The Refinishing Touch Blog

As consumers cut back and companies slash their travel budgets, many hotels are left wrestling with mounting debts. A number of these issues were discussed at last week’s RealShare Hotel Investment Summit. One serious issue broached at the Summit was what should happen when a hotel is slipping into ‘financial malaise’- and possible exit strategies for hotel operators. Various outcomes were discussed – from tactics to increase asset value through to hotel closures.

In a related article, Lodging Hospitality reviews the difficult end-road faced by some hotel owners: default on loans or file for bankruptcy while better-capitalized enterprises ride the storm by writing off debt, restructuring operations and waiting for the markets to turn around.

Sustainability is one of the first casualties in budget cuts. But more hotel operators and owners are coming to terms with the fact that sustainability is a necessity. Public awareness is higher than ever, and customers are looking at an establishment’s sustainability track record as a deciding factor. Not only that but with new emerging technology which is both becoming more effective and cheaper to deploy, the savings that sustainability can bring about can no longer be neglected. In order to stay ahead of the curve, businesses are going to have to invest in it or risk losing more of their already dwindling customer base.

Keeping a business afloat while also integrating sustainable practices has never been easy, especially now. But those able to succeed in both, will undoubtedly have a huge lead when the market turns. After three decades of working with the hospitality sector, The Refinishing Touch team knows that the hospitality industry will recover from this, greener than ever.

Analysts expect the hotel industry to bottom out at the end of this year and then things will get interesting as debt loosens up, capital becomes available, and operators keen to make new acquisitions - and new fortunes - will go on a spending spree. More of this in Friday’s post.