February 15th, 2013 by TRT Blog

Here at The Refinishing Touch, our production crews are always looking for new and innovative ways to reuse quality existing furniture assets for the benefit of our clients. And with our project scope ranging from furniture refinishing, bringing pieces back to like-new condition and removing any signs of wear and tear, to re-upholstering assets, updating and modernizing headboards, chairs and other types of seating, our goal is to continually make our services better and more efficient.

One of our most recent renovation projects brought us to the Best Western Fort Walton Beach Hotel, in the sunshine state of Florida. The beautiful beachfront property features over 100 guestrooms, with a mini-refrigerator tucked away in a corner of each room. With summer tourism season fast approaching, the property called on The Refinishing Touch to remanufacture existing armoires, and transform the pieces into new side tables and top-of-the-line refrigerator cabinets – a project that would create zero landfill waste.

We started off with a bulky three-drawer television armoire, which we then cut into two separate pieces – one piece consisting of a three-drawer base, and the other a wooden frame to be fit for a fridge. From there, The Refinishing Touch refinished the wooden furniture assets, and added a stone solid surface to the base’s top, creating a sleek new dresser for the guestrooms. Then, the top portion of the former television armoire was restored into a new refrigerator cabinet, beautifully framing existing mini-fridges for each room.

The project prevented any wood from making its way into landfills, and demonstrated the environmentally-friendly and cost-saving potential furniture re-purposing offers. The Best Western Fort Walton Beach Hotel was able to simultaneously save on budget costs, time, carbon emissions and landfill waste by investing in our award-winning furniture asset management solutions – providing benefits to hotel management and guests alike.

For more information on how to re-purpose existing furniture at your own establishment, please email us today for a free quote. To book a stay and see our work firsthand, visit Best Western Fort Walton Beach Hotel’s website here.

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August 28th, 2012 by TRT Blog

As tourists pack up their bags and the summer comes to a close, hoteliers around the nation are taking the time to evaluate operating performances during the end of season lull – and the results are spreading some much needed optimism around the industry.

According to a recent article in 4Hoteliers, hotel markets in key Floridian locales – including Orlando, Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Daytona Beach – have fully recovered and gained momentum since the nightmarish recession.

In the Orlando area alone, the number of occupied room nights has surpassed pre-recession statistics, with over 4.6 million room nights sold this past year (May 2012 YTD). The figure indicates a 3 percent increase from the nights recorded five years earlier, in May 2007 YTD.

As providers of sustainable, on-site furniture asset management services to numerous hospitality clients across the nation, The Refinishing Touch commends the industry for demonstrating persistence, tenacity, and, as a result, recovering from the economic slump that severed so many other business sectors.

Our furniture refinishing, reupholstering, and remanufacturing services have been implemented in some of the most well-known hotel chains, such as the Hilton, InterContinental Hotels Group, and Wyndham Worldwide. And even as the market continues to flourish, our sustainable services remain as the leading sustainable, cost-effective furniture asset management, improving the overall appearance of an establishment while remaining cognizant of a company’s bottom line.

For more information on The Refinishing Touch’s furniture asset management services across the hospitality, government and higher education industries, please visit http://www.therefinishingtouch.com/projects.html. For the latest updates on our sustainable renovation projects, be sure to follow us on Twitter: @RefinishTouch.

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August 24th, 2012 by TRT Blog

Over the past few months, we have noticed an uptake in the discussion about green government buildings. While the pending election may act as an influence, here at The Refinishing Touch, we hope to encourage an ongoing, continued discussion about the importance of furniture asset management and how government buildings can benefit from the practice.

A recent article in Sustainable Industries discusses how the Federal Government should and can make sustainability a priority on all levels of decision making. The first of which is about changing the fundamental thinking behind green buildings: business- and investment-wise. Currently, 87 percent of the money spent in federal buildings accounts for salaries and benefits, as opposed to green initiatives.

As a sustainable, on-site furniture refinishing company, with over three decades of experience in the government, hotels and universities industries, we understand the important of environmentally-friendly, energy-conserving initiatives, while maintaining budget requirements.

While we believe it’s important for government buildings and organizations to review traditional green strategies, including access to public transit, telecommuting, and indoor air quality control, non-traditional tactics are also important to consider. Federal agencies, Army housing, Navy bases and even the White house have implemented The Refinishing Touch’s furniture asset management services, through refinishing, remanufacturing, and reupholstering, to save up to 80 percent on budget, and 90 percent carbon emissions when compared to buying new.

For more information on The Refinishing Touch’s services, or to get a free quote for the services at your government building, visit our website at www.therefinishingtouch.com.

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August 21st, 2012 by TRT Blog

As the last few weeks of summer dwindle down, we here at The Refinishing Touch would like to take a moment to reflect on a season that made its way into both our hearts and our record books. As we continued to provide our on‐site environmentally safe and sustainable furniture asset management services throughout the scorching hot months, we also celebrated a couple of very memorable milestones.

In the early summer season, The Refinishing Touch announced its first international expansion with the opening of an administrative office in Toronto, Canada. Since then, the new division has serviced our hospitality clients across various Canadian provinces. With an estimated 270,000 rooms across 10,000 hotels, Canada provides us with a robust market accompanied with eye-catching scenery.

The office expansion wasn’t the only occasion we were celebrating. One month later, The Refinishing Touch reached its 35-year anniversary, a milestone that means the world to us. Over the years, we have been privileged to work with over 20,000 clients in the hospitality, government and higher education sectors. Through it all, we have remained dedicated to providing environmental business practices to protect both the environment and a company’s bottom line.

The next month, in July, we kept busy by sponsoring ‘Pressure Free PIPs’, a Hotel Interactive webcast dedicated to providing advice on saving a hotelier’s budget and franchise status through renovation alternatives.  We were joined by hospitality industry veterans, Glenn Haussman (Hotel Interactive), Jennifer Ramsey (Ramsey Purchasing) and Anne Jones (Design Atelier). In case you missed it, you can view the webcast in its entirety here.

We’d like to thank all of our clients and loyal supporters who have made the summer season such a success. We look forward to ringing in the fall with you. To stay updated with all of The Refinishing Touch’s projects and events, be sure to like our Facebook page or follow us on Twitter: @RefinishTouch.

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August 7th, 2012 by TRT Blog

As we mentioned in our last blog post, we recently attended the BITAC Purchasing & Design East at the end of July and in addition to meeting some great contacts, we were also able to attend some very informative and educational sessions. One of which was a discussion with Bruce Ford, SVP of Business Development with Lodging Econometrics, a hotel industry research firm.

During the discussion, Bruce provided insight into the current hotel market, including why 27 months of industry improvement has increased the number of renovation projects.

Of the current construction trends, owners of hotel properties in need of renovation are increasingly making those restorations, instead of selling, with the goal of saving long-term money while enabling increased room rates. In fact, this trend has been so widespread, according to Bruce, hotel sale numbers are only half of what experts thought they would be for 2012.

Also, renovation tactics, including refinishing, reupholstering, and remanufacturing, are being used to meet corporate brand product improvement plans (PIPs), which can be pricey and difficult to fulfill. By renovating, as compared to buying new furniture, hotel owners are taking out fewer loans and minimizing upfront costs, while still maintaining their franchise status.

If you’re a hotel owner thinking about renovating, Bruce suggests you start planning now. Even though the summer, conference season and the holidays mean busy hotels for the foreseeable future, the offseason is right around the corner. To read the entire article on Bruce’s BITAC session, visit Hotel Interactive here.

And if you’re looking to complete renovations at your hotel, from armoire conversions to custom remanufacturing, contact The Refinishing Touch for a free quote.

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August 3rd, 2012 by TRT Blog

Here at The Refinishing Touch, we always enjoy attending industry events because they allow us to meet other vendors, catch up with past customers, and connect with new, promising contacts. And last month was no exception – we spent a good portion of July flying across the country to attend ACUHO (Association of College and University Housing Officers – International) in Anaheim, CA and BITAC East in Hollywood, FL.

Our whirl-wind month began in Anaheim on July 7^th. The ACUHO event was held at the Orange County Convention Center and kicked off on Friday night with a group outing to the Angels baseball game. The next day, in spirit of the event’s theme of ‘Going Green’, we were able to speak with both newcomers and long-time ACUHO participants on the positive environmental impact that our services provide. While we attend the ACUHO event annually, this year it was great to see a large number of first-time attendees.

Next, we traveled to Florida for the BITAC East event, beginning on July 22^nd. We started the event with a wonderful dinner and networking session where we got to meet potential customers who are eager to get renovation projects in the pipeline. We also had the pleasure of speaking during Monday’s lunch about the financial and environmental benefits of furniture asset management – we even gave away ‘office dirt’, a little can of grass to brighten up any office desk.

Finally, we participated in The Peanut Butter & Jelly Challenge, an event-wide charity effort that provides sandwiches for needy individuals and families. This year the BITAC event helped feed over 1,600 people.

Now that these two events are complete, The Refinishing Touch is looking forward to connecting with the people we had the pleasure of meeting, while continuing to save our customers money and carbon emissions by embracing furniture asset management services.

Were you at the ACUHO and BITAC events this past month and didn’t get the chance to speak with us? Send us an email at sales@therefinishingtouch.com. We would love to connect!

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August 1st, 2012 by TRT Blog

The second quarter in 2012 is one The Refinishing Touch will never forget. Anniversaries, international expansions and visits to Necker Island were all celebrated throughout the past few months, and just a few of the reasons why you don’t want to miss the latest issue of our quarterly newsletter – InTouch.

In the fifth edition of InTouch, you’ll read about our new three-phase renovation project at The PGA Resort & Spa; we take a closer look at the hospitality industry’s recent summer boom; and give an overview of responses we received from our new weekly blog survey.  We’ll also recap The Refinishing Touch sponsored Hotel Interactive webinar – Pressure Free PIPs – and commemorate the memorable company milestones achieved throughout the second quarter.

Look for the newest edition of InTouch in your inbox tomorrow, and as always, we hope you enjoy the read. If you’re not already a subscriber, you still have time – be sure to sign up for our quarterly newsletter by filling out the subscription form at the bottom of our homepage.

Thanks for another great quarter, and as always, please stay InTouch!

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July 31st, 2012 by TRT Blog

As the summer continues drawing to a close, The Refinishing Touch has kept busy during the past few months.  The team recently made their mark in hot and sunny Palm Beach Gardens, FL, by beginning a three phase project at The PGA National Resort & Spa, scheduled to be completed towards the end of the year.

Since 2007, The PGA National Resort & Spa has been a designated Florida Green Lodge by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, meeting luxurious standards while remaining environmentally-friendly.  The Floridian resort invests in numerous green initiatives, including energy efficient appliances, water conservation systems, along with recycling of paper, cardboard, oil and batteries.

With sustainability and brand standards in mind, The Refinishing Touch completed phase one of the 379-room renovation project earlier this month.  The team will undergo phase two in August, as we plan on reupholstering 144 king-sized and 190 double-sized bed headboards.  Along with the reupholstering, we will also refinish 325 dressers and 470 nightstands, all requiring a color change, glass installation and hardware replacement.

Our furniture asset management services will decrease the project’s carbon footprint by over 400 tons, an enormous drop for such a large-scale project.  Instead of the estimated CO₂ impact of 474.9628 tons to replace the existing furniture with all new pieces, The Refinishing Touch will help keep the PGA Resort & Spa’s carbon footprint at a minimum – with an estimated final calculation of only 4.6996 tons.

The next time you find yourself in the Palm Beach Gardens area, be sure to book a stay at the PGA National Resort & Spa to experience luxury, comfort and sustainability – the definition of a championship experience.

This headboard is part of the first round of projects completed at The PGA Resort & Spa. The renovations were divided into three phases.

Example of completed room set to be unveiled in Fall 2012

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July 27th, 2012 by TRT Blog

Property improvement plans – three words that make most hoteliers shriek.

But even with the burden traditionally associated with PIPs, renovations are returning to the forefront of the hospitality industry’s agenda as a cost-effective and sustainable alternative to a top-down hotel makeover.  The increasing number of travelers this year has not only helped hotel owners rebound, but has also caused a rise in property investments – one PIP at a time.

This year, construction companies are keeping busy with two to three PIP projects per month – a stark contrast from the two or three per year in 2011, according to HotelNewsNow.com.

The increase in completed PIPs can also be attributed to the many strategic decisions and tactics (as well as stronger brand / hotel owner relationships) that have surfaced to ensure a smoother, more efficient renovation project.  We thought we’d share some of the most important:

- Invest in furniture asset management services instead of buying new.  Not only does it save on budget, but it also reduces a PIP’s estimated carbon footprint while still meeting brand standards.

- Decide ahead of time whether to keep the hotel open, closed, or partial occupancy during PIPs.  Remember: most guests are turned off by the sight of renovations, so deciding to deploy multiple renovation stages may be key.

- If keeping a hotel open during PIPs, notify guests of any inaccessible areas beforehand.  For example: if the hotel’s pool is closed for construction, inform guests of the nearest public pool right as they check in.

- Price PIPs quickly. It’s not unusual for a project to take between three to four months to complete.

- Communication is critical. Remain in constant contact with project teams and hotel management to ensure a seamless process.

For more information on PIPs and the hospitality industry, watch the Hotel Interactive webcast ‘Pressure Free PIPs’, sponsored by The Refinishing Touch, here.

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July 20th, 2012 by TRT Blog

Like many around the world, The Refinishing Touch team is counting down the days until the 2012 Summer Olympics, and we have officially reached the one week mark!

The summer event – which is held once every four years – means more to us this year than ever before.  That’s because the 500-acre Olympic Park venue, based in London, has earned the honor of hosting the ‘first sustainable Olympics’, and we are thrilled.

The efforts from the Olympic planning committee are proof of the increased importance placed on sustainability, especially in today’s world.  Designers of the Olympic Park took many measures to create the greenest stadium possible, including:

- Constructing the Park out of recycled materials

- Building the velodrome (track cycle arena) using sustainable wood

- Cleaning up any contaminated water and soil on the Park’s site

- Planting more than 300,000 wetland plants and nearly 4,000 trees

- Hiring food vendors that only utilize compostable packaging

- Testing a new waste management system that, if successful, can make its way into every future sporting event

As a sustainable furniture asset management company, we believe eco-friendly initiatives are critical to reduce our carbon footprint and preserve our environment, especially at events as widely influential as the Olympic.  So this year, not only will The Refinishing Touch be cheering on the United States as they compete for the gold, but we will also be applauding the historic behind-the-scenes sustainable efforts that are also making an enormous mark on the 2012 games.

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