May 2018 Digital Issue

ecause there’s a lot of
history — so even regional
banks are more interested
in doing lending on these
projects than they have
been in the past.
RC: What will the market
look like in three to five
years?
KG: Technology is going to
drive a lot of what happens,
trend-wise. We’re seeing
technology change. The
fundamentals are strong.
There are barriers to entry
in a lot of markets, where
we’re not seeing the supply
we saw in the 1990s. And,
as you know, demand
continued to grow in the
early ’90s. It was supply
that really affected our
industry and there’s going
to be a correction. A lot
of it is going to be tied to
what happens with interest
rates. I’ve never seen the
market, real-estate prices in
hotels, so frothy. At what
point does the carousel stop
and there’s a little bit of a
correction? Crystal-ballwise,
I couldn’t tell you, but
what we’re seeing in our
business, and we really like
the suburban and secondary
markets, is continued
growth over the next
several years.
RM: The big will continue
to get bigger — probably
huge. But from an ownership
perspective, you’re
going to continue to see
consolidation, especially
with the level of private
ownership in this country
and succession issues, and
more private groups.
BS: The focus on service
will continue — not diminish.
Ultimately, there will
be a pushback from all the
technology and the distance
between people.
MM: There’s still that
element of the human
touch, being able to do a
face-to-face — which the
technology will facilitate
but will not replace, and
that’s still going to be an
essential part of it.
RC: Will the industry have
to change further to attract
more labour, given the
ongoing issue with shortages
and the recent minimumwage
increase?
KG: I’m not sure we’re seeing
labour shortages. Maybe it’s
coming down the pipe, but
there’s still plenty of labour
available for us.
RW:There are different
markets. [For example], we
have some markets that
are particularly seasonal. I
look at our service scores
every day because, as much
as we’re talking about
everything else, it does
come down to service. Mr.
Marriott talks about this
all the time. He says it’s not
a complicated business; it’s
about smiles at the front
desk, clean rooms and
great service. As much as
we want to deliver that, in
some markets, you just can’t
get enough housekeepers to
clean a room and welcome
the guest in the appropriate
ways. So, it’s a challenge
that we have to think about
over the next several years,
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