HOTELSCOTLAND ISSUE 39 NOVEMBER 2021 ISSN 2515-8287
THE HIT SCOTLAND ANNUAL DINNER INTERVIEW
MARC DENTON FIFE ARMS
CONTENTS
4 NEWS
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EICC HOTEL SCHOOL
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WELCOME
picked the right time to pay a visit to the Fife Arms - sometimes you forget just how lovely our scenery is. But it wasn’t just the scenery that inspired me, my interview with Marc Denton left me feeling motivated too. I’m off to get some acupuncture! Read what he has to say on page 16. I think it is great news that the EICC is opening a Hotel Academy - we need more of this type of initiative in Scotland if we are to attract people into this industry. I thoroughly enjoyed the HIT Annual Dinner last month. It was great to see so many familiar faces. We feature some of the pictures of the evening in this month’s magazine. Nicola Young takes at look NFT’s - what do you make of the new cryptocurrency? In this issue, we also take a look at Bertie’s, which is the Fife Arms new whisky bar. It is one of the best I have seen. And we have lots of news on Crieff Hydro - the team there have had a busy month! See you in December. Susan Young Editor
16 INTERVIEW:
MARC DENTON
23 WASTE NOT WANT NOT ALASTAIR ROY 23 DESIGN:
BERTIE’S BAR
27 PEOPLE 30 CHECKOUT
16 16 MARC DENTON
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BERTIES BAR
HOTELSCOTLAND Published by Media World Limited t: 01560 600585e: news@ mediaworldltd.com w: hotelmagazinescotland.co.uk
Editor: Susan Young Editorial: Nicola Young Advertising: Nikki Oji, Sylvia Forsyth, Guy Griffiths Production:, Penny Devlin
susan@mediaworldltd.com @hotel_scotland hotelmagazinescotland.co.uk
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HOTELSCOTLAND • 3
HOTEL AND NEW TRAINING ACADEMY SET FOR EDINBURGH EICC
Plans for one of Scotland’s most sustainable hotels and a hotel school have finally been given the go-ahead by Edinburgh City Council after it approved a revised business proposal by the Edinburgh International Conference Centre (EICC) for a 4 star, 350-bedroom hotel. The hotel, is being funded by M&G Real Estate, and developed by the Qmile Group, but will be a Hyatt franchise operated by EICC and it is anticipated it will open in 2024. EICC CEO Marshall Dallas said: “Not only is the hotel integral to the future of the EICC, but we also see it being a key component in the return of business tourism to Edinburgh. From the very outset, sustainability was near the top of the agenda, it has always been a strong part of our offering as a venue, so we’re pleased to be setting a standard here.” The educational part of the plan aims to address the recruitment challenges faced by the hospitality industry in Scotland by training up to 200 people a year. Edinburgh College will work in partnership with the EICC and will play an integral role in the new school and training academy by delivering the courses. The aim of the new academy is to support people to develop practical skills and combine them with the leadership, digital, language and met-skills to deliver a first-class service. Marshall Dallas comments, “Overall, we expect the hotel and hotel school to provide significant job creation and economic
benefit to the city – which were some of the positive factors outlined to the City of Edinburgh Council when they reviewed the revised business case.” Audrey Cumberford MBE, Principal and CEO at Edinburgh College is delighted, “The hotel training academy is an exciting development for the city, and will help to deliver future skills in the sector, a sector which is in need of a boost following the pandemic. The vision of the EICC team, along with multiple city partners, means we will be able to build a unique training centre in the heart of Edinburgh, creating a pipeline of talent in the region. “The partnership with EICC represents an example of how colleges can work with industry partners to form a symbiotic relationship. By working with the EICC we are able to collaborate on the training that is available and ensure that we are effectively addressing any skills gaps and training the workforce of the future. We are excited to get started!” George Gordon, EICC’s Chair, said, The EICC Hotel School which will be run in association with Edinburgh College is an exciting new model of education, training and development which will bring forward much-needed professional recruits into the industry subsequent to the heavy losses of both Covid-19 and Brexit to the workforce. It will also secure the long-term future of the EICC, a venue that is internationally renowned for its amazing services and facilities which generates much-needed kudos and income for the city.”
Crowne Plaza Edinburgh bought by Castleforge Partners The Crowne Plaza Hotel in Edinburgh has been acquired by London-based property investment firm Castleforge Partners, which acquired the Bruntsfield Hotel in the city as well as the Hilton Hotel in Cardiff earlier this year. Axiom Hospitality has been appointed to manage all three assets. The 97-room hotel, located near the newly re-developed St James Centre, will undergo a full refurbishment before being re-launched in March 2022. Matt Lederer, Hotel Acquisitions Director for Castleforge Partners commented, “We are thrilled to add the Crowne Plaza to our portfolio of hotels. It is in a prime location in one of the most exciting areas of Edinburgh and we are looking forward to working with Axiom and IHG Hotels & Resorts to bring the best out of this hotel for guests, staff and investors alike. “Now is a particularly exciting time to be investing in hotels as the tourism industry shows signs of recovery from the pandemic and we will continue to seek exciting investment opportunities in this space.” Alex Pritchard, Co-CEO of Axiom Hospitality said, “We are pleased to be working with Castleforge once again on their latest hotel acquisition, particularly in Edinburgh as it is known for having some of the most sought-after hotels in the world. We are looking forward to repositioning the hotel, making it an exciting place to work, and welcoming guests from across the UK and abroad.”
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NEWS The Jura Hotel, which sits next to the Jura Distillery in the Islands main town of Craighouse, has been put up for sale. The 17 bedroom hotel is the only public hotel and bar on the island and includes the 5-bedroom owner’s house, It is on the market for £1.2m. The property includes two bars/restaurants, staff accommodation, an alfresco terrace and “Shack” servery. Turnover is around £880k per year and it is being marketed by Graham and Sibbald.
The Waldorf Astoria Edinburgh – The Caledonian and Guerlain Spa win at World Travel Awards Following on from being voted as Scotland’s favourite city centre hotel at Conde Nast Traveler’s Readers’ Choice Awards, the Waldorf Astoria Edinburgh – The Caledonian and Guerlain Spa have received three prestigious accolades in the 2021 World Luxury Hotel and Spa Awards and the 2021 World Travel Awards. The World Luxury Hotel and Spa Awards recognise luxury accommodation and spas across a diverse range of categories, with over 300,000 international travellers voting each year while The World Travel Awards acknowledges and celebrates excellence across all key sectors of the travel, tourism and hospitality industries. General Manager of Waldorf Astoria Edinburgh – The Caledonian, Dale MacPhee said:, “We are absolutely thrilled to receive
these three incredible notes of recognition, and would like to thank our outstanding guests for their support, especially during such a difficult time for the hospitality industry. “I am extremely proud of the challenges that our team has overcome this past year, and it is due to their hard work, dedication and passion for creating truly memorable guest moments that this recognition is possible. ” “Throughout an extremely challenging 18 months for the hospitality industry, Waldorf Astoria Edinburgh has remained dedicated to ensuring unforgettable guests experience for all visiting the iconic Edinburgh hotel, and featuring a number of bespoke at home experiences and charitable contributions to the surrounding community. “
Lesley and Neil McGown have sold the East Haugh House hotel and restaurant in Pitlochry after 33-years. The hotel will now become a family residence. On a social media message, the couple said, “We cannot begin to find the words to thank each and every person who has crossed our paths over the 33 years since we opened. So many became life-long wonderful friends and loyal customers, and we are truly grateful for your custom and love. “When we bought East Haugh in 1989 we had such a passion and vision to create something guests would want to return to again and again, a place that was a home from home with the very best food and produce in the area. We are so proud to have achieved is and to have had some of the most wonderful colleagues working with us to bring this vision to life.” “They really are at the heart of our success and have weathered so much over the last 18 months with admirable resilience and commitment. Each will be a true asset to any business taking them on for the next chapter in their hospitality careers.”
IF YOU HAVE ANY NEWS LET US KNOW. EMAIL US AT: NEWS@MEDIAWORLDLTD.COM HOTELSCOTLAND • 5
NEWS
SOMETHING FISHY GOING ON AT BLYTHSWOOD SQUARE? Kimpton Blythswood Square Hotel is launching a new restaurant celebrating the best of Scottish seafood. The new restaurant will be serving hand-dived scallops to Cumbrae oysters and platters of shellfish. Opening on Monday 15 November, ‘iasg’ [pronounced ee-usk, the Gaelic for fish], will also be hosting DJ weekends. “We’re excited to introduce iasg to the Glasgow food scene with a new menu focused on celebrating Scotland’s finest seafood,” said Mafalda Albuquerque, General Manager for Kimpton Blythswood Square Hotel. “We care about Scotland’s coast and waters, so it was important to us to commit restaurant iasg to a progressive sustainability policy for sourcing our seafood – and we hope to lead the way in Glasgow after COP26 by considering sustainable practice at every point in our guest journey. We’ll be serving only hand-dived or creel-caught shellfish, sourced in waters where there is a healthy supply, and promising to work with their suppliers to guarantee traceability. “iasg restaurant will also be donating £1 from every bill to The Firth of Forth Lobster Hatchery, a conservation and educational charity and the only operating hatchery in Scotland, working to repopulate lobster stocks at North Berwick harbour.” The hotel will also be offering a smaller menu at its shell bar, with ‘iasg weekends’ signalling the return of live DJs to the hotel.
NEW OWNERS TAKE ALCOHOL OFF THE MENU AT STROMNESS HOTEL The Stromness Hotel on Orkney has taken the somewhat unusual step of banning the sale of alcohol to customers and guests. The move comes following the sale of the hotel to Paymán Investments who are investing in the hotel with a rebrand and a fresh look. The rebrand sees the hotel adopting a wellness theme, hence the decision not to sell alcohol, although guests will be able to bring their own alcohol when attending private functions. The hotel will introduce be introducing a health focussed range of experiences following the renovations.These will include hot tub soaks and yoga sessions as well as lymph drainage massage. In another change, the hotel will also stay open throughout the winter season. CEO Na’ím Anís Paymán said, “…We are working hard to make life healthier and more sustainable for the community, the local economy and the environment around .” Paymán Investments also owns the Douglas Arms Hotel in Castle Douglas.
IF YOU HAVE ANY NEWS LET US KNOW. EMAIL US AT: NEWS@MEDIAWORLDLTD.COM 6 • HOTELSCOTLAND
A hotel for golf lovers ... Grey Harlings Hotel, in Montrose, has been put on the market through Christie & Co for £750,000. The family-run hotel overlooks the world’s fifth-oldest golf course, the historic Montrose Golf Links, and is a short walk from the town’s beachfront. The boutique hotel has a lounge, bar and restaurant, beer garden that accommodates 60 guests and a car park. The ground floor features a small gym, which has the potential for conversion back to a double room if required. “Our clients have owned Grey Harlings Hotel for over 15 years and the business enjoys multiple revenue streams, operating as a hotel with a bar and restaurant, whilst the guest lounge area also provides an income stream for small functions and events. The business has a large following on Facebook and Instagram and also boasts fantastic reviews on TripAdvisor and Google.” The hotel is being sold at a freehold price of £750,000.
NEWS
RADISSON RED GLASGOW RECEIVES FIRST SCOTTISH GREEN KEY AWARD
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n a month during which climate change has been front of mind, Glasgow’s Radisson RED hotel has achieved the distinction of being the first hotel in Scotland to receive a Green Key award from Keep Scotland Beautiful. The accolade recognises the steps the 174-bedroom hotel has taken to reduce its impact on the environment. The hotel was visited by trained assessors, who produced a report which was then verified by a national and independent Green Key Jury. The report highlighted multiple areas of best practice including an effective recycling system, the use of local food produce, bike parking and an electric vehicle charge point. Graham Chalmers, Curator Radisson RED said, “We’re thrilled to become the first hotel in Scotland to gain Green Key accreditation and have our environmental commitment recognised. From giving energy back to the grid to operating robust recycling programmes, we implement sustainable initiatives throughout the business.” Barry Fisher, Chief Executive at Keep Scotland Beautiful, said, “We are delighted to award Radisson RED as the first hotel to gain Green Key accreditation in Scotland. Our assessors have seen that the hotel has a clear commitment to sustainability and takes action to reduce its impact on our climate. “We are delighted to be offering Green Key in Scotland and encourage tourism and
hospitality establishments across the country to secure the multiple benefits of a green recovery from COVID-19 by partnering with us through this internationally recognised programme.” Janie Neumann, Sustainable Tourism Manager at VisitScotland said: “This is a fantastic achievement by Radisson RED and we welcome its commitment to reduce its impact on the environment. “Climate change is one of the biggest challenges facing the tourism sector and is now, more than ever, on the minds of our visitors. It is through the commitments of businesses like Radisson RED that we will create a long-lasting sustainable tourism destination which will protect the environment and benefit visitors.” Green Key is owned by the Foundation for Environmental Education and operated in Scotland by Keep Scotland Beautiful. Finn Bolding Thomsen, International Green Key Director at Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) said, “Green Key is an internationally recognised and respected eco-label for the tourism sector and has been awarded to over 3,200 establishments in 65 countries. “We are excited to see Radisson RED in Glasgow join the international Green Key family and urge tourism establishments across Scotland to use the well-proven framework as a pathway to environmental excellence and sustainable operation.”
World Hotel Brand adds two Inverness Hotels Ness Walk Hotel and the Kingsmill Hotel, both part of the Kingsmill Hotel Group have joined the WordHotel brand following on from Ten Hill Place Hotel which launched earlier this year. The hotels will now be branded Kingsmill Hotel WorldHotels Elite, Ness Walk Hotel WorldHotels Luxury and Ten Hill Place Hotel, WorldHotels Distinctive Mark Stanley, head of hotel development & retention, BWH Hotel Group, said, “The Inverness properties are perfect examples of BWH Hotel group having brands to suit every hotel and every traveller. Luxury is a huge target market for us in 2022 and 2023. We have been extremely busy over the summer months talking to independent luxury hotel operators who are keen to know more about World Hotels powered by BWH Hotel Group. It’s new, it’s exciting and we will take that traction into next year.”
PLAN ‘B’ REQUIRED FOR BELLEISLE HOUSE South Ayrshire Council will have to come up with a plan B for fire-ravaged Belleisle House after no partner was found for its £12.5 million plan to restore the historic building as a hotel. The B-Listed building in Ayr was ravaged by a fire in 2019 after a worker’s blowtorch accidentally set fire to the roof which set off a chain of events that lead to the council buying it back. After being refused permission for demolition, the council were advised by Historic Environment Scotland to look at reinstating the building as a hotel or look at an alternative use. Around a year ago, a report outlined options for renovating the property into a hotel/function venue with up to 20 rooms and 200-capacity function space costing in the region of £12.5m - a figure which would require a joint venture including public and private investment. In June a tender for the plan was advertised nationally and, despite extending the original four-week advert by a further four weeks, no bids were made from the 14 notes of interest. The reasons provided by the companies for lack of interest included an unwillingness to commit to a 25-year partnership with the council, others who did not have the level of experience for the nature of the contract, and those who wanted to take on the development but not the operation of a hotel. Councillors will now be asked to choose a way forward on the Belleisle project.
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MCMILLAN FAMILY PUT HOTELS ON THE MARKET AFTER 60 YEARS After more than 60 years of welcoming guests to their hotels, the McMillan family have put their hotel group, of the same name, up for sale. The group which has been family-run across three generations includes North West Castle in Stranraer, Cally Palace Hotel & Golf Course in Gatehouse of Fleet and Fernhill Hotel in Portpatrick. Douglas McMillan, Managing Director of McMillan Hotels, commented, “Nobody was expecting the world to take the turns it has over the last couple of years, but having come through a global pandemic and emerged stronger and more resilient than ever, the family believes that now is the right time to set the wheels in motion to sell the business.” “The hotels were trading well before Covid, and have been trading exceptionally well since re-opening. The coming years should also be strong as more people choose to staycation in this beautiful rural region, with its clear open roads, stunning countryside and sandy beaches. In the meantime, it will be business as usual. The McMillan Family will continue to work hard for the future of their hotels and look forward to welcoming many more visitors to Bonnie Galloway.” “Our family has welcomed our guests for over 60 years and we are determined to hand over the reins to the right people, ideally who will have demonstrable plans to nurture and invest in the business in the coming years. The company is in good shape and we are in no rush to sell.” Most of the thirteen grandchildren have worked in the hotels at one time or another, but over the years, as they have all grown up, it has become clear that the next generation have all chosen to follow different career paths. Staff have been informed that this process has begun, and Graham + Sibbald Chartered Surveyor and Property Consultants have been appointed as agents for the sale. The aim is to pass on this much-loved family business to the best possible future custodians. “
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Tomatin Trading Gets Green Light For £12m Development The Tomatin Trading Company is pressing ahead to deliver its £12 million retail & leisure development at the Tomatin junction on the A9 following a legal victory over Tomatin Distillery, which had objected to the use of the name Tomatin. The development consists of a 99 bedroom hotel, a 200 seater restaurant, four retail units, a fuel filling station, and a farm shop, the development will showcase a range of local Highland food and drink suppliers. Entrepreneur William Frame, the businessman behind the development, said: “We are delighted with the court’s verdict, and can finally, after a two-year delay, look forward to kicking off this important development,” he said. “Our focus now shifts to announcing our build team, together with finalising our financial team. We are keen to get started as soon as we can, and feel that we have assembled a unique and proactive team which will work collaboratively together.” “Never have the new opportunities, jobs and investment in this area been more needed as
the economy looks to recover from the ravages of the Covid19 pandemic,” said Mr Frame. “Our development is an opportunity to create what’s known as a DIOR, a Destination In its Own Right, a high quality “stop off ” of choice for both tourists and locals from all over the Spey Valley, Inverness, and the surrounding area.” Simon Bath, formerly of the Carnegie Club at Skibo Castle, is to be General Manager of The Tomatin Trading Company. He said the business would look to work in partnership with, local suppliers, artisan producers and visitor attractions in the area, “Even before Covid19, the industry was seeing a customer with a far more discerning taste, looking for a destination which gives a food and drink offering second to none. “Furthermore, this customer wanted the highest quality retail experience, drawing on both local and national brands, coupled with the finest service a hotel can offer. We want to give them the very best of the region here at The Tomatin Trading Company, with our hotel offering true Highland hospitality, together with the most outstanding breakfast!”
CRERAR HOTELS REWARDS EMPLOYEES WITH £150,000 FROM FAIR FUND More than 200 employees at Crerar Hotels are set to benefit from a newly revised Fair Fund this month which will see each of them receive a top-up to their wages of around £1,000. The cash reward comes from its newly revised ‘Fair Fund’. which was made up of guest contributions. The group introduced an optional 10 per cent service charge at each of its properties, giving guests a simple way to reward team members for outstanding service and since June the fund accumulated £150,000. The payment is quarterly, meaning associates who are now on or above Minimum Living wage will receive regular Fair Fund payments to top up their wages. Hotel team members stand to earn approximately £1,000 on top of their annual salaries, with their Fair Fund payment being proportionate to the number of hours worked during the last three months. For some chefs, this amounted to a £2,000 top-up for three months of excellent service. The ‘Fair Fund’ quarterly pay-out comes just months after Crerar Hotels launched a tranche of brand-new employee lifestyle benefits, and committed £1m to talent attraction,
retention, and development via the Crerar Academy. Chris Wayne-Wills, CEO of Crerar Hotels, said, “All of our team members work incredibly hard to deliver first-class, authentic Scottish hospitality, so we wanted to give guests a simple way to reward this that would result in a completely fair, transparent structure. “The Fair Fund ensures that staff receive a pay-out which is proportionate to the hours they work and means that those working behind the scenes are also rewarded for their hard work. “We’ve made the system completely transparent so all team members can see who has earned what in each quarter and absolutely every penny contributed by guests is given to our deserving employees.” The Fair Fund will be paid out quarterly, and guests have the choice to opt in or out of the service charge. There is no charge for breakfast or rooms. Pictured: Bethan Moore, a F&B supervisor at the Golf View Hotel*& Spa in Nairn. She said, “The Fair Fund payment is an added top-up which will allow me to treat myself and family.”
GLENEAGLES EDINBURGH TOWNHOUSE SET TO OPEN IN 2022 The anticipated opening date for the new Gleneagles Townhouse in Edinburgh is now Spring 2022. Gleneagles move into Edinburgh, it’s first every city outpost, has been subject to a few building delays, as the developers turn the A-listed former bank building in St Andrews Square, into a new 33-bedroom townhouse. The Gleneagles Townhouse will also have a two bars one of which is called The Note Burning Room, and the other is the much anticipated rooftop bar, Lamplighters. The Townhouse will also have a 140 cover restaurant called The Spence, as well as gym facilities and work spaces. The venue will not be exclusivley a Members Club, although it is rumoured that membership sales have done very well, but it will also welcome non-members too. It was only last month that the Accor and Ennismore completed their deal to create a lifestyle joint venture. Accor became the majority owner of the new entity which Sharan Pasricha said heralded a “new chapter for Ennismore”. He said the business was now “the largest and fastest growing lifestyle hospitality company.”
HOTELSCOTLAND • 9
SCORES HOTEL CLOSES UNTIL 2023 The Scores Hotel in St Andrews which was bought by Wirefox, the Northern Ireland based property investment company and Links Collection Capital in June, has closed the hotel for a major refurbishment. The 36-bedroom hotel will now not reopen until 2023 and staff have been made redundant.
HILTON COMPETITION PUTS DISHES ON THE MENU Hilton’s annual Flavour and Flair competition, which challenges its food and beverage team members across Europe, the Middle East and Africa to come up with a drink or dish idea, has delivered four new creations that will be added to the menu at Hilton Glasgow and Waldorf Astoria Edinburgh - The Caledonian. The winning creations include The Belle Provence, a six-layered sponge cake, tiered with a combination of fresh rosemary, sweet almond and juicy apricot compote by Chef Ankit from Hilton Salwa Beach Resort & Villasin Qatar. Chef de Partie, Pedro Caetano from Conrad Algarve in Portugal won with The Rainbowl, a blueberry salmon, quinoa and black chia, salty granola and a range of exotic vegetables and fruits which creates the rainbow effect. The Hilton Prague’ mixologist Andrea Volajova created The Simia Sour Cocktail that features a range of fresh botanicals of gin, lemon and cranberry juice, topped off with egg white foam, while a new mocktail, The Zinggreen Frost, comes from Bartender Mohammed Hassan from Hilton Hurghada Plaza in Egypt. Emma Banks, Vice President of F&B Strategy & Development EMEA, said: “For over a century we have been serving up industry firsts, from the Pina Colada to the Red Velvet cake. By galvanising our talented team members with the Flavour and Flair competitions, it inspires them to create the next big dishes, that will help us lead trends for the next century.”
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CRIEFF HYDRO FAMILY OF HOTELS CELEBRATES STAFF WITH A SMILE Crieff Hydro Family of Hotels team members celebrated their successes recently at the group’s annual Smile Awards at The Melville, their newly opened events space. The evening had a Willy Wonka theme, and staff were presented with a golden ticket upon entry and the theme also included candy canes, sweet stalls and even Oompa Loompas. Stephen Leckie, Chairman and CEO of Crieff Hydro Family of Hotels, said, “The Smile Awards is very much about celebrating and rewarding our fantastic teams and individuals throughout the group who have continued to shine through an extremely difficult time. “We wanted to create a fabulous night to remember for everyone involved and we are delighted with the outcome. Our ethos at Crieff Hydro Family of Hotels is just that - family - and it was fantastic to get everyone from each of the hotels together to celebrate a special night – a night for them. The awards included eight different categories and were spread across each of the eight hotels, which includes Crieff Hydro, Peebles Hydro, Murraypark hotel in Crieff, The Park Hotel in Peebles, Taypark House in Dundee, The Isles
of Glencoe, Ballachulish Hotel and Kingshouse Hotel, also in Glencoe. The full list of winners is as follows: The Simple Award – Josh Wellum, Lee Morrissey, Antonin Boisseau, Craig Green, Kayleigh Cooper and Scott McNeil; The Memorable Award - Alvaro Leguizamon, Roxana Liliana Vida, Steffi Clark, Stacey McDonald and Saphia Wallek; The Independent Award - Careen Kahn, Daniela Dobre, Dora Barah, Jennifer Scrim and Molly Law; The Lean Award - Gavin Hunter, Ryan Hogg, Zsoltne Siska and Jodie Broddell The Engaging Award – Sandra Sanchez Navarro, Diana Lopez, Laura Raeburn and Dawn Hunter; Employee of the Year – Florin Diaconu, Zaneta Falharova, Helen Brown, Tunde Rigo (IOG, Clem King and Greg Chisholm; Manager of the Year – Ashleigh Pink, Catherine Bull, Colin Grieve, Laszlo Csegedi, Joan Adams and Stuart Cairns; Team of the Year – Housekeeping / Self Catering at Crieff and Murraypark, F&B at Peebles Hydro, Grounds Teams at the West Coast hotels and IT/Finance at BP.
Ingliston Country Club and Hotel embrace technology with Zapaygo for a seamless guest experience Ingliston is an award-winning 90-acre picturesque, equestrian, conference, and wedding venue, with boutique hotel, luxury lodges and restaurant. With such a large site, comprising the many aspects of the Ingliston experience, there are multiple points at which guests may wish to place an order or make a payment. From checking out after a stay in one of the luxurious rooms or lodges, to paying for a delicious meal in their stylish Palomino’s Restaurant and Cocktail Bar. Zapaygo is a lifestyle app that allows consumers to order and pay for food, beverages and merchandise. Zapaygo’s main focus is the hospitality, sports, and leisure market. Zapaygo have worked in partnership with Ingliston to plan, implement and roll-out a tailored order and payment solution, to perfectly match their needs. Paul Fraser CEO of Ingliston Country Club and Hotel said: “For us, working with Zapaygo is about providing our guests a seamless ordering and payment experience across our business. It should be simple and intuitive for our visitors, no matter which aspect of Ingliston they are with us to enjoy. Having a partner like Zapaygo means our guests can focus on their time at Ingliston and not have to interact with different payment systems as they move through the hotel, restaurant and our other world class facilities.” Elliot Hall, Founder and CEO of Zapaygo, said: “Ingliston is a flagship project for Zapaygo in Scotland. Zapaygo provide a solution that is suitable for, and tailorable to, any business where ordering and payment is required. Our flexibility is our strength. Once Zapaygo is in place, it is a seamless system. One, central point for ordering and payment across an entire business; no matter now diverse, or specialised.” Paul Fraser concluded: “We are confident we have chosen the right partner in Zapaygo. At Ingliston, it is all about guest experience. We will always seek new ideas, innovations and tools to give our guests the very best.”
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FIVE STEPS TO GOING GREEN BY SUSAN YOUNG
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e have never talked more about climate change and Cop26 has certainly opened everyone’s eyes just a bit further. However, if you ever needed a reason to get on board and embrace sustainability and carbon reduction – surely it must be the coverage of the demonstration in Glasgow by mainly youngsters supporting the move to a greener way of life. These youngsters are the customers of the future and they will be looking for businesses that share the same ethos. One of these businesses is the Radisson Red which became earlier this month. This will also show up on Google’s travel search – it now will highlight Eco-hotels around the world. Below we have highlighted just some of the things you can do although I would imagine many of you will already have a few in place. There are too many to cover in one feature... so for the foreseeable future, we will continue offering up tips to our readers. But here are the first few. DITCH THE PLASTIC KEYCARD Key cards are plastic waste. There are now plenty of alternatives with new cards made from recycled PVC, PVC with enzymes that will break it down quickly, wood fibre, paperboard, and more. Or you could do what Siberia Hotel did recently – they have put in digital key technology – OpenKey. Siberia Director Stuart McPhee, comments, “OpenKey is now live, allowing our guests the option to skip check-in and head straight to their rooms. We are the FIRST hotel in Scotland to be using this software, and we are looking forward to seeing how it improves the guest experience and streamlines check-in processes.” GO GREEN FOR PURCHASING Opt for biodegradable, non-toxic products in sustainable packaging. From lightbulbs to cleaning supplies, all paper products and paint. Look to replace your existing equipment with energy-saving appliances like commercial fryers and ice machines, ovens, dishwashers, freezers, and refrigerators. Older-model washing machines which should be swapped out as soon as possible with models that conserve energy and water. AUTOMATE CONSERVATION IN ROOMS You may put cards out reminding guests to reuse towels, but technology can also help. Smart showers limit the length of showers to a pre-set time, you could install room sensors that automatically detect light levels, increasing and reducing the bulb brightness. While you could add thermostats with occupancy sensors which adjust accordingly. The way technology is evolving guests could use apps to change the settings to suit themselves.
You could also utilise IT to collect data about guest consumption patterns, then use the data to adjust energy outputs, whether at a whole-hotel level or an individual room level. CHANGE YOUR MENU AND INCLUDE MORE MEATLESS OPTIONS One of the most effective things we can all do is reduce our meat consumption. Many hotels have already added more meatless options, but it is something all hotels could do – adding in more plant-based choices. Or why have meat-free Monday? Also, buy locally – apart from the saving on miles and therefore fuel, research shows that the local economy benefits from the economic impact of the cash recirculating locally. REDUCE FOOD WASTE Zero Waste Scotland has revealed that just one kilogram of food waste produces the same volume of deadly carbon emissions as landfilling 25,000 500ml plastic bottles. Even when you take into account the entire life cycle impacts of the production, transport and energy used to produce food compared to plastic, 1kg of food has the same carbon emissions as 150 plastic bottles – that’s around 4 bags for life full. To raise awareness it is currently championing Glasgowborn photographer Rankin who has turned his lens on food waste as part of an open-air photography trail in Glasgow which features alluring but alarming images created from everyday food destined for landfill. Unused or leftover food can be donated to various local and national food banks and programmes. And why not try and cut down on garnishes – ask the customer if they want it? Another innovative solution to food waste would be to offer senior portions for pensioners. Breakfast buffets, which were reduced drastically over the pandemic, actually showed how much food waste could be reduced by offering breakfast to order. However staff shortages have meant that they have made a comeback – but going forward these could be reduced. When Crieff Hydro took part in a trial to track food thrown away in its main Meikle restaurant, they put in a smart meter it identified the areas to focus on were the breakfast and lunch buffet. Subsequently, the hotel reduced food thrown away through various measures On average 21% of food waste arises from spoilage; 45% from food preparation and 34% from consumer plates. Just 12% of all food waste is recycled. All hospitality businesses should have a food waste reduction measurement programme. We will have some sustainability practices for you next month … however don’t exaggerating: If you’re only implementing one or two sustainability initiatives, that doesn’t make your hotel green; rather, it makes you a hotel with one or two sustainability initiatives. Customers recognise that too. HOTELSCOTLAND • 13
14 • HOTELSCOTLAND
HIT ANNUAL DINNER IT HAS BEEN A WHIRLWIND OF EVENTS FOR HIT - AND THE HIT TEAM MUST BE EXHAUSTED. BUT WHAT A GREAT NIGHT WAS HAD BY ALL AT THE GLASGOW HILTON WHERE THE GOOD AND THE GREAT CELEBRATED ITS ANNUAL DINNER. THEY ALSO RAISED OVER £42,000 FOR THE INSPIRATIONAL HIT SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMME.
HOTELSCOTLAND • 15
INTERVIEW
THE SPIRITUAL GM MARC DENTON has been General Manager of the Fife Arms for the past six months and the Swiss-born hotelier is relishing his role. SUSAN YOUNG caught up with him at the hotel to find out why he swapped Koh Samui for Braemar.
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T
he Fife Arms in Braemar has become one of Scotland’s most talked about hotels over the last few years housing. as it does, one of the country’s finest art collections, courtesy of owners Iwan and Manuela Wirth, of Hauser & Wirth. You can sit beneath a Picasso or pass by a piece of artwork by Martin Creed, and there are 1,000’s of objets d’art to enjoy throughout the hotel. Their refurbishment of the hotel was a labour of love, and during the lockdown, they continued to invest with the creation of a new whisky bar, called Bertie’s. They also appointed a new General Manager Marc Denton. Before I interviewed Marc, I spent an evening in the hotel and I got an opportunity to watch him in action with his guests. He was the consummate professional making sure they were comfortable and checking if they needed assistance. So it didn’t come as a surprise to find out that he had gone to the famous hotel school in Lausanne. What was surprising was the fact that his father had put his name down for the school when Marc was just 12. Marc’s father certainly had foresight, and Marc agrees. He told me that his father felt that his disposition and academic prowess would fit with a career in hospitality. Certainly, it has been a career that has seen Marc travel the globe although the majority of his time has been spent in the far east. The likes of Mauritius, Thailand,
Indonesia and India as a resort General Manager, and now he is living in Braemar. Marc smiles, “People are always asking me what do I prefer, but you can’t compare the countries. They are two different environments. It’s the people around you who matter. And to be honest a white sandy beach may be beautiful but you only have to walk half a mile down the road here in the Cairngorms and you can see the most spectacular scenery.” The beauty may help him destress from all the challenges the Fife Arms and the hospitality industry as a whole is facing. He tells me, “I don’t think the circumstances we are in are a reflection of the profession. No one could have imagined the impact the pandemic would have. I am not saying in the past that we didn’t discuss what would happen if there was a virus or something of the sort, but they were always movie-like scenarios. When it actually hit it was a fascinating evolution of events. Because it was something we were all living in real-time. In other circumstances, we would have turned to leaders and followed their guidance but there was no precedence and decisions were being made based on evidence on social media and the news. We were all going through the process together.” It’s not the first time that Marc has seen hospitality affected by an external seismic event, he was in Canada when 9/11 occurred. He says, “After the World Trade Centre events international travel stopped with immediate effect overnight. It was a difficult time. But luckily it rebounded relatively quickly.”
This time he was in Bangkok when the pandemic broke out and he returned to Switzerland, his home country and where he trained. I asked him why he thought Switzerland and Lausanne had such a good reputation for hospitality training. “I think it is a lot to do with heritage. Traditionally there was a lot of Palace hotels in Switzerland. They set up in the golden age of hospitality when there was a romance about travel. It was glamorous.
People dressed up to travel and it was generally for privileged people. Switzerland attracted people because it had ski resorts and lakes and in order to create teams for its hotels, the industry created hotel schools. When you think about it, it was a very intelligent and forward way of thinking.” Marc certainly found his calling at hotel school. He says, “It felt right going down that route rather than going to university.
“I don’t think the
circumstances we are in are a reflection of the profession. No one could have imagined the impact the pandemic would have. “ HOTELSCOTLAND • 17
INTERVIEW
“I learned to be aware of the impact I had on others. It is too easy to have an outburst when things go wrong. It makes others feel bad, and you can get that message across in better ways. Sometimes just silence does the trick. That was a human journey for me.”
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At hotel school, we could alternate between theory and practical aspects. We spent six months at school followed by a sixmonth internship and it assured you of a career. However, it didn’t prepare us for the shock was when we come out. At hotel school, you are told you are the elite but when you come out you realise you have everything to learn. They cannot teach you experience. The only way you can achieve your professionalism is through the help and guidance of other people. You have to have emotional intelligence and have to have respect and integrity and you need these traits to communicate with other people.” Marc’s first job was in London at The Waldorf. He found himself working for Lord Charles Forte, the father of Rocco. “I was very proud to be working there and I was very fortunate. Lord Forte always had time for everyone and was very charismatic. That is also one of the fortunate things about hospitality, we have very charismatic leaders and when you aspire to be a General Manager, you observe and learn from the way these people interact with others. I have been lucky in that I have had a number of great mentors and I will try and do the same with the new generation of hoteliers.” The current recruitment crisis is certainly perplexing him. I asked him why he thought young people were shying away from a career in hospitality? “I certainly think it is part generational, but also due to the world we lived in being completely different from the one young people live in today. We may have felt that we had fewer opportunities. Our mentality was that we just worked hard and worked our way up and hoped to make a career out of it. “There is certainly work that needs to be done to promote this profession. It has to come from within the industry to make our profession more attractive. However elsewhere in the world, in countries that rely on tourism, Asia, Indian Ocean, the Caribbean, for example, – there is a Ministry of Tourism and Ministers realise how important hospitality is to the economy. Our industry could do with more support from such a government body, particularly during the current recruitment struggle which the whole industry is experiencing. He himself loves hospitality. In fact, he considers it a lifestyle, not a job. Marc smiles, “When people say how do you like your job, I say it is a lifestyle. This is what I do and if I had a chance to live my life all over again, I
would do exactly the same profession. “It is rewarding and it is a dynamic career that gives you the opportunity to travel. Some people might be quite happy to stay in one country, but I have seen the world. I have worked in at least 12 destinations – either being promoted within the company or moving onto a new opportunity in another country. When you travel, you experience new cultures, new ways of thinking, new cuisines. The hospitality industry is a global community of people and when you travel you broaden your horizons and learn that travel builds intelligence - humanity is an extraordinary thing you can only experience when you get out and see the world. For four years I managed a wellness retreat in Koh Samui called Kamalaya. Before that I was in Greece, I also spent time on the Isle of Jura, which led me to Kamalaya. I have been lucky to work in Mauritius twice and twice in Indonesia, in addition to Canada and Thailand.” He may have visited a multitude of countries but he tells me it is the people that he has met that have shaped him. “It is not places that have had the biggest impact on me, it is people. Mr. PRS Oberoi of Oberoi Hotels & Resorts, the son of the late founder, is in his 90’s and I still get birthday messages from him each year. I worked for him in Mauritius and he was a leader with very high expectations. He was very fair and very proper and his attention to detail was second to none. He truly was a role-model for me because if there are leadership traits I want, it is to master that balance between delivering excellence all the time and understanding the people who have to deliver the experience and the circumstances around getting to that final result. One of the hardest things to do in this industry is decision making, because they usually are not based on rules. Instead, they tend to be spur of the moment decisions founded on experience from previous situations, and I think my professionalism has been forged by Mr. Oberoi. My Managing Director at Kamalaya made a huge impression on me too. There I learned how to do what we as hoteliers do every day with a spiritual approach to it. It was a very special place. It showed me how to tackle adversity with serenity. It is too easy to go down the route of losing your composure and your emotions. We are living in a world where the balance of energy is completely offset. There is a lot of hysteria around. I
PHOTOGRAPHER: SIM CANETTY CLARKE
don’t think social media and modern technology helps. People don’t reflect before jumping to a conclusion. I think my experience at Kamalaya, encouraged me to look inwards and get to know myself better as a person, accept the need for personal improvement and work on it. I learned to be aware of the impact I had on others. It is too easy to have an outburst when things go wrong. It makes others feel bad, and you can get that message across in better ways. Sometimes just silence does the trick. That was a human journey for me. “One of the practices in Buddhism is meditation. It is very hard for me to do especially when you have a busy mind that jumps all over the place when you are trying to focus. “When I do have time to myself, I go off and walk along the highland pathways surrounding The Fife Arms, with the heather on the side and the sky above, it is just me and nature. That is my way of meditating and disconnecting. He believes a place like Braemar with its natural outdoor beauty could be a wellness, mindfulness destination. Marc explains, “Wellness is one of the fastest-growing sectors in hospitality and is relatively new to the western world, but it has been happening in India, Thailand and other parts of Asia for a long time. When we use the term ‘wellness’, people here think of massages and therapeutic treatments, but it is so much more. Throughout the world,
there are probably not many more than 10 award-winning holistic focused wellness establishments. Kamalaya is one – and for two consecutive years it was awarded Worldwide Health & Wellness Destination of the Year by the World Spa & Wellness Awards. “We took a holistic approach there – which included emotional, physical and mental wellness – all three were combined. If you don’t feel physically well, it affects you mentally and this affects you emotionally and likewise the other way around. Basically, to feel good, one needs to find a harmony between the mind, the body and the soul. The ancient practice of traditional Chinese medicine including acupuncture helps. I used to do it every week and did so for three years. It changed my life and it is great for the mind as it helps you find emotional balance. “Everyone has anxieties or has hardships or knows someone who isn’t feeling well, but many of us just put on a brave face and chose not to confront our feelings. When you are true to yourself – when you say I am not perfect and ask for help, the journey of healing begins. As you get to know yourself you get to like yourself better and in turn, you become kinder to others. The world can do with more kindness. I have been through all these things myself and seen it with others, and I realise that ultimate happiness is obtained from
caring for others and seeing others happy. We easily forget this because we are living in an era of consumerism which tends to make us focus on the materialism. But what matters above all is wellbeing for the mind and the body. And when those two elements are in balance, one can actually sense a feeling of enlightenment. Changed days he tells me from when he was younger – he apparently was an extremely impatient young hotelier. But he has always had a passion, if these days he doesn’t quite have the same levels of energy. But his hotel manager Rachael Henley has that in abundance. Marc says, “When you are more experienced you’ve had the opportunity to gain wisdom, but the older you get the less energy you have, so we balance each other out very well. Rachael is an extraordinary leader who is great with the team, and it makes me very happy to see the determination, the care, and the passion she has. He concludes, “I am an optimist. The Fife Arms has had a phenomenal year with domestic travel, and people south of the border now know they don’t have to go far to see absolute beauty, and experience authentic Scottish hospitality. So some good has come out of the situation and hopefully next year we will be able to welcome more international tourists back too.” Now that is something to meditate on.
HOTELSCOTLAND • 19
®
• • •
FEATURE
BY ALASTAIR ROY ARO PROCURMENT
For advice on waste streams contact alastair@ aroprocurement. com
MAKE WASTE WORK FOR YOUR BUSINESS W aste reduction and/or elimination is just one part of becoming more sustainable as a business, sector and country. Looking for ways to minimise what goes to landfill to extract value from your own and other waste streams by reusing, repurposing or refurbishing should always be a consideration in every business. This is not a case for hoarding, but instead carefully considering when you have a refurbishment if items such as light fittings, carpets and other FF&E could have an extended life in another location or perhaps in another business. The items could potentially be sold or donated but the main benefit is that the business is minimising its waste footprint and in addition it is saving on waste uplift costs. It is often the easiest option to ditch the old and bring in the new, especially when space is tight for storage and ideas for reusing are thin on the ground. However, by weaving the thought process throughout your business that there is often a use for discarded materials either now or in future, benefits will arise. If you have landscaped areas within your premises, you will no doubt be aware that coffee grounds have long been touted as fertiliser because they contain nutrients including nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium – just spread them on to your soil or add to the compost pile. If you really want to prevent more landfill with heavy, damp coffee grounds, think about bagging them up for collection by your guests and customers. A more left field suggestion if you are thinking of carpark resurfacing is mixing plastic waste materials to an aggregate of crushed stones and sand before adding heated bitumen when resurfacing car parks and driveways. This is one way of recycling waste in an environmentally friendly way. which also makes for a smoother and more long-lasting surface.
By incorporating discarded plastic bags, bottles and other related waste to the repurposed mix you will not only be helping to reduce carbon emissions but also avoid filling landfill and ocean floors with even more plastics. Look at your supply chains for ways to extract waste before goods reach your doorstep. Engage with your suppliers to discuss how they are approaching the elimination of waste and include it as a decision-making factor in addition to pricing, service and quality because ultimately it has an impact on cost to your P&L, as well as the environmental cost. How much of the packaging is returnable and how much can be avoided in the first instance? Find ways of constantly reusing the same packaging whilst ensuring it is hygienic. Another key element is finding a great waste partner supplier and work with them to review all strands of your business to determine how you could be more efficient and how you can better educate your team members on managing waste streams. With sustainability seemingly being front and centre of everything right now, there will be team members who will be quite passionate about this subject. Harness that passion and direct it in a way which brings everyone on the journey to really think about what is coming in and out of the business. Take control and demonstrate where value can be realised from previously untapped sources and integrate the mindset that finding ways of reusing and reducing waste can help to increase profits. It is the right thing to do from an environmental standpoint but it can make the business more successful. Customers will often make decisions to stay in a hotel, dine in a restaurant or drink in a bar if the business makes clear its commitment to being ethical and responsible. Although waste may seem remote from such decisions, it is one of the elements that can help make a difference that customers will appreciate. HOTELSCOTLAND • 21
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BERTIE’S WHISKY BAR BRAEMAR BY SUSAN YOUNG
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ertie’s Whisky Bar, they say, is like no other. I would absolutely agree. The pictures really don’t do it justice. When you are in the bar you feel like you are emersed in the amber nectar. It’s a real whisky experience. I am sure had Queen Victoria’s eldest son, King Edward II, also known as Bertie, and who the bar is named after, visited he would have been reluctant to leave. This is a bar, located in what was the Fife Arms library, which has, in fact, no physical bar and no windows, but the clever use of light makes the bar glow and as you would expect, with some 365 whiskies lining the shelves, the glow is a warm amber. The whiskies, one for every day of the year, are arranged in flavour order rather
than by region. An idea put forward by Dave Broom who helped curate the collection. They line the room from ground to ceiling, cradled on mahogany and glass shelving. Even before you taste a whisky or indeed choose a whisky you feel like you are immersed in the whisky experience. The bottles are the artwork here - the lighting shows off the various designs - and your eye is drawn to the most creative, the tall bottles and the unusual bottles. The good news is that you can also examine them because they are within touching distance. The bar, designed by Russell Sage Studio, who also designed the rest of the hotel, pays homage to the Victorian sovereign it is named after. It is sumptuous and the detail is lovely. HOTELSCOTLAND • 23
From the exquisitely carved fireplace to the antique etched glass in the chandelier, the brass inserts in the small round tables and original coins embedded in the furniture. There is a lot to take in. Then there is the roaring fire and beautifully upholstered red velvet and leather chairs - with tassells to the floor and plumped velvet cushions. The intricate wood panelling and elegant rugs complete the picture but while the designers have used antiquities and clever lighting to create a wonderful ambience, the star of the show is the whisky. It is almost too much to take in, and 24 • HOTELSCOTLAND
where do you start? Even then the curators have been clever in presenting the list in a leather-bound iPad which you can scroll through, before ordering. And there are experts on hand to advise and encourage you. The designers of Bertie’s have paid attention to every detail and have even put a small uplighter embedded in the table which you put your glass on to showcase your glass of whisky. They have thought of everything. It is one of the finest bars I have seen, and as you all know, I have seen a few and I certainly consider this a masterpiece of a whisky bar..
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THE MELVILLE, CRIEFF HYDRO
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rieff Hydro Resort has invested £700,000 in its new state-of-the-art meetings and events space, the Melville. The Melville is the new space for award ceremonies, glitzy balls and conferences accommodating 400 dinners or up to 600 conference delegates. The flexible event space, formerly a sports arena, offers flexibility for any type of corporate conference and celebration. It has its own bar, catering area, cloakroom facilities and private entrance. It also has three outdoor access points plus drive-in access for AV rigging. Crieff Hydro Resort welcomed guests to the space for a spectacular Bond-themed evening to launch The Melville. Attendees had the chance to try out some of the fantastic team building activities available at the hotel, followed by a black-tie dinner including 1881 Gin martinis – shaken, not stirred and Casino Royale themed entertainment. Stephen Leckie, Chairman and CEO of Crieff Hydro Family of Hotels, said, “We are absolutely thrilled to unveil this fantastic space with a superb Bond-themed bash. “We have invested a significant amount to transform the Melville into a high-tech space that can accommodate a wide variety of events. Our launch party was the perfect opportunity to demonstrate what it can do. “We have started to see a resurgence in enquiries for meetings, dinners and exhibitions, therefore this is a great time to add this amazing room to our menu of options, with a space to suit any meeting size.” 26 • HOTELSCOTLAND
PEOPLE
ROSS BOOTLAND TAKES GEC ROLE AT CRIEFF HYDRO Crieff Hydro Family of Hotels has appointed a Group Executive Chef who brings 25 years of experience to the role, having worked for renowned hotel groups as well as luxury cruise liners. Ross Bootland will oversee the culinary teams at each of the hotels in the family, including Crieff Hydro Hotel and Peebles Hydro Hotel. He will mainly be based in Crieff but will regularly visit the properties in the Borders, Dundee and Glencoe in order to support and lead the teams. One of Ross’ main focuses will be recruitment and continuing to build a training programme to help nurture upcoming talent. Ross said: “I am delighted to join Crieff Hydro Family of Hotels. They have approached me on a few occasions but this felt like the right time to make the move and I’m enjoying having a better work/life balance being located closer to my family at home, rather than spending months at sea. “Recruitment has been very challenging across the industry so one of my main
objectives will be to hire some fantastic talent into chef vacancies we have across the group. “I want to create a friendly and supportive culture across all of the kitchens in our hotels and will be looking at ways we can invest in our team’s development. “While the head chefs at each of the hotels will continue to be responsible for creating their own menus, I will be on hand to develop concepts that fit the personalities of each of the hotels. I’m already working on exciting ideas with the team and would love for us to work towards putting one or two of our restaurants forward for AA Rosette Awards.” Stephen Leckie, CEO of Crieff Hydro Family of Hotels, added: “We are very pleased to have Ross at the helm as Group Executive Chef. “His fantastic ambition and drive to nurture a fantastic working environment will really help take our restaurants to the next level and attract talented chefs who are looking for the opportunity to hone their craft and create exciting a wonderful dining experience for guests.”
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CAN NFT’S BRING A NEW DIMENSION AND NEW CUSTOMERS TO YOUR HOTELS? BY NICOLA YOUNG
J
ust when you thought you had finally caught up with digital technology with your new booking app and ordering systems along comes NFT’s. The intention had been to start with crypto and to talk about how the larger booking engines were taking crypto bookings seriously with fivestar hotels around the world now adopting Bitcoin as a means of payment for instance The Dolder Grand in Switzerland, Sri Panwa in Thailand, S Hotels and Resorts in The Maldives and Sandman Hotels in the UK and Canada. But now hospitality has another crypto string to its bow... NFT’s! An NFT is a non-fungible token.Yes, fungible. “Non-fungible” tends to mean that something is unique and it can’t be replaced with something else. For example, a bitcoin is fungible — you can trade for another bitcoin and you would have 2 of the same things. But the Mona Lisa is unique - you can’t go and get another one. If you sell it, you couldn’t have another one, you would have to buy the same one again. Most NFT’s are a part of Ethereum’s blockchain and Euthereum itself is a Cryptocurrency like Bitcoin. I only mention this to highlight that this is a digital product - NFT’s are unique digital ‘things’.They can apply to music, video, a jpeg, gif or art or a form of AI or unique code. Jack Dorsey of Twitter fame, sold his first Tweet as an NFT on the Ethereum blockchain in March for $2.9m - so, yes, your tweets ‘could’ be an NFT too, if they have value to someone or to a market. In summary, NFTs are digital assets, that can be bought and sold, just like physical assets. And because they run on blockchain (a decentralized digital ledger that documents transactions), the ownership and validity of each can be tracked. You are probably asking how can it apply to hospitality? Well the first NFT hotel has now opened the Crypto Hotel. It has every facility like a real hotel - as well as100 rooms, and suites, and is close to Crypto City, Crypto Forrest and Mountain. It exists in digital form 100% in the blockchainpowered by Ethereum and can be accessed anytime. Its website references the hotel as “the trendiest hotel out there at this very moment.” It will soon release its first NFT of the Crypto Hotel, and then it will release more unique digital pieces of art, such as the rooms and the restaurant. And when the new five-star hotel Ca’di Dio opened at the of August in Venice it auctioned off a night’ stay where a guest could have the hotel exclusively. Consumers had to bid on NFT’s. Think about it. Most of you have as one of your primary focuses the need to increase occupancy rates and maximise RevPAR. Obviously, over the last two years, this has been nigh impossible. So some hotel groups have been tokenising their hotels with regard to contract management (that’s another article) while others are using it to get access to funds . Owners can sell part of the hotel by digitizing the hotel’s assets. Once the digital version of the hotel is uploaded to the chain, which is a perfect replica of the hotel, in the form of tokens, the owner can begin selling these assets to different buyers, and people would own part of the hotel. LABS Group, an end-to-end blockchain property investment platform, began its auction of the world’s first-ever community-owned resort and 28 • HOTELSCOTLAND
Reward timeshare (RTS) non-fungible token earlier in the summer. It raised USD 3.65m for Kunang Kunang Resort. Each RTS-NFT allows buyers a staying right that can be swapped with other RTS-NFT holders.They are also inviting naming rights so bidders can name rooms of the resort. Meanwhile, OD Hotels has become the first hotel group to create its own NFT Art Collection.The Spanish hotel group owns hotels in Ibiza, Mallorca, and Barcelona with one shortly opening in Madrid and another planned for the South of France. Their NFT project aims to help local artists from Spain and the Balearic Islands connect with a new international audience. In America, the Dream Hollywood Hotel has also just opened a new NFT art exhibition in partnership with The Crypt Gallery.This is available to the public for free through 2022 in the hotel’s lobby, and the aim is to get people to learn about and see NFT’s up close without having to pay. Customers can walk around the hotel lobby and immerse themselves in the different videos. Hotels around the world are also starting to accept cryptocurrency. Until now, there have been few examples of companies that managed to take their digital assets and combine them with real-life products but one company closer to home has done just that.The Drum Magazine reported recently that the world of luxury brands is expanding into the world of NFT’s and using them to link to their upmarket physical products to digital products and services and Wm Grant & Sons is doing just this. Primarily with Glenfiddich, but they have also launched NFT-backed art with Hendricks. but this has not been linked to any physical product in the way that Glenfiddich has. Glenfiddich is launching a series of 15 limited-edition NFTs, each one of which links to a physical bottle of a 46-year-old single malt whisky. In this case, the NFT acts as both proof of ownership and authenticity of the physical bottles, which are held on the purchaser’s behalf in BlockBar’s Singapore facility. Will Peacock, global luxury director at William Grant & Sons, owners of the Glenfiddich brand has said in The Drum, “We hope to reach a new audience of digital-savvy investors who are interested in investing in whisky. We also hope this is of interest to our loyal existing rare spirits collectors, who will appreciate the rarity of this Glenfiddich whisky. Finally, we think this might be of interest to crypto sceptics as they might see a benefit of purchasing an NFT with a redeemable physical bottle of rare whisky directly from our brand, which they recognize and trust.” “We believe that the benefits that NFTs offer are an added experience and, for example, we can offer expert advice, virtual distillery tours and access to exclusive offers. We see these two intrinsically complementing each other, allowing us to offer a better consumer experience.” As the Drum says this speaks to an industry looking to discover new audiences that might never have been enticed by the physical items. The Glenfiddich whiskies and NFTs are set to be marketed across its existing mailing lists and channels – though one advantage of the use of NFTs is the ability to develop longer relationships with collectors and consumers. Now that is something that the hotel industry could bottle!
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HOTELSCOTLAND • 29
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ongratulations are in order. Stephen Leckie, Chairman and CEO of the Crieff Family of Hotels has been named the HIT Industry Award winner for 2021, in recognition of the work he has done looking after the interests of the hospitality industry over the past 19 months. This is the only award that HIT Scotland gives out and it is in celebration of an individual within the industry who is recognised as head and shoulders above his or her peer group for championing the interests of the industry in Scotland, going above and beyond their day job. Stephen has spent the last 19 months looking after the interests of the industry and in addition to managing his own portfolio of hotels, he has spent countless hours informing the politicians and industry groups of the strategy and route towards recovery. He is the epitome of someone who cares passionately about the industry and all the people who work within it. There are many people in our industry who have looked for guidance from our winner during the pandemic and have benefitted from his wise counsel.
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I am surprised that the Government has not backed down yet on the issue of VAT. It needs to stay at 12.5% if hospitality is to have any hope of using the winter months to get ready for next season. Boris Johnson has done 39 U-turns - I hope he makes VAT for hospitality his 40th! I have to say I find the whole NFT - Non-Fungible Token - idea a bit beyond my ken! I hope by reading Nicola’s column is clearer to you. It certainly opens the door for hoteliers to maximise their assets without leaving the room. I can imagine this will be the first of many such features. Being a big fan of this industry it is great to see new people come into it especially when I already know them. So I was delighted to hear that Suzy Cormack Bruce and her hubby have bought the Balcomie Links Hotel in Crail and are planning a big refurbishment of the property. I am expecting a very stylish make-over as Suzy is one of the most stylish people I know and writes the Lifestyle Blog Sincerely Yours Susie. I also trust it will be dog friendly because she also owns my dog’s grandson - Ted. I look forward to hearing all about it.
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