Healthier rates helping UK hotels to remain positive
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“Looking at the outlook for the year ahead, 2014 certainly appears to have massive opportunity for the hospitality industry to get back on its feet after a tough few years.
Within the hotel industry itself we’ve seen a sustained recovery throughout the last year, and in particular for Redefine|BDL it was a pivotal time for us. Merging Redefine Hotels and BDL Management strengthened our business and gave us the opportunity to restructure in preparation for large scale development in 2014.
At a time of positive feeling about the wider economy and growing commercial markets, our projections indicate a strong year ahead.
Significant developments on the horizon for Redefine|BDL include projects with some of the most prestigious international hotel brands in the world, including Hilton Worldwide and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide and our geographical reach will expand in 2014 with recent portfolio additions in London, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Shetland and Edinburgh.
While for the last year or two consumer habits have slowly but surely crept in the right direction, 2014 will see things accelerate. Last year we welcomed a stark reduction on the discounted rates popular during the staycation trend of 2012 and coupled with increasing confidence in the corporate market, we’re now seeing a noticeable shift away from travellers focusing purely on price.
It’s clear the tide is shifting and it looks like further growth is on the horizon. In London I expect to see Revenue Per Available Room (RevPAR) projections to rise by around 4% year-on-year, while regionally RevPAR figures should hit growth of up to 8% YOY, albeit from a lower base.
Hotels on the whole will become more attractive to consumers for both leisure and business purposes. But with growth comes competition and hoteliers will rely more on reputation and less on price.
While revenues look set to increase with the return of customer spending, one of the biggest challenges for hotel owners will be looking beyond 2014.
For many years we’ve been so focused on working month-to-month given the economic uncertainty, however, for a sustainable business profit drives investment. One major issue hotel owners need to look at is deciding where investment is needed. Has the recession made us forget how to invest?
In the long term the industry faces new challenges. Uncertainty around increasing energy costs will be a major talking point, while keeping one step ahead of consumer trends will be an ongoing challenge. It’s safe to say 2014 will present many opportunities but it will be how we prepare and adapt for the challenges that will set our business apart.”
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