was reborn as Atlantis. In some locations, such as Paradise Island, we continued to operate the hotel during renovations; in others we temporarily closed down. Here are some of the biggest lessons I learned – sometimes several times over!


Bigger is not necessarily harder Very large renovation projects allow one to employ


more (and sometimes better) resources at the job, by way of project management, engineering consultants, interior designers and, most importantly, bigger construction companies. Large construction companies are likely to be able to throw more talent at the job, to understand the concept of non-performance penalties, and to value the importance of the contract due to its substantive nature. In other words, a major renovation job will command the attention of the companies involved; a small job might just be “fitted in” between other commitments and not given the priority that you expect. All the more reason to apply oneself to the management of a smaller project as if it were huge.


Obsolescence is the enemy of the hotel business Sometimes the subject property is just too far gone to


renovate. It is essential that you recognize this and don’t take on tasks of renovation when the real answer is demolition. Consider the example of the Saint Geran Hotel in Mauritius. This resort was opened in 1972; at the time it was “cutting edge” in design. Over almost thirty years it was given several facelifts, but competition was growing and resort design was improving, not just in Mauritius, but in other competitive holiday destination islands. Around the year 2000 it was decided that to remain competitive the product would have to be substantially improved even though the resort, through superior service and reputation, was still commanding very high rates. Try as we might we could not figure out how to turn a 10ft by 10ft bathroom into a new millennium product. What to do? Despite receiving multi-million dollar offers to purchase the place, we knocked it down and rebuilt a state-of-the-art resort – all, I should add, in the nine months between the peak seasons of Easter and Christmas. It was the right thing to do; room rates immediately doubled!


Spend the bucks where you get the biggest bang If your renovation budget is stretched (and it will be!),


spend more where more people will see it. More “wow” in the lobby will pay bigger dividends than in-room TV screens that are two inches wider than anyone else’s. If you renovate the bedrooms but don’t touch the lobby, many of your potential guests will never get to see what you have done. Paradise Island is a good example. When we acquired


this run-down property it consisted of three tower bedroom blocks surrounding a pool and recreational area that was mostly concrete. The site and the beach, however, were superb, although the beach was separated from the pool by an ugly wall, which was just high enough to obliterate the view of the ocean from a deck chair. Our budget was limited but we built a 13-acre landscaped recreational water park and outdoor aquarium stocked with more than 20,000 tropical fish. We skimped and saved on redecorating the 1,000-plus rooms, but the impact of the public areas caused our occupancy AND room rate to double, almost immediately.


Think of a number and double it; pick a date and stick to it


Your first ‘guestimate’ of what a renovation will cost


will always be wrong. Likewise, your first estimate of how long the renovation will take. Renovation jobs will always uncover more unpleasant surprises than you imagined you would have to deal with. To combat the natural tendency of wishful thinking


you must make sure that you have a very healthy budget contingency, but, at the same time, you must set an end date for the work, reinforced by penalty payments for non- performance. Renovation jobs tend to stretch into the time available. Conversely, more resources get applied when time is of the essence, so you must limit this at the outset by announcing the date that you will re-open - and stick to it. Also, the more quickly you can renovate, the more likely you are to be able to retain the services of your tried and tested regular staff.


26


Author Bio: Peter Venison is the author of ‘Managing Hotels’ and ‘100 Tips for Hoteliers.’ A 50-year veteran of the hospitality field, he continues to work as a consultant to the international hotel and casino industry.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100  |  Page 101  |  Page 102  |  Page 103  |  Page 104  |  Page 105  |  Page 106  |  Page 107  |  Page 108  |  Page 109  |  Page 110  |  Page 111  |  Page 112  |  Page 113  |  Page 114  |  Page 115  |  Page 116  |  Page 117  |  Page 118  |  Page 119  |  Page 120  |  Page 121  |  Page 122  |  Page 123  |  Page 124  |  Page 125  |  Page 126  |  Page 127  |  Page 128  |  Page 129  |  Page 130  |  Page 131  |  Page 132  |  Page 133  |  Page 134  |  Page 135  |  Page 136  |  Page 137  |  Page 138  |  Page 139  |  Page 140  |  Page 141  |  Page 142  |  Page 143  |  Page 144  |  Page 145  |  Page 146  |  Page 147  |  Page 148