AmCham Leadership Case Studies: Revenue today vs. Revenue tomorrow
Success in the hotel business is governed by the RevPar rate: the amount of revenue the hotel generates per available room per month. To succeed, you need to fill as many of your rooms as possible at the maximum possible rate. The challenge is this: if you fill all of your rooms all of the time, the rooms begin to show signs of wear. And if you want to raise rates as much as possible, you have to have quality rooms with the latest technology and equipment. To keep the rooms fresh and modern, you have to refurbish them regularly. How do you maintain revenue and occupancy while still keeping your rooms and conference facilities above market standard?
William Boutlon Smith has been in the hotel business for a long time and in a good number of the world's most desirable tourist destinations. He has managed skyscraping buildings in major cities and exclusive country estates in rural England. When he arrived in Prague, he faced the need to renovate both his rooms and the banquet floor in a market that had just emerged from the financial crisis and was just entering the era of AirBnB. He needed to make sure his new rooms and conference venues not only achieved the modern aesthetic, but also incorporated the technology demanded by his clientele. Above all, he needed to make sure all the changes raised his market share of RevPar.
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