As Covid restrictions ease and travel is becoming simpler with less testing and form filling we spoke to one of our Commercial Experts, Manish Kapoor, VP Commercial to see his thoughts on how the indusrty is recovering Post Pandemic and whats on the horizon. The world is changing daily and the hotel industry adapts by the minute. We at Four Corners Hospitality Group are on the pulse and like to think we are 2 steps ahead.

Tell me a bit about you and what attracted you to a career in hospitality?

My introduction to the amazing world of hospitality was initiated in India when I started working in the rooms division of a luxury hotel. I was attracted to a career in hospitality as it offered me an opportunity to develop skills that were transferable. It also opened the door to the rest of the world. I was also lured by the prospect of not being stuck in a niche sector and this gave me the unique ability to move around in various areas, something that’s not readily available in other sectors. The best part was the scope to have people to people interaction, spread across various cultures and backgrounds.

How have you seen revenue management change over the last few years?

Revenue Management culture in hotels has significantly evolved over the years. At the start of my career in the late 90s, Revenue Managers were overshadowed by other departmental functions within the industry, mainly working behind the scenes and tended to report to departments such as Sales & Marketing or Front Office.

Over the years Revenue Management has come to the forefront, lending support to the Commercial Department and acting as key advisor to the Hotel General Manager. Revenue Management have also been adopted and implemented across other revenue-generating areas, focussing on Profitable Total Revenue Management. 

The Revenue Management culture has really blossomed and grown exponentially in the last decade, more so in the last few years supported by the advancement in technology, and the sophistication in data capture and analysis which has provided actionable intelligence to Revenue Managers and Senior Leadership Teams. The role will continue to expand as Hospitality Leaders continue to navigate their businesses through unprecedented tough times seen by the industry.

What changes are you seeing in hotels now that the Pandemic is hopefully coming to an end?

 Hotels have historically been used to dealing with disruptions of various nature most of which have been localized, however never at the scale that we have seen over the last few years. The pandemic has been perhaps unique in the fact that it has touched hotels globally in some way or another.

Lack of travel opportunities seems to have built up some pent-up demand which has benefited the staycation market and slowly people are starting to book travel overseas both for work and leisure. Hotels are becoming more flexible with their terms and conditions to offer their guests to remain attractive.

Guest needs are changing as well and they are demanding more cleaner conditions to stay, eat and experience the facilities which the hotel have adapted to this by getting ‘Clean Certifications’. Hotels have also had to redesign their eating spaces. The pandemic served as an “accelerator” for already occurring trends and hotels embracing technology such as contactless & keyless check ins, app based in-room controls, and other various IoT platform based integration to enhance guest experience and improve efficiencies which will continue to develop.

From a purely commercial standpoint, while in the past hotels could feel the pulse on the business by comparing their current position to historical trends, there is no such thing any more. Booking trends remain volatile and hotels are starting from a clean slate relying purely on the trends seen over last 14 days that remain an indicator for the future weeks. Revenue Managers need to stay nimble, adapt and adjust their strategies as new trends emerge until travel trends achieve some stability and trends become comparable.

Has the commercial structure in the hospitality industry changed after COVID-19 and if so, how?

The commercial structure in the hospitality structure has remained stable. Hotels are however finding that the Revenue Management function has never been more critical for the success of their business whether it comes to pricing or positioning of the hotel. Revenue Managers are now a prominent role in any Commercial Team to support any decision making

What’s your prediction for hotel stays over the next 6 months?

 The next 6 months will certainly feel the impact of the current Russia/Ukraine conflict and the future of the industry depends on how this plays out. If the conflict is resolved swiftly we can expect renewed customer confidence in travel and leisure which will see a boom for the industry. On the contrary the war will have a huge impact on increasing costs which will be a detriment to the industry. Prior to the start of the conflict, people’s desire to travel either for work or leisure had remained positive and the booking trends for H2 looked promising which I hope will continue.

When you’re not thinking commercial – what are you doing?

I enjoy spending time with my family and have taken the opportunity to travel  after being confined to our homes for the last couple of years. Recently, I have enjoyed socialising with friends recently who I haven’t met in a while. I like to keep fit and recently started to turn to meditation which has been very fulfilling. I enjoy the British Summer and look forward to spending some time outdoors as the weather gets warmer.