The Modern Hotelier #107: Hurricane Milton, Jose Andres Hotel Brand, Top Business Destinations, & Retaining Hoteliers | Hospitality Hot Topics
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Steve Carran: Welcome to another episode of the Modern Hotelier, Hospitality's Most Engaged podcast. Today we're bringing you our series of the Hospitality Hot Topics, where we are going to go over what happened in the month of October. So we're going to kick it off right away, and we are joined by our special guest, Judy Chen from Hyatt.
Welcome to Hospitality Hot Topics, Judy. How you doing?
Judy Chen: having me, guys. Good to see you again.
Steve Carran: You too, you too! So, we're gonna kick it off with probably the biggest thing that happened this month, and that was Hurricane Milton. Came through the southern parts of the U. S., all the way up to North Carolina. Uh, one thing that we saw with this was, I think was really cool, hospitality, not only coming together, but helping out.
Everyone in those areas. We saw some hotels like Rosen Hotels, South Beach Group Hotels, and even one of our former guests from Sanctuary Treehouse offering these discounted rates for people in need. David, what do you think about this?
David Millili: Yeah, no, I think it's, it's smart and it's, it's a great thing to do. I mean, I, I unfortunately lived in South Florida during Hurricane Andrew, and there was a lot of people that actually had to move into the hotel that I worked at, uh, because they lost their homes, they lost everything. And so that was a unique situation where it's people working in a hotel who ended up living in the hotel.
They. They worked at, but this is just, it's, it's the right thing to do. And, you know, it's, thank God it's also off season for all these hotels. So they can, they can actually accommodate people. So what, what do you think, Judy?
Judy Chen: Well it's funny, when I first read that, I was reading the articles about the, what we, about the hurricane, and the first thing I thought of was Pharma Bro. Remember when he, like, jacked up the price, and there was a lot of also unhappy guests saying that there were big corporations that were charging, $500-600 a night, and it's really heartbreaking, and I think it's unique that you mention the brands that were very accommodating and they're usually smaller companies.
And that gives me a lot of heart to know that, a lot of these things, it's really coming down from the corporate directive, right? It's not the revenue managers fault as to how much they charge. They are under the orders of someone else. And so to see these, smaller shops and to be able to accommodate and have heart, I think that really also builds Brand loyalty and longevity because, you're helping people in a time of need. This is not like, Oh, this is a Superbowl or a Taylor Swift concert where all the prices are naturally inflated. So it was nice to see, some of the hotels doing that. I wish more of them did.
What do you think, Steve?
Steve Carran: No, I agree with you. I agree. I, I think I love seeing this in the industry. I think that's what hospitality is all about, right? Is we want to help other people. so this kind of warms my heart and makes me proud to be in this industry. and I'm also happy that Farmer Bro had to give up the Wu Tang album, to your point.
So, uh,
David Millili: All right. So 
Judy Chen: doing now.
Steve Carran: hopefully not much.
David Millili: So moving on, so as we're losing a lot of independent hotels to brands, we have some new emerging independents. So Jose Andres is launching a hotel, the Hotel Bazaar, in Washington DC's Georgetown. So this is a new and upcoming, he's a chef, so we'll obviously be somewhat food focused, but I think this is great that we're getting some more independents and you know, we'd love to hear your thoughts, Steve.
Steve Carran: I'm super excited about this. Living in Washington, D. C. for eight years, um, Jose Andres had one of my favorite restaurants actually when I was working there in Georgetown. So I, I always, And I am so excited for a chef to start a restaurant brand. I feel like these go hand in hand. People now, when they go to hotels, they want experiences.
And so many people are into food these days and unique food experiences. So I think this goes hand in hand. It's a 67 room property. It's going to include wellness. Events, retail shops, so I am all about this. I am definitely going to check it out next time I'm in D. C. Judy, what do you think? 
Judy Chen: Yeah, no, it's great to see that there are, you know, restauranteurs and chefs now coming in. You know, Nobu kind of pioneered that many years ago, in New York, and now he has locations all over. It's Funny to me how it took so long for the concept of hotels and good food to come together. And it wasn't until I think the late nineties, early two thousands and being in the lifestyle space, that is such a big focus for us.
So it's, it's interesting to see that, you know, even if you travel to just a big box hotel, when I'm on business, it's like, why is it always the same? Same chicken fingers and cob salad on the menu. Right? It doesn't take much more to do something at least a little bit more creative. I'm not saying I need gourmet, but you know, it's like there's so many lost opportunities that people who may not have the opportunity to go to a cool lifestyle property like, um, the Andreas and the Bazaars, and to be able to experience that too.
It's just seems like such a no-brainer. We wish, we hope he does really well, though. It'll be good to see 
So I came across an article about the latest top business destinations around the world. It's always fascinating for me to see that because I'm currently based in Vegas where pretty much everything comes here at some point or another. And it was unique to me to see that, you know, in the U S you know, some of the markets were actually not what I had expected just because they were higher price points.
I don't know, David, what did you think about the list of places? And maybe we should share a couple with the audience.
David Millili: So, you know, you're right. There's the expensive ones like New York that are on there in
Chicago. Um, yeah, I guess when you, when I first looked at it, I was like, There was the surprise of the, maybe the markets and the cost, but not the surprise of the cities. So it kind of just seemed like it was all top cities globally that were on that list.
So it wasn't like Miss Universe where you didn't know who was going to win. Uh, you kind of felt like you kind of knew that, yeah, you expected to see, you know, like Dallas on there, which is a lot of a place where a lot of conventions are held in
Judy Chen: And I thought Orlando. I thought Orlando would be, you know, cost effective and lots of options for space and entertainment. And it wasn't on there.
David Millili: Any surprises for you, Steve?
Steve Carran: I was surprised that New York took over Vegas. I get it, I guess, because a lot of corporate retreats are there, but I see, I guess, I personally don't go to a lot of events in New York.
I've gone to, to more in Vegas over the past few years, so, that's cool. And, uh, it was, I was also shocked not to see LA. I understand that's You know, maybe a little bit more expensive, but also just a huge hub on the west coast and not, not as many west coast cities as I would have thought. So it was a little surprising to me with some of these, but you know, I, I love to see, uh, Miami and Chicago on the list as well.
Those are two of my favorite destinations. So hopefully we make it back there next year.
David Millili: So speaking of lists, the list came out from AAA. Only three new five diamond hotels in places like San Francisco, Miami Beach, Chicago. Steve, any, if any of the properties on there you'd like to go to?
Steve Carran: So, one, I want to go to the Satie in
Miami. I do want to go to all of them. I'm not going to turn any of them down. Uh, Satya Miami looks incredible, but man, I gotta say a Midwest guy. I love that Chicago has not only been on the list for top business destinations, but also one out of three hotels in the U.
S. to get booked. Triple awards for five diamonds. That's awesome. Like I have, here's my prediction for 2025 and 2026. I'll even go Chicago and Midwest destinations are going to be where the place to go. David, I'm going to ask you a question. Where's high tech next year?
David Millili: Hitech is in Indianapolis. Yeah. 
Steve Carran: That's what I'm 
David Millili: first, first Midwest. I think first Midwest time. So.
Steve Carran: That's what I, I, not a lot of conferences, not a lot of, you know, destinations have been in the Midwest lately, and I feel like we are going to be coming back stronger than ever. I can't wait for my first show to go to in Milwaukee, probably in 2030. But, uh, Judy, what do you think?
Judy Chen: mean, it's great to see. I I feel like, the markets have changed so much since COVID and to have these recognitions for the big city hubs that did lose a lot of residents and to be able to kind of have a resurgence of great service, great hospitality, showing that the demand is there is really uplifting.
For, I think where we're headed back again in the hospitality community, so, and it is like the hubs right now are the secondary and tertiary cities that are really hot. So to see some recognition in big cities and get more people to go back, people are, guests are very discerning nowadays and they, do look for things like that where you have all of the service touch points and, so it's good to see that, these big cities are attracting people back again.
Steve Carran: So, David, near you in Phoenix a few weeks ago, um, also in October, was the Lodging Conference in Phoenix. One of the big discussions there was how to retain hoteliers. Some of the big folks there, G6 was there, And a few others. We're talking about how we can help retain employees, talking about fair wages, incentives, and career development to help keep employees.
Judy, what's your thought on this? How can we help retain hoteliers more?
Judy Chen: A lot of people think it's really just monetary and I would disagree. it's Really so much more about culture and going back to earlier what we were talking about Jose Andres and what I really like about him is he really stood up for causes that he believed in and I think that really resonates with people and there's that authenticity there that can't be replicated.
So I think work culture is important and I also think, a lot of companies want to, find cheaper labor where possible to squeeze costs where then it ends up being less cost effective. to have to retrain new people. I know it's probably Controversial to say, but I think there are certain aspects of robotics that make the experience for a guest actually a little bit more unique and wonderful that can save costs on human labor where it's not needed.
And so I think there are other ways to kind of retool labor pool so that you really just retain good people, and hopefully that they will stay and grow with you promoting from within, et cetera, et cetera. 
David Millili: Yeah, no, I agree with you 100%. I think it's a combination. You can't just look at it as a throw money at it problem and people if they're making an extra five bucks an hour, everyone's going to come back because post COVID, COVID COVID kind of gave everybody the wake up where people went to other places and are making more money.
So it's the training and it's the it's the What we don't do a good enough job I think in the states that they do a better job in other parts of the world is really looking at hospitality as a career and a career path where people can kind of come in and get trained, they've got a clear, and understanding what people want to do when they're working on property.
Some people just always want to be, a bellman or some people, when I started off, I had to be a PBX operator to work my way to the front desk to then, become an assistant manager. I think, at least we're talking about it and not complaining about it. Cause I think too often ownership and people complain about the cost of labor and how difficult it is to attract people.
At least now we're, talking about it and we're trying to do something about it where, it's just not the complaining. So
Judy Chen: Well it's funny you say that because I never thought of it that way. And I always wondered why hospitality overseas, especially in cultures like Asia is so different from hospitality in the U.S And I think you really touched something that I didn't think about before. And I think it's true. It's, a different mentality of mindset on career paths where, a lot of people may think, Oh, this is, I'm gonna work the front desk to put me through school versus I want to one day become a GM.
Yeah. That's really interesting. I never thought of it that way.
So as you guys know, I am currently based in Las Vegas. We just had the Super Bowl this year and it was amazing. Crazy. I mean, Vegas does everything next level, but I saw in the news that Atlanta has been named as the 2028 host city. I grew up in the South. I grew up in Chattanooga.
So I love all things Southern. I think this is a great boon for, market. But what do you think, Steve? You big Midwestern fan. I don't know how Midwestern that is.
Steve Carran: Yeah, totally the opposite from the Midwest, to be honest with you. I've been to Atlanta a handful of times, and I don't want the Atlanta people coming for me. It's not my most favorite city, but I gotta give it to them. The stadium in Atlanta, I think it's the, is it the Mercedes? Ben's Dome there now, um, is absolutely incredible.
So I totally understand why you would want to have it in a stadium like that. it looks beautiful and you have the space and modern technology to do it. One of the things is just the infrastructure in Atlanta is, I, I don't know, it's just a little crazy to me. It doesn't really flow. So I'm curious how that will all work, but I'm sure they'll do it.
They've had it in Atlanta before. I think this is the second or I'm sure it will be great. Great stadium. David, what do you think?
David Millili: Yeah, I'll take a little different approach. I mean, not so much Atlanta, but just the Super Bowl as a whole. It seems like now we're stuck in only the new stadiums and the domes. And it feels like, you know, when I think back to my childhood, you had a lot of outdoor Super Bowls, and now it's so much about, like, you know, making sure that it's a brand new stadium and that it's, It's, it's a dome and the weather can affect it, which is not really what football is about a hundred percent when you look at the 32 teams, but look, uh, it's a great stadium.
Never been to, I've been to, I was at the Superbowl here in Phoenix. That was incredible. Great stadium. I'm going to go to SoFi, uh, next month. I'm looking forward to that, but, uh, yeah, congratulations to Atlanta, but I already saw some of the other, when I saw this, I saw the cities before, which I didn't realize.
And it, I wish we'd mix in some more, some different destinations that were outdoor.
Steve Carran: You want an outdoor Super Bowl? Are you saying bring the Super Bowl to like Green Bay in, uh, in January?
David Millili: They did it once in New York. Remember that one Superbowl was in New York. I think it was where, I think, I think that's where Seattle beat Denver in that Superbowl. I don't want it in the Northeast. it didn't snow, but it was really cold. It was in the Meadowlands. You know, I'm not saying that, but I'm saying like Miami is an outdoor stadium.
you know, there's well now San Diego's move, but they're at 49ers is an outdoor stadium is coming to San Francisco, I think next year, the year after, so, Anyway, I'd like to mix it up a little bit and see some, you know, some actual outdoor football.
Steve Carran: I'd love it in Green Bay, but it will never happen.
David Millili: Well, you never know the way the NFL is going. The season's going to end up in the spring and you could probably have it. They're going to add another 10 games to the season. So maybe, maybe like you were a kid in 2030, maybe 2030, it'll be in Green Bay.
Steve Carran: 2030, the year of Wisconsin, we're 
David Millili: Yeah. 
Steve Carran: here. Judy, any thoughts? 
Judy Chen: goals for 2030, Steve.
Steve Carran: right? All Wisconsin goals on
that? 
Judy Chen: is full.
Steve Carran: Judy, do you have any thoughts about it being in Atlanta?
Judy Chen: No, I think it's great for, I mean, Atlanta is also, I feel like, in many ways, similar to Vegas. They're growing in the entertainment industry, sports. So I think, you know, anything to draw people, it's such a great, you know, it's a great way to build community. And when you have the infrastructure and the resources to do so, why not?
So I love my Southern food. So I would probably want to go just to eat the fried chicken in it. You know, and the barbecue. So 
David Millili: Well, that does it for Hospitality Hot Topics, The Modern Hotelier, the most engaged hospitality podcast. Thank you, Judy, for being our guest, and I hope to see you again soon in Vegas or wherever you're going to end up.
Judy Chen: Yeah. Thank you guys.