The hotel industry has a new entrepreneurial aspect to contribute to the diverse hotel market. Recently, hotels in Urban areas have started to have a “boutique” or “chic” feel to them in order to accentuate a mood or feel to attract customers. Ian Schrager, the creator of the “boutique” concept has assisted in the development of the boutique feel to provide customers with the exact experience they are looking for.
Currently, boutique hotels account for approximately 3% of the hotels in the country, but within the next 10-15 years, the number is expected to rise to 10% in urban areas, and 6% amongst all hotels in the United States.
There was a quote in the article that helps to explain why boutique hotels are becoming more popular: “Everybody pays attention to design…People like things a little bit different, offbeat. And they make someone who may have a rather mundane life feel hip.” It was said that the boutique hotel industry may be successful in Europe and Asia as well.
There are also some benefits to operating a boutique hotel as opposed to a generic hotel. There are not nearly as many regulations as far as room size, building structure, and general brand standards. They can charge a higher price for their rooms, which makes it more appealing to an owner to own a boutique hotel as opposed to a generic hotel. While many hotel brands are owned by the powerhouse brands, some boutique hotels are as well.
I hypothesize that boutique hotels are more popular in urban areas than rural and/or small towns because urban lifestyles tend to be more “hip” than no urban lifestyles. The pace of urban areas allows for successful boutique hotels, away from brand name, regular, medium priced hotels. It is important to consider what this will mean for mainstream hotels, and for the hotel industry as a whole in the next ten years. Now that hotels are taking huge strides to differentiate themselves, where will the customers tend to flock to. We live in a time where people want more than the generic good. People enjoy being in places where they feel good, where a mood is being presented, and provides a change from the normal lives they live everyday. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/05/business/05boutique.html?_r=1&scp=4&sq=hotel&st=cse
This article is really interesting because it shows how the hotel's goal is to accommodate the guest as puch as possible. Generic hotels offer a less personal feeling that sometimes are unappealing to the customer. I think the concept of botique hotels is definitely a new innovation to consider for the future of our industry. Great job Jared!
ReplyDeleteThanks Tya. Time will tell the future of the boutique hotel.
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