TOP NEWS

🍳 Chef Douglas Keane closed his top-rated restaurant out of burnout, but returned a decade later on June 1, 2025, with Cyrus 2.0. Located in the heart of sustainable hospitality, the new venture includes a $75,000 annual salary for each employee and a four-day workweek, achieving higher profit margins than most in fine dining. Harvard Business School took note, creating a case study on his innovative approach.

💸 Hotel profit margins declined in 2023-2024 due to rising expenses. CBRE forecasts this trend will continue in 2025. In 2024, hotel operating expenses increased by 4.1% above GOP and 3.6% below GOP, exceeding a 2.3% revenue increase. Labor costs rose by 4.8%, and insurance premiums by 17.4%. Property tax payments increased by 4.3%. Management fees grew by 1.1%. A sample of 2,600 U.S. hotels indicates cost control is crucial for profitability.

🏨 Adagio's 2024 performance was stable compared to 2023, with occupancy rates from 72% to 75%. The average stay at Adagio is 3.5 nights, double the competitors. The FIRST 2030 plan aims for 180 establishments by 2030, with a potential business volume of €700 million. Key goals include achieving a Net Promoter Score of 60, 100% Green Key certification, and reducing energy consumption by 15%. Expansion focuses on France, UK, Germany, and Southern Europe.

📰 Dine Brands and Wingstop won MURTEC Breakthrough Awards in 2024. Brooklyn Dumpling Shop and Taco Bell were awarded for Customer Engagement in 2023 and 2022, respectively. Little Caesars received recognition in 2021 and 2019. Hospitality Technology reaches over 18,000 industry executives and is published by EnsembleIQ, based in Chicago. The Restaurant Technology Network operates under it, focusing on industry challenges and standards.

🏨 2023, Madrid: Heather Byron and Jordan Kestle introduced the Return on Concierge (ROC) at Les Clefs d’Or. ROC assesses concierges' impact on hotel profitability, considering ancillary sales contributing 10%-15% of total revenue. Upscale hotels aim for 25%-30% of room revenue from ancillary spend. Key metrics include guest satisfaction scores and upsell conversion rates. A Cornell study shows a one-star rating boost allows for up to 11% rate increase. Personal service is crucial per J.D. Power's 2023 study.

📖 2020 Zeno study found brands with a strong purpose increase consumer likelihood to purchase by 4x and champion the brand by 4.5x. In 2023, a Kantar study revealed 52% of 12-29-year-olds prefer classic brands, contradicting the belief they only resonate with older audiences. Timeless brands like Four Seasons and Hermès maintain consistent values and cultural relevance while evolving. Key attributes: clear values, consistent identity, emotional resonance, consistent quality, iconic design, strong branding, and cultural relevance.

💻 Greengage Solutions has revamped its ECOsmart portal, a pioneering AI-supported tool, enabling quicker ECOsmart sustainability certification for the travel, hospitality, and events sectors. SMARTscan completes up to 60% of surveys efficiently by analyzing and extracting data from uploaded resources. It offers tailored sustainability recommendations and ensures compliance with EU’s CSRD. Partnered with Replacer, the portal helps reduce single-use items. This innovation streamlines sustainability management, offering cost-effective certification for businesses lacking dedicated sustainability staff.

💻 Guest operations platform SuiteOp announced a partnership with Cloudbeds on May 28, 2025, in New York. This collaboration automates smart device infrastructure for hotels, connecting Cloudbeds’ property management system with SuiteOp’s automation. Features include device control, energy management, and customized workflows. The integration enhances guest experiences and operational efficiency, reducing energy costs and manual errors. SuiteOp's Simon Seroussi and Cloudbeds' Sebastien Leitner highlighted benefits for hoteliers and guests. SuiteOp operates globally, serving thousands of units.

📈 Hotels can turn lost bookings into opportunities by analyzing data from booking engines, metasearch platforms, SEO, and digital ads. Key strategies include user experience audits, personalization, competitive positioning, keyword analysis, and A/B testing. Understanding guest behavior through these channels enables hoteliers to refine approaches, improve conversions, and develop long-term guest relationships. Insights from data can transform digital strategies in the fast-evolving hospitality landscape. Article contributed by Rosalie Stahley, Vice President, Digital Strategy and Innovation at ComOps.

🍴 Bret Thorn, senior food & beverage editor for Nation’s Restaurant News, has been with the publication since 1999. Previously, he was a columnist for The New York Sun (2005-2008) and sub-editor at Asia Times (1995-1997). Thorn holds a history degree from Tufts University (1990) and studied French cuisine at Le Cordon Bleu (1986). He has also written for publications like Manager magazine and ABC News during the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests. Thorn resides in Brooklyn, N.Y.