‘Secret’ Behind The Marion’s Success

ANNA HURLEY, VENUE MANAGER OF THE MARION HOTEL, TALKS ABOUT THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE MARION HOTEL BEING NAMED HOTEL OF THE YEAR FOR THE SECOND SUCCESSIVE YEAR.

WHAT IS IT THAT MAKES THE MARION SO SPECIAL THAT IT IS ABLE TO WIN CONSECUTIVE HOTEL OF THE YEAR AWARDS?

“It’s a combination of factors.

“Part of it is the massive investment that was made in the hotel. When you spend $20 million on a hotel in suburban Adelaide, you’re going to make something pretty special.

“In addition to that, there’s a lot of passion that’s gone into that project from the owners, Peter and Jenny Hurley and Tony Hurley and his wife, Karen.

“But the team at the hotel is a major contributing factor, there’s a lot of super passionate people on the staff, in the head office and in the team.

“It’s a massive investment that took a lot of guts and then there’s a lot of passion that’s gone into it from a group of very passionate hospitality people.

“Staffing is an issue for everyone at the moment but it’s also a key ingredient in winning such an award.”

AND SO HOW ARE YOU APPROACHING STAFFING AND SKILL SHORTAGES TO BE ABLE TO MAINTAIN THE QUALITY OF THE HOTEL?

“It is a huge challenge.

“I think we’ve just gone back to basics, which is hire for attitude, train for skill.

“So we acknowledge we’re not going to find really any experienced hospitality staff in the current market.

“So what we’re looking for is people who care about their jobs, want to do a good job, and have a happy, cheery approach to work, and who want to enjoy being at work.

“We try to also then create a really fun, enjoyable work environment for them. That’s really important.”

The Marion Hotel team celebrate their ‘Best Overall Hotel’ win at the 2021 AHA|SA Hotel Industry Awards for Excellence.

SO LOOKING BACK OVER THE LAST 12 MONTHS, WHAT’S CHANGED OR IMPROVED BETWEEN THE TWO AWARDS?

“There has been a huge amount of change in the past 12 months.

“I feel like our opening was so disrupted by COVID-19. When we reopened after COVID-19 and re-set everything up, we’ve gone about making a lot of improvements and finessing our products.

“For example, getting the furniture layout right in the garden, which has changed a lot over the past 12 months.

“And our thinking on what customers would want in the venue has changed a lot over the past 12 months as we’ve learned what they really want.

It is a constant evolution of a hotel. We’re not standing still, we are continuing to improve in all aspects of what we’re providing.

I feel like our opening was so disrupted by COVID-19. When we reopened after COVID-19 and re-set everything up, we’ve gone about making a lot of improvements and finessing our products.

“You have to remember that we had officially just reopened a hotel, so you’re not going to get everything right at first go.

“You have to change and evolve in the first few years after opening a hotel.

Marion Hotel Venue Manager, Anna Hurley, saying a few words on the night.

“But the whole team at the hotel and in the head office has an attitude of continuous improvement of services and of products and everything we do. Trying to be more efficient, trying to make life easier for the staff and trying to create more enjoyment for our customers.

“We’re always looking at what we’re doing and see how we can do it better.

IS THERE ANY AREA OF THE HOTEL THAT’S BEEN A REAL STANDOUT OR THAT HAS SURPRISED YOU AT HOW WELL IT’S GOING?

“The biggest standout areas for me would be certainly functions and accommodation.

“During the expansion of the bottle shop, we always knew that was going to be successful, we always knew there was scope to improve. And it’s probably been a bit more successful than we thought, thanks to the team that works out there.

“But the functions have improved out of sight in the last six months.

“Our team in that area has really got our services right and has also put a lot of focus into building our corporate market for our function rooms.

“We have approximately doubled our corporate functions business in the past six months, which is quite an achievement and we’re really super proud of that.

...the whole team at the hotel and in the head office has an attitude of continuous improvement of services and of products and everything we do. Trying to be more efficient, trying to make life easier for the staff and trying to create more enjoyment for our customers.

“I think accommodation is the other area that really surprises me every day.

“Notwithstanding the lockdowns and other little disruptions throughout the year, accommodation has been incredibly strong.

“The suburban accommodation and regional accommodation has been much less affected than the CBD and unfortunately, the impacts on the CBD mean we’re gaining a little bit of additional business.

“Our accommodation side has really blown me away. The occupancy is much higher than we ever expected, even pre-COVID.

TELL US ABOUT THE MARKETING BENEFITS OF WINNING CONSECUTIVE HOTEL OF THE YEAR AWARDS.

“We have definitely been able to leverage the awards this year.

“Winning these awards gives us a real opportunity to talk about what we do, and then to show people that we’ve been acknowledged in the industry is a big selling point.

“Especially when it comes to areas like corporate functions, to be able to say we’re an award winning venue, two years in a row, that really grabs attention.

“It definitely does make a difference to your credibility.”