Report Overview

The hotel owner landscape is broad and diverse. They run the gamut from small business men and women to major NYSE-listed real estate investment trusts. There are many different decisions each hotel owner needs to make, whether to affiliate with a franchise or not, what kind of property and customer to target, and how they will market, distribute, and operate their properties.

This report will primarily focus on what we believe to be the most important decision a U.S. hotel owner has to make: whether to affiliate their property with a franchise brand or to distribute and market the hotel independently. We will look at the relative performance of brands vs. independent hotels during COVID, their costs, and their different distribution strategies. We also take a look at the hard vs. soft brand debate and how some independent owners are responding.

We also have a special focus topic on the state of staffing in the hotel industry today and close this report with five key takeaways for hoteliers.

What You'll Learn From This Report

  • An overview of the different roles and players that make up the hospitality ‘stack’
  • Branded vs. independent U.S. market share
  • A deep dive into the branded hotel owner today including how brand standards are evolving
  • A look into the distribution capabilities of independent vs. branded hotels including channel mixes, how loyalty evolved during the pandemic, and cost structure.
  • A deep dive into the relative performance of different brands and independent properties during and after COVID-19 in the U.S.

Executives Interviewed

  • Navroz Saju, Founder and Principal of HDG Hotels
  • Noah Silverman, Marriott’s Global Development Officer for US & Canada
  • Norm Leslie, President of National Hospitality Services
  • Ray Martz, CFO of Pebblebrook Hotel Trust