The National Hotel Summit, hosted by Design99, was attended by hoteliers, investors, developers and designers to discuss future development trends of the hospitality and tourism industry.
One key topic discussed during the panel Q&A session has been “Hotel Brands & Hotel Design”. Factors in the process of improving brand competitiveness, insights into hotel industry dynamics, trends and opportunity analysis are important issues for dealing with a changing market partly due to the COVID-pandemic.
Panelist Marc Zimmermann’s response and assessment to the posed questions:
Q: Hotel brands in China, in simple terms can be divided into two categories: foreign, international chain brands and domestic, independent brands. Over the past, international hotels and domestic hotels coexisted by catering to opposite ends of the market. In the past 30 years, foreign hotel brands, with their internationally backed strong pool of resources, management and technical expertise, have swept the Chinese market. Will this be continuing or change in the future?
A: I think that the domestic brands in general terms have caught up with the foreign operated hotels. So, it is not really a question anymore of Chinese or international brand, but more of how these brands anticipate and react to the trends in the market regarding both domestic as well as international guests. By this I mean, due to the pandemic and travel restrictions, there is a shift from business travel more and more to leisure travel, from which especially the high-end sector will benefit.
Having said that, in my opinion, the domestic brands are at an advantage. With a new generation of guest – Chinese millennials – entering the market, the domestic brands must respond to Chinese millennials’ sense of identity as a generation with their pride in being Chinese and who strive to redefine Chinese heritage. At the same time, the hotels must cater to an internationally travelled and technological versed guest. This again is true for any brand – it comes down to provided services and experiences.
Q: Hotel branding and hotel design are often the two sides of the same coin. Do you think, that in case of domestic, high-end hotels, it is the brand which drives the hotel design, or is good design making hotel brands?
A: In my opinion, the design is an important part of the overall branding package. The role of the design is to relay the brand image, support the hotel’s operation and to enhance the guest’s experience. Design may become the signature of a brand, but it still will be only one aspect contributing to the brand’s success. In either case, the design must deliver on many levels – not only on aesthetics but also on functionality and locality.
Generally, clients who understand the value good design brings to a project and its possibilities will get the most benefits out of it. To rephrase it: Design must be more than just a nice package – it is to fit with the content and the content must be of quality as well.
Q: Hotel designers often encounter hotel chain brand concepts, design and technical standards. Considering these prerequisites, to what degree should designers maintain the hotel’s brand own characteristics and/or introduce a level of uniqueness to the design?
A: This really depends on the market segment – being it a budget hotel, business hotel, tourist- or high-end hotel. For budget and business hotels the brand recognition value is of higher importance. This means it still should be well designed, but it will be a more standardized, also due to cost considerations. The role of design in this case is to respond and adjust to the locality and on-site situation to create a good environment for guests which goes hand in hand with quality level of services.
For touristic and high-end hotels on the other hand, the guest’s experience is in the foreground. Creating a unique atmosphere becomes an important driver for the success of a particular hotel in a particular location and setting. The special design style by itself or in combination with amenities, technologies, etc. can provide unique experiences for guests and elevate the hotel to a different level. However, this still means that the basics of what design and architecture must deliver are as important – meaning to provide an environment which enables an efficient and for guests’ unnoticeable operation of the hotel’s services.
Because, with so many hotels and brands, it is easy just to replicate the hardware and the design aesthetics – but very difficult to replicate a successful hotel brand’s services and a design team which understands the brand’s requirements and the guests’ expectations.
