Canadian Lodging News - April 2013 by Ishcom Publications

LodgingNews April 2013 Vol. 10 No. 3

C A N A D A ’ S

L O D G I N G

B U S I N E S S

N E W S P A P E R

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By Leslie Wu, Senior Contributing Editor

Rainier Hotel restaurant a reflection of Gastown’s glory days

VANCOUVER—Local operator Sean Heather sees his new restaurant, deli and retail space in the ground floor of the heritage Rainier Hotel as a reflection of the community and the glory days of Gastown. “We don’t call what we’re doing at Rainier Provisions gentrification, we call it restoring,” Heather told CLN. He pointed out that the downtown east side used to be the most prosperous part of the city between 1908 and 1940. “We’re bringing it back to what it used to be,” he said. Rainier Provisions, which opened in mid-February, spotlights the artisanal producers with whom Heather has built relationships over the years for his seven other restaurants and pubs in the area. A carvery option with roasted meats and hot sides such as mashed potatoes, polenta and gravy allows for quick turnover at lunch, as well as quick items such as seafood pot pie, vegan chili and pulled pork sandwiches.

Country Inns & Suites à la Crate & Barrel

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Country Inns & Suites has a modern, new design that appeals to a younger clientele, but still retains the brand’s signature fireplace.

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Kudos for Radisson Saskatoon’s $18 million reno SASKATOON—Four years and $18 million later, the Radisson Saskatoon has a new look. That look, plus the efforts of general manager Patty Schweighardt and her team, led to this hotel being named Radisson’s Hotel of the Year at the Carlson Rezidor Full Service Brands conference held in Chicago in late February. The decisions were not always easy. For example, the renovation involved demolition of the marble staircase, which used to dominate the lobby, with a jackhammer. This prompted some comments from guests who weren’t necessarily sure the old look should go, Schweighardt told CLN. Both staff and guests had to live through a few weeks of dust and plastic draping. At that point, face masks and ear plugs were available at the front desk. “Then we had floods—the pipes

M688_FranchiseDevelopmentAd_CLN.indd 1

burst and we had to replace all the pipes in the building,” she added. When Schweighardt found out the hotel had won Hotel of the Year for Radisson Americas, she screamed into the phone. “For us, it was kind of a sign that hard work pays off.” The Radisson Saskatoon is located downtown, one of the hottest markets in Canada. Its neighbours are the Delta Bessborough, which recently underwent a multimillion dollar reno, and the Sheraton Cavalier, which is currently under renovation. “It’s a fabulous property,” said Schweighardt. “We were trying to reposition it in the market. We are now able to ask for and secure higher rates that show the value the hotel has to offer. Our sales team has new confidence and belief in our product.” Patty Schweighardt, centre, poses with her staff and the awards the team See Before and After page 22

Oak Bay Beach Hotel expands foodservice

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The numbers are in and owner Kevin Walker has hired chef Iain Rennie to implement afternoon tea and more outdoor eating areas to meet growing demand.

Ice, vending and amenities

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Here’s a vending machine that gives out gold bars—chocolate bars from Trump Toronto.

won, the 2012 Radisson Hotel of the Year and the President’s Award.

This is Economy Lodging. This is Motel 6.

Motel 6 Canada 416.966.8387 motel6@realstarhospitality.com A division of Realstar Hospitality

1/11/13 4:54:12 PM

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A P R I L 2 013

Country Inns & Suites à la Crate & Barrel

MIAMI, FL—Country Inns & Suites has always stressed that it wants its guests to feel at home. The rooftop and flower on its old logo, the comfortable nature of the guestrooms, and the fireplace in the lobby were all originally designed with home in mind. But people’s homes have changed, and it’s time for the brand to change with it, said Aurora Toth, vice president of marketing, Carlson Hotels, the Americas, at a media conference in Miami Beach last month. That’s why the brand has partnered with celebrity interior designer Genevieve Gorder to launch a new brand identity and a new generation hotel prototype. The announcement came during the Country Inns & Suites annual business conference at the Fontainebleau hotel. While the brand has seen consistent upgrades and regular renovation cycles, this is the first time in its 25-year history that it has been completely redesigned to include new architecture, interior aesthetic and visual identity, including the logo (above). The new Country Inns & Suites logo, which has been reinterpreted to evoke a more modern and sophisticated image, will be seen immediately, with a controlled roll out across the entire portfolio. The updated hotel architecture and interiors will make their debut in the 4th quarter of 2013. They will feature a clean, contemporary look and feel that complements the new visual identity that combines warmth and comfort with the iconic design elements Country Inns &

Rainier Hotel Continued from page 1

The deli counter features items such as a daily sausage offering from D-Original Sausage Company’s sustainable sausages, created by fifth generation German sausage-maker Drews Driessen and his family, as well as humanely-farmed charcuterie from East Vancouver’s Moccia Urbani. Rainier’s 2,200 square foot space seats 110 people, with an additional capacity for 40 seats on the patio, which was an important consideration to Heather. “At the Irish Heather, we’ve got 190 seats in total, but it’s spread over three to four rooms,” he said. “We turn away functions over 60 all the time, so we can now accommodate them at Rainier Provisions.” This diversification throughout the Heather Group carries through all aspects of Heather’s restaurants, including the sourcing. Heather Hospitality Group includes the Irish Heather Gastropub, Salty Tongue, Judas Goat Taberna, Salt Tasting Room, Shebeen Whisk(e)y House, Everything Cafe and Bitter. “We tried to find ways that we could work within ourselves and the operation,” he said. “In terms of baking, we asked ‘What if we do all our baking ourselves? Then, if we need a birthday cake, which we used to send out for, we can do it in house.’” Heather is also looking at Rainier

CORRECTION In the March 2013 story about Park Inn by Radisson Markham, we provided incorrect ownership information. The property is owned by H.J. Hotels Markham Ltd. and managed by West End Hotels. The GM is Anshu Pathak. CLN regrets the errors.

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Suites are known for, including lobby fireplaces. 2008, 60 per cent of costs. The architectural design is a departure from Asked about an uptake on rates, Thorsten previous generations of Country Inns & Suites Kirschke, COO Carlson Hotels and president, and will allow the brand to expand in a greater Carlson Hotels, the Americas said that launchvariety of areas and locations, including more ing the prototype is just one piece of the puzzle. urban markets. The design will resonate with “We can of course take that and our superior loyal guests, as well as today’s younger, technol- product and go against other markets that we didn’t previously. All of that together will cerogy-focused business travellers. “We are looking to the future and are making tainly increase rates. There is no doubt in my thoughtful changes that will allow us to grow mind.” our brand,” said Gordon McKinnon, executive vice president and chief branding officer for Carlson. “It’s a natural next step to evolve into a product that appeals to a younger generation. But we will be fiercely maintaining our service culture and amenities that have built our strong, loyal customer base.” Nancy Johnson, executive vice president, development, the Americas, likened the new design to that of Crate & Barrel stores, with “splashes of colour and clean designs.” The Living Room.

Phased-in implementation Jim Grimshaw, senior director of brand program development and standards for midscale brands said that to help mitigate costs to owners, the modulized room allows owners to refresh “a piece here and there.” They can “transform a room without having to change out every piece,” he said. Additionally, if a hotel opened in 2012, the brand will pay up to 100 per cent of its costs. If it opened in 2011, Carlson will pay 90 per cent of the cost; in 2010, 80 per cent of costs; 2009, 70 per cent of costs; and

The Den with signature fireplace.

Provisions as a site to make the soup for all of his businesses. At Salt, he uses Seattle-based Stumptown Coffee until the end of its 14 day shelf life, after which it goes into the freezer and then to Vancouver-based R&B Brewing, where it is transformed into a specially brewed Stumpy Porter that is used at Bitter and will be available at Rainier Provisions soon. Another element that will be transplanted over to the Rainier is the Pit for Your Supper concept, where the community gathers at a long table and pits stone fruit from local orchards, which is then frozen and used in cooked food such as chutneys and stewed items throughout the Heather Group all year round. “It’s booked out every summer, because it’s fun. It feels like summer at your grandparents’ house,” said Heather, who noted that the last event processed 2,800 lbs of fruit. As an operator at West Cordova St. and Carrall, it was important to Heather to keep prices in line with the area. “It’s not priced beyond what the neighbourhood can support,” he said. “The point is to teach people about what these small producers are putting out. And it was important to me that we reach a lot of people…I don’t want to just feed 20 diners.” The issue of pricing and gentrification can be a contentious one in the area. Around the corner from Rainier, high-end restaurant Pidgin drew anti-gentrification protesters to its doors after opening earlier this year, with picket lines disrupting service by shining lights into the eyes of the diners. The Rainier space has also been made headlines recently, albeit for a different reason. In the two stories above Rainier Provisions lies the 40bed Rainier Hotel, which provides single room occupancy to women who are homeless or in danger of being homeless. The program, operated

NEWS

BRIEFS

CRFA launches Restaurant Protect insurance program TORONTO- The Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association is proud to announce a new program that will help restaurants, bars and other hospitality establishments get the insurance coverage they need at competitive rates. CRFA’s Restaurant Protect is a new insurance program underwritten by The Dominion of Canada General Insurance Company and Totten Insurance Group. The new program offers competitive pricing to all CRFA members and specialized coverage to meet the needs of Canada’s restaurants, pubs, nightclubs and bars. Restaurant Protect will offer hospitality businesses better coverage at competitive rates, the CRFA said in a news release. Coverage is designed specifically for the hospitality industry including: legal expense insurance, restaurant recovery coverage, food borne illness, forcible ejection, and special wine valuation.

Australians lead the way in Dec. 2012 visits to Canada

by Vancouver Coastal Health, came to the end of its funding in late 2012. “The people living upstairs are classified by BC Housing as hard to house and need hospital care,” said Heather, who used to provide meals to the people in those rooms once a month, and has now increased his efforts to a meal once a week. Ultimately, Heather wants to engage the community that he has operated in for 17 years. “It worked out to be such an organic growth for us,” he said. “Everything we have and all of our businesses are within a three block radius of the Rainier space.”

VANCOUVER—In December 2012, Canada was pleased to welcome just over one million international visitors, a 2 per cent year-on-year boost, says the just-published Tourism Snapshot from the Canadian Tourism Commission (CTC)’s research department. Here are some more key figures: o December was a star-spangled month for the U.S. market: just under 750,000 Americans came for an overnight stay, up 2 per cent from December 2011, as a 9 per cent rise in air travel offset a 3 per cent dip in auto travel. o In 2012 overall, US residents headed north over the 49th parallel for 11.9 million overnight trips, a 2 per cent year-on-year improvement. o It was Australian gold in December 2012: the Down Under market notched a healthy 10 per cent rise in overnight trips to Canada. These figures were given extra gloss by the annual data, which showed 7 per cent year-on-year growth.

Rainier Provisions. 2 West Cordova Street. 604558-2473. Website: www.rainierprovisions.com. Twitter: @The_Rainier.

Despite the earthquake, new hotels are opening in Haiti

Original elements of the Rainier Provisions space have been restored, such as the oversized heritage windows that look out onto Carrall and West Cordova.

HAITI—Haiti is a country that presents both opportunities and challenges for hotel developers and operators, according to a recent article in HotelNewsNow. com. Although it is one of poorest in the Western Hemisphere and is still recovering from a devastating earthquake that struck in January 2010, there are a few projects either open or in development. One hotel managed by Spanish chain Occidental Hotels & Resorts opened in December. Two properties with U.S.based brands are under development and a property managed by another Spanish chain is preparing to open. The country has 20 hotels and 962 rooms open, with two hotels comprising 279 rooms in construction, according to STR, parent company of HotelNewsNow.com.

www.can-lodgingnews.com

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CANADIAN LODGING NEWS

LodgingNews

C OM M E N T By Colleen Isherwood, Editor

www.can-lodgingnews.com Editor Colleen Isherwood ext. 231 cisherwood@canadianlodgingnews.com Senior Contributing Editor Leslie Wu ext. 227 lwu@canadianrestaurantnews.com Contributing Editors Marni Andrews marni@trolltales.com Larry Mogelonsky larry@lma.ca Elaine Anselmi ext. 226 eanselmi@canadianlodgingnews.com Kristen Smith ext. 238 ksmith@canadianlodgingnews.com National Sales Manager Dave Bell ext. 230 dbell@canadianlodgingnews.com Senior Account Manager Debbie McGilvray ext. 233 dmcgilvray@canadianlodgingnews.com Production Stephanie Giammarco ext. 221 sgiammarco@canadianlodgingnews.com Circulation Manager Don Trimm ext. 228 dtrimm@canadianrestaurantnews.com Controller Tammy Turgeon ext. 237 tammy@canadianlodgingnews.com How to reach us: Tel (905) 206-0150

What big data means for hotels This month, I had a demonstration of the Maestro property management system. I had a look behind the scenes at a customer profile, and was walked through a targeted marketing program. I must admit it was unnerving to see a photo from LinkedIn on a sample customer profile. People can easily get that information—I’m active on LinkedIn and have a photo there. On the one hand, it’s great to be greeted by name because someone at the hotel front desk recognizes my face from the PMS system profile. On the other hand, I’m not sure I want my photo on their database. I was impressed at the fact that you can drill down through the data until you come up with a meaningful list of contacts. For example, a resort with a two-night golf package could search for guests who had come to the property at the same time frame last year, who had stayed for at least two nights, and had booked a golf time. The resulting list might be just 10 people, but they would be guests who are likely to book again.

Most importantly, those customers would not feel they were wasting their time since the message was tailored to them. Marketing, loyalty programs and “Big Data” were themes for me this month, as I also attended Terrapin’s conference on Loyalty Programs and Big Data at the Hyatt Regency on King St. in Toronto this month (see article, page 13). Conference speakers extolled the sheer volume of data that is available—from the GPS on our mobile phones, to grocery SKUs, to all the information companies can amass regarding our purchasing patterns via loyalty programs. There was a lot of discussion about what consumers find acceptable and what they view as invasions of privacy. Brian Pearson, president of Loyalty One, and author of The Loyalty Leap, talked about a famous marketing mistake. Advanced analytics by a major retailer showed that 14 months after someone stopped buying contraceptives, they were likely to be buying baby products. They

sent out baby product marketing material—unintentionally reaching a teenage girl, something the girl (and her father) found very creepy. He tested the audience on the “creep quotient” of a number of promotions—proving while tracking can seem creepy, creating value for the customer decreases the creep quotient. For example, Sobeys used the SKUs from people’s shopping lists and sent them personalized promotion packages that reflected their shopping habits. Not only did Sobeys have double-digit response levels, but one customer thanked a store manager in person, saying: “You guys sent me the coolest thing.” While GPS marketing has become mainstream, Pearson pointed to a study that said consumers would rather share their personal mental health information and sexual orientation, than the location they are in while using a smart phone. He also pointed out that 12 years ago, online banking was considered “blasphemous,” whereas today it is a normal practice. “Hotel companies are the worst offenders. As soon as you walk away from the elevator, they know you want a down pillow and a room on a high floor. It’s great to do when it’s convenient, but with data collection comes responsibility.” The key to big data marketing? Bridge the gap between building trust and providing personalized service—know your customers, but earn the right to grab their attention.

Are You An Ostrich or a Llama? By Larry Mogelonsky, P. Eng.

‘Thoughtful Foods’ can increase the productivity of meetings

Publisher Steven Isherwood ext. 236 sisherwood@canadianlodgingnews.com

Institute of Learning which subcontracts its culinary preparations to the Dolce organization. Volume 10 No. 3

Chef Murray Hall Canadian Lodging News is published 10 times a year by Ishcom Publications Ltd. which also publishes Atlantic Restaurant News, Ontario Restaurant News Pacific/Prairie Restaurant News, and Canadian Chains Directory and Canadian Lodging News Buyers’ Directory Address: 2065 Dundas Street East, Suite 201 Mississauga, Ontario L4X 2W1 Tel: (905) 206-0150 Fax: (905) 206-9972 In Canada (800) 201-8596 Subscriptions: Canada & USA: 1 year $39.57, 2 years $63.43 (PLUS APPLICABLE TAX) Single copy: $5.00 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to Circulation Department, 2065 Dundas Street East, Suite 201, Mississauga, Ontario L4X 2W1 EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Jason Cheskes, Above The Line Solutions Vito Curalli, Hilton Worldwide Justin Friesen, Western Financial Group Philippe Gadbois, Atlific Hotels & Resorts Mark Hope, Coast Hotels & Resorts Elizabeth Hueston, Sysco Guest Supply Canada Inc. Dave Kaiser, Alberta Hotel & Lodging Association Brian Leon, Choice Hotels Canada Inc. Chris Lund, Deerhurst Resort Dr. David Martin, Ted Rogers School of Hospitality Christine Pella, Serta Mattress Company Tony Pollard, Hotel Association of Canada Sarah Segal, Informa Canada Andrew Chlebus, LG Electronics Publication Mail Agreement No. 40010152 ISSN 1710-145X GST number R102533890

I first met Chef Murray Hall at a conference last August and he enthralled me with stories of just how much the quality of foods can affect the productivity of meetings and conferences. Since that time, I’ve kept a keen eye on my own diet and how certain foods affect both mood and energy levels. Needless to say, Chef Hall is right, and during our recent chat, he offered some very valuable takeaways both for hotels and for your own dietary goals, which, believe it or not, are one and the same.

His background with food According to Chef Hall, his life has always been imbued with a strong passion for the culinary arts. Growing up in the 1980s in the small mountain town of Salmon Arm, BC (current population roughly 17,000), access to mass produced and heavily processed goods was always a challenge. This meant that the concept of ‘local food’ was already common nomenclature, long before it became trendy in the mid-2000s. Chef Hall’s passion emerged from his mother. He reminisces on the days he would go strawberry or cherry picking then head home to make fresh pies and jam preserves. It was this near-constant, hands-on experience that fostered his early love for cuisine. Chef Hall attended the culinary school at Caribou College in Kamloops, BC, and then completed his apprenticeship at the Banff Springs Hotel in neighboring Alberta. Taking advantage of opportunities within the Marriott organization, he worked in Bermuda and Hawaii before settling in Toronto with the Dolce Hotels and Resorts brand. This move was enticed, in part, by the appeal of helping start a newer brand from the ground up. He currently works as the head chef at the BMO

Seeking a brand differentiator With just over 20 properties, mostly in the United States, Dolce Hotels and Resorts had to create unique points of differentiation to make its brand identifiable amongst a glut of bigger names. A company-wide symposium was held four years ago during the height of the recession to discuss ways to do just this. Meeting productivity quickly became a hot topic. Known for its unique corporate retreat and conference settings, Dolce specializes in providing the best atmosphere for effective meeting time usage. Chef Hall attended the symposium and sat on a council of all the organization’s top chefs. Stemming from their talks emerged the concept of the continuous coffee break and that of ‘Thoughtful Foods,’ a branded cornerstone of the Dolce culinary experience denoting their health-minded focus. As for the coffee break system, some people need a rest at 10 a.m., some at 10:30 a.m., others at 11 a.m. By having an area where snacks were constantly replenished, they could better meet the varying needs of their guests. This way, fatigued business guests can get the much-needed boost whenever their bodies call for it and not simply when the clock allows.

Nutrition hubs The continuous coffee break idea evolved into a true point of difference through a strict focus on healthy snacks. By serving foods that were more nutritious for breakfast, lunch and all breaks in between, their guests wouldn’t suffer from any post-meal bodily shutdowns. Through its exaggerated form colloquially known as a ‘food coma,’ the best illustration of this is the exhausted feeling you get an hour after a intense bolus of red meat or sushi for lunch. Thus, the Nutrition Hub was introduced as a continuous provider of both deluxe coffee and highly nutri-

tious ‘Thoughtful Foods.’ And the science isn’t too difficult to understand either. When the body absorbs a large amount of food, it sends more blood to the stomach, liver, intestine and other digestive organs – especially true for fatty cuisines. With a limited supply of blood, this takes away from the overall blood supply to the muscles, slowing you down, and the brain, which burns sugar and oxygen faster than anything else in the body. The end result is fatigue and a propensity towards inactivity – a sensation that is further exacerbated as a three, four or five day conference wears on. However, if the body receives a consistent input of whole grains, fruits and vegetables, this lethargy never sets in. Healthy foodstuffs are easier on your digestive organs, drawing less blood away from the surrounding tissues. Moreover, because they contain a wider spectrum of nutrients, they’ll induce the perception of satiety faster – that is, portion control. One other important science tidbit to be aware of is the glycemic index. This measurement relates to how much a given food will raise blood sugar levels. High glycemic foodstuffs are what you want to avoid and pertain mostly to refined sugars like ice cream, candy, cookies, soda pop and low-grade starches. Such foods will cause a massive insulin spike – the hormone that controls blood sugar levels by converting sugar into fat. The end result of eating a high glycemic food is that, after the initial sugar rush, you crash as the insulin takes hold. Overall, healthy cuisine throughout a conference affords business guests increased productivity as they are able to push past the midday lull in stride. With the evidence in plain sight, it’s no wonder that Dolce chose this as a central focus to distinguish its brand. Guests could remember Dolce for not only being more contentious and considerate with their food choices, but also for the increased levels of activity granted to them by the availability of healthier alternatives. For more on this interview with Chef Hall, go to www.can-lodgingnews.com.

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atering 16 IDEAS IN 16 MINUTES

DEBRA LYKKEMARK

1. Mobile carts 2. Fake wedding cakes 3. Reinvented mini-Yorkshire puddings 4. Hand-pulled noodles

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Tips from top Canadian and U.S. caterers

CANADIAN LODGING NEWS

Left to right, Debra Lykkemark, Jack Milan, Frank Puleo and Russell Day shared 60 catering ideas at the CRFA Show in Toronto last month. CLN has taken a look at 16 of the best.

2. 1.

4. Debra Lykkemark, CEO of Culinary Capers Catering and Special Events is based in Vancouver, and recently opened an office in Beijing.

FRANK PULEO

5. Tiny Coke floats 6. Service wall made from inexpensive IKEA shelving 7. Server’s T-shirt shows what they’re serving 8. One-bite candy apples

JACK MILAN

9. Food walls 10. Jar cooking 11. Meringue mushrooms 12. Key lime lollipops

10.

7. 9.

8. 12. 11. Frank Puleo is the owner of Framboise Catering, a distinctive full-service catering operation located in New York City.

Four caterers’ top tips for unforgettable events TORONTO—Four catering experts, two from Canada and two from the U.S., presented a lively, fast-paced seminar at the CRFA show held last month in Toronto. Titled “60 Catering Ideas in 60 Minutes,” the presentation ran the gamut from food presentation and serving station solutions, to innovative T-shirts and costumes for serving staff. In the interest of space, we have only presented 16 of those ideas here. For the full PDF showing ideas from the presentation, go to www.canlodgingnews.com/features.

Mobile carts and a noodle puller Debra Lykkemark of Vancouver-based Culinary Capers Catering and Special Events has made use of ordinary, stainless steel mobile carts (#1 above). She’s used them for a dessert station featuring empty profiteroles that can be filled with three types of mousse and with various sauces. They’re also great for after-dinner coffees and liqueurs, or even a gnocci station. If you don’t have the ability to make an eyepopping wedding cake, fake it (#2 above), says Lykkemark. She gets cake forms from Nicholson’s Baker Supplier. She sews pink covers and pale pink ribbons onto the forms, and places lemon drop kisses and petite desserts around the edges of each tier. In a twist on a classic, Lykkemark recommends mini-Yorkshire puddings (#3 above). They’re just two bites of beef tenderloin and horseradish cream. For interactive entertainment, Lykkemark has a hand-pulled noodle station (#4 above), where the specially-trained server pulls and stretches the

noodles until they turn into angel hair pasta. The serving table features prepared noodles with a variety of toppings.

Milan’s innovations.

Wait-staff as gladiators and more

Some of Frank Puleo’s events involve sponsor integration, i.e., little tiny Coke floats (#5 above). Puleo, of Framboise Catering is based in New York City. The serving wall can be brought up to date with simple, inexpensive IKEA bookshelves (#6 above). They can hold pre-plated items and plates for the following courses. After a big event, servers’ voices can become hoarse as they tell guest after guest what it is they are serving. A T-shirt with type that explains the menu item (#7 above), can make the server’s job a little easier. While guests probably wouldn’t eat an entire candy apple, just one bite (#8 above) can appeal to childhood memories. Slices of apple coated with candy also look attractive when plated.

At a Premier Fitness gathering, Russell Day of Toronto’s Daniel et Daniel, dressed up the waitstaff as gladiators (#13 at right). At the Film Festival, the servers wore ascots (which were actually napkins). At the launch of the Bell Canada film, “After the Wedding,” the wait-staff dressed up as brides. And at a Women, Wine and Shoes party, Day had male wait-staff wear high heels. “You can’t put a price on that look,” Day says. Fun serving vessels are another way to differentiate your event. “There are so many different vessels—if you don’t have them, rent them,” says Day. He uses mini frying pans, martini glasses and tasting spoons for presentation. One of his favourites is stand-up cocktail forks (#14 at right). Day also believes that ice cream doesn’t necessarily have to be sweet. He serves savoury ice cream flavours, such a chili-glazed chicken with peanut ice (#15 at right). He also does tomato tatin with olive tapenade sorbet and popcorn crunch. And if the bride doesn’t want a traditional cake or cupcakes, Day says that “donuts are the new cupcakes” (#15 at right). “I use mini Tiny Toms, bring them in and have little bags for the guests,” he notes. Day believes in subconscious branding of events through food. That’s why he has petit fours with slippers on top for ballet events, and the CBC logo on cookies for their event. “You can buy the printer and the sheets,” he says.

Boston-based caterer Jack Milan makes good use of space with food walls (#9 above), with horizontal holes in the walls to hold plates of food. The walls can also be used to hold plastic glasses in place with Velcro. Milan also likes jar cooking (#10 above), with jars that can just be popped in the oven to warm. This approach works for both main courses and desserts. Meringue mushrooms (#11 above) sell for $80 a box. They’re easy to make—basically a Pavlova recipe that is making a comeback. Milan

RUSSELL DAY

13. Dressing up wait-staff (as gladiators, etc.) 14. Fun serving vessels 15. Savoury ice cream (chili-glazed chicken with peanut ice) serves them with three different types of sorbet. Key lime lollipops (#12 above) are another of 16. Donuts—the new cupcakes for weddings.

Mini Coke floats and candy apples

Arranging food on the wall

Jack Milan, president of Different Tastes, Edibles By Jack, Boston’s Picnic Company, Magic Marketing and The Fast Repast, has 35 years experience in the catering and restaurant business.

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14. 15.

16.

Russell Day, VP of Daniel et Daniel, has been setting tables and creating experiential events for 19 years in Toronto and area. He sits on the board of the International Catering Association, allowing him the opportunity to give back to the catering community.

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CANADIAN LODGING NEWS

Liberty North hosts boxing, conventions and weddings BARRIE, ON—If you look at an aerial plan of Liberty North event facility in Barrie, the banquet rooms are laid out like the islands of Indonesia—with the Java ballroom and the Balinese Lounge on the south side, and the Sumatra rooms on the west side. There’s an intricate wood carving and woven tapestries hung on the walls near the entrance—all from Indonesia. That’s because Liberty North is a family-owned business, and the family in question comes from Indonesia. Those owners, sisters Stella Gan and Stefani Choy, are also known in hotel circles as the owners of Days Inn Barrie for the past 10 years. Each year, they win one of Days Inns’ awards of recognition—this year it was for Front Desk Team of the Year. So why did two hoteliers end up in the convention centre business?

“Over the past four years, the number of rooms in Barrie exploded, with hundreds of rooms added to the city’s inventory. The pie wasn’t getting any bigger, and newer properties were increasing in occupancy at the mercy of older hotels,” Gan explained to CLN during a tour of the 5,000 square foot facility. “The result was that rates kept going down, and hotel owners and operators had to look at options. We could sell and leave, or create something to sustain our business.” “We were very attached to the hotel and the business,” added Choy. “We didn’t want to just sit back—we wanted to create something to complement the existing business.” They decided to construct the first full-service, purpose-built event facility in the Barrie area, which is now home to 187,000 people.

“We gave a lot of thought to flow, positioning of rooms, making sure we could accommodate different sized events,” Gan said, adding that the 3,600 square foot Java ballroom can be split into three sections. The Sumatra rooms are smaller with lower ceilings, suitable for business meetings. They opened in April 2011. Events at the facility range from two or three-person lunches for members of Barrie’s business community, to parties for 400 banquet style and conferences for 500 meeting-room style.

Chef’s table

Executive chef Richard Dauginis, who held the same position at Pusateri’s in Toronto for 10 years, has been with Liberty North since it opened. “He can cook for one person or 400 with the same consistency,” said Gan. And with a background that includes Pusateri’s, it’s no surprise that Liberty North has a retail deli area where local business people can buy Dauginis’ fresh lunches. Gan trained at hotel schools in Boston and Switzerland, and worked for the Photo: courtesy of Photo Sh@k. Four Seasons and

Liberty North executive team, left to right, Lori Buch, event manager; Stella Gan, director of sales & marketing; Richard Dauginis, executive chef; and Stefani Choy, director of business development. Photo: Ellie Kistemaker.

Sheraton brands in Vancouver and Boston before she came to Barrie. Those experiences formed the way she looks at hospitality service. “We do things the Four Seasons way—no ifs, ands or buts!” she said. At Liberty North, plates must be warm, soup is served piping hot, everyone gets their food at the same time, and staff sometimes wear white gloves. Gan also went to BCIT in Vancouver for training in information technology. She obtained her MCSC and A+ certifications and worked as an IT professional for a couple of years with Sierra Systems Group, Vancouver, and McCarthy Tétrault, Toronto. (As a result, Wyndham often uses the

Days Inn Barrie for IT testing.) Choy’s background is in accounting—she’s a chartered accountant and worked in that industry before coming to the hotel business. Events at Liberty North are varied—including concerts, fashion shows, weddings and a boxing match. And what does one serve at a boxing match? “Boxed poutine, and a potato Martini bar,” Gan answered without hesitation. The potato Martini bar consists of sweet or mashed potatoes, served in a Martini glass with all the trimmings—chives, sour cream and bacon. “We don’t say no to events,” Gan added. “We made sure the front door is big enough to bring in a vehicle.”

Roger Bloss, president, CEO and founder, Vantage Hospitality.

Patrick Mullinix, VP membership development, Vantage Hospitality.

Canadian pipeline

search engine, while delivering the flexibility, accuracy and assurance consumers expect from the hospitality industry. Bookings go straight to the individual brand websites. “Now that we are a partner, traffic is growing daily, weekly and monthly, providing measurable results,” says Bloss. He has a love/hate relationship with online travel agencies. “It’s an issue with everyone, when someone gets that big a piece of the pie, when they didn’t buy, mix or cook the ingredients. “We tell people to use OTAs to advertise unused space, to make it something productive, not prohibitive from doing good business. It shouldn’t be the source of business.”

Roger Bloss: why brands work CORAL SPRINGS, FL—The things hotels require today are channel management, distribution standards, revenue management and technology, says Roger Bloss, president and founder of Vantage Hospitality. “[These days] it’s all just standards. No individual hotel can perform to the level that needs to be done cost effectively. There’s no doubt that brands are more cost effective,” he adds. Vantage is the eighth largest hotel company in the world with more than 1,000 hotels independently operated, and the only hotel company to be ranked on the Inc. magazine 500/5000 List of America’s FastestGrowing Private Companies every year since 2006. Vantage’s first hotel brand, Americas Best Value Inn (ABVI), is a leader in the limited-service segment throughout North America. This brand, which includes Value Inn Worldwide and Canadas Best Value Inn (CBVI), has been recognized by the lodging industry as the fastestgrowing chain over the past decade.

Two brands in Canada The two brands Vantage offers in Canada are Canadas Best Value Inn and Lexington by Vantage. Canada currently has about 30 CBVIs, and the first Canadian Lexington property

will open in Windsor, ON this May.

Lexington by Vantage Lexington by Vantage is a collection of inns, hotels and suites, which offers an affordable alternative to traditional hotel franchising in the full and select-service segments. “Owners enjoy an entirely new and innovative approach to national brand affiliation that allows them to select the services, resources and revenue-generating programs to meet their specific market needs,” the company said in a release. “This allows each Lexington property to design its services and amenities around the demands of its customers and market niche, and the owners’ bottom-line needs.”

Soft brands offer branding with independence Soft brands, such as Lexington, can give independents a whole new life, while still maintaining individuality,” says Bloss. “They can join a brand for less than the cost of hiring people to do all those things. ” Brand standards offer recognition, consistency and confidence to the frequent traveller, as well as electronic distribution. These things are more important than ever, Bloss notes.

“Lenders are tight, investors and boards are tight. The chances of success [in obtaining funding] are better with a brand.” One of the company’s advantages is its Vantage Academy, and its sales support and assurance personnel, who offer training to sales people. “We teach them how to make sales calls, and we’ve been to every market around the country, as well as Canada,” Bloss says. “We go to strategic geographic locations, and there is no cost involved.”

Membership development Vantage Hospitality recently announced that the head of the membership development division, Patrick Mullinix, has been promoted to executive vice president of membership development, and that everyone on the development team will now be cross-selling all brands under the Vantage umbrella. Mullinix joined Vantage Hospitality in 2002 and has been directing development for Americas Best Value Inn. “Now, in addition to growth in ABVI and CBVI, we are seeing growth in Lexington,” Bloss notes. Kash Joshi, master franchisor for Canada, will work closely with Mullinex in the Canadian market.

“We think we could do two to six Lexingtons in Canada,” says Bloss. “It’s hard to count chickens, but there’s a robust pipeline and a tremendous amount of interest. “We’ll probably fish where the fish are—in other words go everywhere.”

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CANADIAN LODGING NEWS

Legal Corner By Andrew Gay, Gudmundseth Mickelson LLP

Liquor law: Due diligence can help you defend allegations of service to minors By Andrew D. Gay British Columbia’s liquor licensees, like those across Canada, are closely regulated. Recently, British Columbia’s Liquor Control and Licensing Branch (LCLB) began hiring minors to enter licensed establishments undercover, in the company of undercover inspectors, in an attempt to purchase liquor. The LCLB calls this the “Minors as Agents Program” or “MAP”. It is designed to encourage licensees to improve measures aimed at preventing sales to minors. Where liquor is sold to a minor, the licensee can face a significant fine or a suspension of their liquor licence.

“

The lesson from these two cases is that liquor licensees will benefit from implementing strong prevention measures to minimize service to minors and other violations of the law. Where such prevention measures have been implemented, the licensee should assert the defence of due diligence if an employee is caught violating the law.

Is the company responsible for employees’ conduct? In most cases, the licensee is a corporation, and the employee who sold the liquor is a low level employee. In this context, certain legal rules apply to determine whether the company will be found at fault for the employee’s conduct. Those rules were the subject of two recent decisions arising from MAP investigations in British Columbia in which the licensees successfully defended the case even though liquor had been sold to a minor. The first is a decision of the British Columbia Supreme Court known as Beverly Corners Liquor Store Ltd. v. General Manager Under the Liquor Control and Licensing Act, 2012 BCSC 1851 (“Beverly Corners”); and the second is a decision of an Adjudicator in a case known as Re: Rayman Investments & Management Inc. dba Coal Harbour Liquor Store, EH11-139, January 23, 2013 (“Coal Harbour”). In both the Beverly Corners case and the Coal Harbour case, the licensee admitted that a staff member had failed to ask the undercover agent for identification and had sold the agent liquor. However, both licensees argued that they were “duly diligent” and therefore not liable for the violation. “Due diligence” is a well known defence and means that the licensee has taken all reasonable care to prevent the kind of violation that occurred.

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”

Establishing due diligence

To establish due diligence, a licensee must demonstrate two things. First, the licensee must show that it established a proper system to prevent the commission of the violation. This will include such things as a system for training employees, the establishment of clear policies that employees must follow, appropriately placed signs, and appropriate discipline for those employees who violate the policy. Second, the licensee must show that it has taken reasonable steps to ensure the proper operation of the system. It is not good enough to have a written policy and training manual that gather dust on the shelf. Proof of implementation and follow-up must be adduced. This might include periodic monitoring of staff to ensure they are asking for identification, frequent staff meetings at which the policy is reinforced, and the distribution of written reminders to employees. Some licensees even use ‘secret shoppers’ to ensure their employees are compliant.

However, in the Beverly Corners case it was noted that the defence of due diligence is not available where the person who committed the violation was a “directing mind” of the corporation (typically a person in senior management). In the Beverly Corners case, the Adjudicator held that the cashier who served the minor was a “directing mind” of the corporate licensee, and accordingly held that the defence of due diligence could not be raised. He reached this conclusion because the cashier had been given the designation of “supervisor” on an evening shift when no one in management was on duty, and because she had decision-making authority over whether to ask the patron for identification.

Not a “directing mind” The licensee challenged that decision to the British Columbia Supreme Court, arguing that the cashier was not a “directing mind” of the company. The court agreed. To summarize, the court explained that a “directing mind” of a company is someone who has the power to make company policy in that part of the company’s business over which they have control. The court held that the cashier was not such a person, and accordingly the defence of due diligence was available.

Implement strong prevention measures

No hard-and-fast rules

There are no hard-and-fast rules for what prevention measures a licensee must implement, and what is “reasonable” may vary with location, type of establishment, type of clientele and other factors. In any case, perfection is not required by the law. The Beverly Corners case and the Coal Harbour case provide examples of prevention measures that were found to pass the test of diligence.

Andrew Gay is a partner at Gudmundseth Mickelson LLP in Vancouver where he practices commercial litigation and administrative law. He is recognized in British Columbia as an expert in liquor law where he represents licensees of all kinds in disputes with the Liquor Control and Licensing Branch. He was counsel in both cases described in this article.

in Hyatt’s history. Here are some of their findings: o Women want assurance that their guestroom has been cleaned and an ongoing dialogue with the hotel to provide feedback (communication cards have been placed in the room). o Women are more reluctant to ask for things they’ve forgotten (the Hyatt Has It program offers es-

sentials such as phone chargers, curling irons, steamers, yoga mats, lighted makeup mirrors, and free weights to keep, borrow or buy). o Women want to maintain their health and well-being while traveling (new menu offerings include fresh juices and smoothies, balanced portions and “create your own” options).

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S U P P LY

L I N E S Warren Dehan, president, Northwind Canada Inc.

Northwind Maestro’s features for independent hotels MARKHAM, ON—Loyalty programs, customer relationship management and booking systems are some of the main reasons hotels join large chains. Chains have the technology and resources to develop sophisticated systems to manage these crucial aspects of hotel operations. Warren Dehan, president of Northwind Canada Inc., saw a need to provide independent hotels and smaller chains with similar systems to help them compete with the bigger brands. “Resorts, boutique and independent hotels had no access to the accoutrements of branded hotels. That’s why we developed a software to meet their needs.” Northwind and Maestro property management system (PMS) came up with a design to accommodate full-service, independent and small-chain operations, who may want to offer spa, conference and banquet space.

Providing the right kind of packages One of the most valuable features of the Maestro system is guest recognition. Maestro keeps track of each stay, guest spending habits, preferences and loyalty club information. This enables them to build a special package to accommodate each guest. For example, if a guest brings his wife to a resort, the resort can offer her a golf game, a dining reservation or a visit to the spa. They can ask whether she would like a manicure, pedicure or massage, and which provider she would like for her treatment. The next time she comes to the resort, all that information is on file and readily accessible. Maestro lets properties assign frequent-stay points for guest visits, dining, and other activities that accrue in a guest’s loyalt y profile. Guests review their profile and p o i n t totals

online and redeem points for property-defined rewards that keep them returning to the property’s website to book rooms. Maestro’s smart-guest messaging capability offers an easy way for operators to prepare for guests before they arrive, serve them while they are on property, and touch them after they depart. Messages can be customized by rate-code, guest-type, season, and room to personalize the guest touch.

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Guest Experience Measurement The GEM module is a powerful, easy-to-use online guest satisfaction feedback tool fully integrated with Maestro. It features detailed reporting, evaluation and data collection capabilities to provide operators with actionable, predictive intelligence.

Facebook as a booking channel Maestro’s ResWave online booking engine lets independents turn their hotel’s Facebook page into a profitable reservation-booking site. Operators may offer social media promotions exclusively to guests booking rooms on their Facebook page.

Maestro’s iPad Check-In Maestro’s iPad Xpress Check-In (below, left) enables staff to check-in guests and groups at curbside, the concierge desk or other convenient areas on property wirelessly with an iPad.

Accent Inns are satisfied users BC-based Accent Inns have used Maestro since Oct. 2011. Chris Brown, district manager at the Accent Inn Vancouver Airport, acted as project director responsible for choosing and implementing the PMS for the five-property chain. Brown told CLN he likes its ease and flexibility of use. It’s suitable both for older staff who are more comfortable with a keyboard and mouse, and younger people who prefer touchscreen technology. Once staff learn the system, there is less documentation and less writing. “It enables us to become guest-centric,” Brown said. He also likes the automated guest messaging systems. “There’s a sense of confidence for people who work at the hotel.”

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CANADIAN LODGING NEWS

La Quinta’s Canadian expansion starts in Oshawa NEW ORLEANS—According to a study conducted by Smith Travel Research, La Quinta grew faster than any other select service brand in the years 20012011, growing more than 166 per cent in that

period. In the same period, its nearest competitor grew at just over 64 per cent. Also in that decade, the number of hotels in the La Quinta system grew from 306 to 815. In the five years ending in 2011, a challenging period for the entire industry, La Quinta grew its U.S. hotel count by 43.4 per cent. Its nearest competitor in that period grew by just over 31 per cent. One of the big advantages of La Quinta is La Quinta DFW North, Dallas, TX

Left to right, panellists Brian Robertson, Vision 2000; Tanya Racz GBTA Canada; Dorothy Dowling, Best Western International; and Michael Koetting, Concur Technologies.

that it owns and operates its hotels, Rajiv Trivedi, La Quinta’s executive vice president and chief development officer, told CLN in a recent interview. “Before we launch any new program, we test and adjust until it is proven. Most brands worry about the top line because of fees. We look at the bottom line return on investment, including advertisements, sales and amenities.” Trivedi said La Quinta’s current cost structure is the lowest in its comparative set, and that they offer a system-wide central reservation system, with loyalty numbers in the mid-40s. Other advantages include a two-week orientation at the property level before, during and after the hotel opening. And, Trivedi added, he and president and CEO Wayne B. Goldberg are always accessible. At its annual conference held in Fajardo, Puerto Rico recently, La Quinta reported another year of growth in 2012. La Quinta had 846 properties in its portfolio by year end. RevPAR

grew by 7.9 per cent in 2012, occupancy increased 2.6 per cent, while system-wide revenue grew 10 per cent to $1.4 billion.

Growth planned for Canada Trivedi also told CLN that La Quinta is working on its first hotel in Ontario, a new construction property located in Oshawa. Construction is well underway and the hotel should open this June. The chain also plans to grow in Calgary and Saskatoon, which are two “stellar” markets according to Trivedi. “We plan to strategically grow in Canada at a slower pace, looking for the right partners who understand our culture,” he noted. La Quinta has had a hotel in Richmond, BC near Vancouver airport for a number of years. The hotel has a four-star rating on TripAdvisor, and was recently named a 2012 TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence award winner.

Business travel recovers TORONTO—It’s time to stop using the ‘R’ word—in this case ‘recession,” said Bryson Forbes, Best Western International blogger and moderator of the hotel chain’s annual Business Travel summit held last month in Toronto. The biggest takeaway from the summit is that business travel in Canada is in full recovery mode. Domestic air travel is expected to grow almost five per cent and hotel stays are growing four per cent according to the GBTA 2013 Industry Pulse Report issued in February. Although business travel budgets this year have increased slightly by three per cent, more travellers are on the road more often, according to GBTA Canada president Tanya Racz.

Best Western’s senior vice president of sales and marketing Dorothy Dowling added, “While demand is up one to two per cent for corporate travel, what we’re starting to see over the past two years, is that rate is also starting to improve, which is good news for the lodging industry.” Vision 2000 also reported business and meeting planning is up more than 15 per cent in 2013 compared to last year. While the travel industry continues to place a significant emphasis on social media channels and mobile sites, executives indicated that travellers value the content as they research travel, or “look to book,” but the sites don’t necessarily drive a significant volume of bookings.

Starwood in Dubai DUBAI, UAE—Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. relocated its global headquarters to Dubai from March 4 until April 5. Starwood president and CEO Frits van Paasschen and more than 200 of the company’s top executives conducted day-to-day business from this increasingly important global destination and travel hub. Following the company’s successful relocation to China in June 2011, this move reflects Starwood’s innovative management approach to cultivating a more global culture, the company said in a release. “With 80 per cent of Starwood’s pipeline coming from rapidly growing markets, it is simply not possible to lead a truly global business from a boardroom in Connecticut,” said van Paasschen. “Dubai epitomizes this changing face of travel, and we expect this relocation will deepen our relationships with partners, associates and customers.”

Frits van Paasschen (front), president and CEO of Starwood Hotels & Resorts, and Guido de Wilde, SVP and regional director Middle East, cycle on a course near Dubai.

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Mining Big Data to personalize customer service Air Miles in February of 2102. to sell better—to raise the spend on a bottle a better handle on what they bought. Six “Think of our organization as the LCBO of wine to $15, $16 or $17, said Pellerin. months down the road, they invited those and Beer Store in a one-stop shop,” Pellerin “If we could just know what people people to a wine tasting. And they will folexplained to his Ontario-based audience. want, just ahead of when they want it.” low up with a pre-purchase offer for next Air Miles was a natural fit because they year’s Port of Wines celebration. “What the heck does a full monopoly need with a loyalty program?” have 87 per cent household penetration in Pellerin’s approach will be to test, meaHis answer: NSLC wanted to use rewards the province. NSLC wanted the data from sure and learn. A year into the Air Miles as currency for customer insight. Air Miles transactions to help them person- partnership, he is pleased with the fit and “In some ways we have a tough go in alize their sales programs. speed of implementation for the program, Nova Scotia, although we had some positive adding that it allows for multi-channel momentum when the [tall] ships were here. Port of Wines experience communication with customers. We have the oldest population among the For example, 5,000 people attended their Annapolis Valley wines are on the NSLC Job # have Ver # out - Magazine Ads last radarDate Mar FNL IW-0001 provinces, but we also the third young- Client Port ofImagewear Wines Festival in September as well, said14/13 Pellerin, pointing that est city, Halifax. Believe it or not, we don’t year. Those people spent $400,000 on wine. Nova Scotia is the third largest wine proJob 10.75x14" bleed 4C process CDN. LODGING - Hospitality want to sell more product—our challengeNEWS is Thanks to the AirFP Miles program,Specs NSLC had ducing+province, behind Ontario and BC.

Tim Pellerin, vice-president of marketing and merchandising for Nova Scotia Liquor Corp. spoke at a recent conference in Toronto on Loyalty Programs and Big Data.

By Colleen Isherwood, Editor TORONTO—The concept seems almost counter intuitive: big companies such as Boston Pizza, Canadian Tire and Toys ‘R Us all want to achieve the personal touch of those old-time restaurants who knew what you wanted to order when you walked into the store. But to do it, these companies attended a double-barrelled conference on Loyalty Programs and Big Data. This conference, put on by Terrapin Group, is a first for Canada, although Terrapin has organized similar conferences in the U.S. There is a reason why the words, Big Data, are capitalized. The numbers are mind-boggling. The concept encompasses the wide variety of data available online. It’s measured in petabytes (PB), one petabyte being equal to 10 to the power of 15 bytes—that’s 10 with 15 zeros. For example, on June 15, 2012, Facebook announced that they had reached 100 PB of data. On Nov. 8, 2012, the company announced that its warehouse grows by half a PB per day. Increasingly, marketing and IT skills are overlapping. At the conference, speaker after speaker provided compelling reasons why companies should mine all this data to increase their business. Take loyalty cards, for example. Andy Wright, president of Air Miles, talked about the company’s coalition model. Consumers love to collect points, and they are looking for a program that fits as many of their spending habits as possible. Air Miles’ coalition approach allows the consumer to earn rewards from many of their shopping habits— Wright says Air Miles covers two-thirds of all shopping types across Canada. Shoppers are earning points across a range of categories on a range of channels, including mobile. “They don’t have to carry a bunch of cards in their pocket,” Wright noted. As a measurement of Air Miles’ success, he said that there were one million downloads of the Air Miles mobile app in Canada alone. There are a number of advantages for brands that participate in the coalition as well, said Wright. If a company wants to build a loyalty program, the shared costs of joining Air Miles are not as costly as developing a product themselves. Air Miles already has an active base of customers, who are ready to shop.

Why does a monopoly need loyalty? Tim Pellerin, vice-president of marketing and merchandising for the Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation found these arguments persuasive, and NSLC joined

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CANADIAN LODGING NEWS

Afternoon tea, patios, farm produce at Oak Bay Beach By Colleen Isherwood

Snug pub, along with a rooftop bistro on the hotel’s widVICTORIA, BC—It’s just ow’s walk, and Boathouse Spa been four months since the patio (beside the seaside mino 38,221 guests overall rebuilt Oak Bay Beach Hotel eral pools) will open in time o 20,552 customers in The Snug opened, but already they are for what promises to be a busy o 11,870 pints of beer pulled in making changes due to what summer season. The Snug owner Kevin Walker terms as The Widow’s Walk will o 2,845 fish & chips ordered in “overwhelming demand on boast a 25-seat bistro, suitable The Snug our food and beverage outlets for cocktail parties. Guests will o 2,170 pints of Snug IPA and team.” sit on high stools to eat their served in the hotel The most notable change, tapas. o 25,281 cups of coffee served was bringing in Iain Rennie as The first deck opened on in Kate’s Café executive chef, along with his St. Patrick’s Day and as soon o 1,017 guests for dinner thesous chef Josh Houston as of as it’s feasible the others will be atre in the David Foster FounMarch 1. The duo join Quenoccupied. All told, including dation Theatre tin Kayne, director of food all the decks and patios, Oak and beverage. Bay Beach hotel will have close Currently Kate’s Café, The Snug pub, The Din- to 1,000 food and beverage seats, Le Sage said. ing Room, David Foster Foundation Theatre, and Chef Rennie plans to make use of local, fresh room and catering services are offered at the 100- seafood and oysters, and produce from owners room Oak Bay Beach Hotel. Kevin and Shawna Walker’s nearby farm. “PlantFollowing a review of all of the hotel’s menus ing season begins Friday, with our sous chef Josh and food preparation, the launch of the Oak Bay tending to our needs for the next seven to eight Beach Hotel’s afternoon tea service is one of chef months,” Rennie said in an interview at the end Rennie’s first priorities. “Starting April 6, tea will of March. be served from 12:00 until 4:00 in the grand lobby, Raised on Vancouver Island, Rennie has the dining room, the sun-drenched conservatory, worked at the Savoy Hotel in London, England, and the patio deck that overlooks the Boathouse as sous chef at the Pan Pacific, as executive sous Spa, the Strait of Juan de Fuca and Mount Baker,” chef at The Fairmont Empress, as chef at the Kayne told PRN. Fairmont Vancouver Airport Hotel, and in an exAfternoon tea will include local salmon, lav- ecutive chef position at the Fairmont Waterfront. ender shortbread and warm crumpets with home Most recently, he was executive chef at The Westin made butter, Rennie said. The lavender comes Bear Mountain Golf Resort & Spa. Rennie overfrom the hotel’s herb garden, “and hopefully we’ll saw the successful rebranding of the main dining soon have some bees.” room from a lacklustre catch all dining room to “Tea will include our own spa-inspired Boat- an award-winning, Italian inspired venue. house Blend,” said Michelle Le Sage, hotel general He was part of the gold medal Team BC at the manager. It consists of lavender, camomile, west 2004 World Culinary Olympics. To date, Rennie coast peppermint, jasmine and seaweed. has garnered 16 gold medals and five silver medals The sun decks for both Kate’s Café and The in world culinary competitions.

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PHOTOS: Background, Kevin and Shawna Walker’s farm (red buildings). Left: Chef Iain Rennie. Below: Michelle Le Sage, GM of Oak Bay Beach hotel.

Chimo to become a Holiday Inn at a cost of $9 million OTTAWA—The Chimo Hotel, managed by Crescent Hotels & Resorts Canada and owned by Royal Host Inc., will undergo a $9 million renovation and become a Holiday Inn Hotel in late 2013. Located off St. Laurent Boulevard at the Queensway Highway, the hotel is minutes from downtown Ottawa, Parliament Hill, the Casino du Lac Leamy, and Calypso Waterpark. In addition to the rebranding, the hotel will be undergoing several enhancements and renovations including: o Full refresh of guest rooms including new furniture, cabinets, lighting, carpets, wallpaper, linens o Upgraded guest room bathrooms o New contemporary restaurant and bar concept, which will be both family-friendly and suitable for corporate events, lunch meetings, happy hours, and casual dining. o Updated lobby with new 24-hour convenience store o New business centre o Restored hallways, and updated pool area o Addition of three meeting rooms/banquet spaces o Revamped fitness centre with new carpet. “We are thrilled to be able to reinvest in the Ottawa Market. We believe that the St. Laurent area is a growth area in a city that has great long term prospects and an area in which our new Holiday Inn will thrive,” said Mike Bobbitt, senior vice president and COO of Royal Host Inc.

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Thunder Bay’s first Marriott completed in record time By Heidi Lamar The drive from GTA to Thunder Bay takes about 18 hours. By comparison, the path to the new Thunder Bay TownePlace Suites feels like an expressway. This project has moved along with amazing speed, given many inherent obstacles including inclement weather and bad soils. Thunder Bay, the largest city in Northern Ontario, is bursting at the seams. The recent growth of Lakehead University, with nearly 8,000 students (and their lonely visiting parents), Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre and a Ring of Fire mining explosion that is quickly becoming a stainless steel (chromium) gold rush, have all contributed to the demand for an extended stay hotel.

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would avoid. Thunder Bay’s rich history can be traced back nearly 11,000 years to the time of the Paleo-Indians, whose stone tools can still be found. Spear points, axe heads and scraping implements were the tools they used to cope with life in the early days following the great glaciers.

Light gauge steel panels Luckily, Chamberlain’s team of architects and constructors had better options in their tool belts. To cope with the poor soils and short building season, they turned to light gauge steel prefabricated panels manufactured in a climate controlled factory in balmy Southern Ontario. These ingenious panels reduced the building’s weight by over 50 per cent. Combined with standard foundation systems requiring less concrete, and ease of winter construction, this

solution provided substantial benefits. This is a process which Chamberlain’s president Adrian Mauro refers to as “moving from constructing each part of the building on site to assembling factory manufactured components,” an idea which offers significant savings in both time and cost. If you doubt the benefit of this, take a look at the YouTube video

of a Chinese company building a 30 storey hotel in 15 days: (http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=rwvmru5JmXk). If all goes according to plan, the Thunder Bay TownePlace Suites will be welcoming guests by the end of 2013. This article is reprinted courtesy of the Chamberlain Group.

Rumours abound So it was no surprise that shortly after it was announced, the TownePlace Suites project was surrounded with a flurry of speculation. Rumours abounded on blogs like SkyscraperPage.com, one of the most active skyscraper enthusiast communities on the web. “The hotel is going to be located on the east side of the property (closer to Memorial Ave. along Nor-Ont Supply’s backyard). To the west of the hotel will be the retail portion. It is almost 10,000 sq. ft. in size, so it’s not a huge store, but still not small either. The A & W restaurant will be attached to the west side of the retail portion. The full service restaurant will be located right along Carrick. It will be a stand-alone building,” explained a well-informed blogger by the username of TBayON. “Like I said before, the developer put up that Marriott in Sudbury in about 10 months from empty lot to finished building, so once this gets going, it should be put up fast.”

Make An Entrance. It’s Time We Met.

Completed in 10 months The TownePlace project got underway at the end of October, 2012, designed and constructed by the Chamberlain Group, which had, in fact, completed the aforementioned Marriott in Sudbury for Easton’s Group of Hotels, a Steve Gupta company in about 10 months. Markham-based Easton’s Group, which has a reputation for giving guests more than they expect, has been building hotels with Burlington-based Chamberlain Group for over 10 years. When they decided to expand beyond the GTA into areas like Sudbury and Thunder Bay, Chamberlain’s Integrated Project Delivery was a natural choice. Having a single point of responsibility for both design and construction with a firm boasting nearly 20 years of hotel experience, gave the Easton’s Group peace of mind. Chamberlain’s specialized trades can build hotels in half the time, a cost savings that more than offsets their travel expenses.

Obstacles—Appeals, climate, soils Easton’s received approval to build a five-storey, 142room Marriott TownePlace Suites hotel on land near the Real Canadian Superstore in early 2012. But an appeal to the Ontario Municipal Board from Superstore owner Loblaws Properties West threatened to halt the development. Chamberlain reconfigured the hotel’s layout, giving Loblaws the visibility they craved and the project was able to move forward. By May 2012, Loblaws had dropped its appeal. “That situation is resolved hopefully. There will be a couple of minor issues but I’m confident they’ll be resolved. I’m really pleased Loblaws took that stand and have withdrawn their appeal, which is good news for everybody because litigation doesn’t help anyone,” Gupta said. The appeal delayed the project by about three months. Appeals were not the only speed bumps in this hotel’s path. Thunder Bay’s climate and soils provide their own unique challenges. Thunder Bay has a rather short building season. Between November and April, temperatures stay in the minus range, making concrete work difficult and expensive. In fact, Thunder Bay holds a pretty impressive record: On January 10, 1982, the local temperature in Thunder Bay dropped to −36°C, with a wind speed of 54 km/h for a wind chill temperature that dipped to −58°C. As a result, it holds Ontario’s record for coldest day with wind chill. Add to this chilling fact soils which are notorious for their poor bearing capacity and a limited local work force, and you have a site that ice road truckers

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CANADIAN LODGING NEWS

is now Swimwear nding offered in ve e at Th machines tels in Standard ho and h Miami Beac New York.

Above: Trump Hotel minibars offer chocolate bars shaped like blocks of gold and silver.

ICE/VENDING/IN-ROOM AMENITIES: The secret is making guests feel special and giving them options By Marni Andrews

Vending machines used for pool wear, jewellery, recycling Element Hotels’ Resort Pantry includes salads, pastas and sauce, and ready-to-go meals. that glass door Minibar North America claims by 10 per cent. merchandising increases sales

Six Tips for Ice Machines By Terry Toth, marketing communications manager, Scotsman Ice Systems o For banquet kitchen facilities, an ice machine and ice storage bin are ideal. o An ice machine that produces diced cubes is great for banquets; however for salad or seafood displays, flaked or nugget ice is better since it cools rapidly and moulds to any shape. o Do not locate the ice machine next to a bread baking area as yeast entering the machine causes slime build-up. o Air-filtered ice machines should not be located in closets or areas with poor circulation. o For the bar, an under-counter ice machine that produces diced cubes is convenient. Space requirements range from 15 inches to 30 inches in width, 39 inches in height and 24 inches in depth. o Air-cooled ice machines should have 6 inches of space around the sides and back for proper air flow and cooling.

For hotel guests who have forgotten their swimsuit and had to forgo a dip in the beyond fabulous pool not pictured in the brochure, a new wave of vending machines should make them swoon. Of course it means they would have to be staying at what is still a relatively short list of properties who see the advantage in ultra-specialized customer self-service vending machines. Such machines are a far cry from the slightly down market or limited option image that vending machines continue to have for many. Meanwhile, some analysts are calling specialized, targeted vending machines “the future of retail.” The Standard High Line hotel in New York and The Standard Spa in Miami Beach clearly understand the customer service upside and realize it is right for their guest demographic. Each offers disposable Quiksilver swimwear in their machines. Likewise, The Hudson in New York, Mondrian South Beach in Miami, and St. Martin’s Lane hotel in London all signed on for the incredibly minimalist but terribly style conscious Semi-Automatic vending machine that offers beautiful items from nearby boutiques. The St. Martin’s Lane version stocks jewellery made of iridescent beetle wings, white feathers and 22-carat gold and handprinted French fashion tights, fake eyelashes and skull watches, even hand-knitted baby clothes among other high-end fashion and gift items. The “Reverse Vending Machine,” already in use in Beijing, allows people to insert empty plastic bottles and get paid for recycling. Beijing is expected to have 2,000 machines soon. And yet, the perception remains for some hoteliers that vending machines do not offer a high-end experience. For others, the exact thing that makes them appealing in some settings, their complete accessibility, is what makes them less desirable. “The Park Hyatt brand is a luxury provider that offers an intimate experience with privacy and personalized service so something requiring self service does not work within that. Our concierge team sources out anything a guest needs and delivers it to the guestroom,” explains Bonnie Strome, gen-

eral manager of the 346-room Park Hyatt Toronto. Robert Hood, corporate food & beverage manager, Atlific Hotels, notes that while some of their properties have vending machines, many properties have also gotten rid of them, mostly in favour of selling items at the front desk to realize the profit that would have gone to the vending company or moving to a lobby market, retail grab-and-go setup for food and other guest items that is transacted through the front desk as well. “We have a lot of family style hotels, and people just come to the front desk if they want a couple of Cokes and a blow-up rubber ring for the pool. It’s a lot cheaper as well,” he says. At the Lake Louise Inn in Alberta, Kelly Anne Yeaman, area director, Canadian Rockies, Atlific Hotels, has one vending machine in the gift shop for the five-building property spread out over 8.5 acres. “Our vending machine dispenses Advil, Tylenol, chips, chocolate bars, that sort of thing,” says Yeaman, “because we can’t give out medication directly. We sell things like toothbrushes in the gift shop.” David Astifan, owner of David’s Vending in the Vancouver area, currently works with four hotels who have his vending machines. One hotel is a five star, but he is taking out that machine soon; the rest are limited service properties. He provides swim goggles through the vending machine for one hotel with a pool. His most popular items are snacks (chocolate bars and chips), rice krispy bars, pop tarts and popcorn. “The average hotel has two machines, one for beverages, one for snacks. Some hotels already have a beverage contract so I provide only snacks for them,” he says. “One hotel asked me to put in detergent because they have washing machines. Anything so that guests don’t have to walk or drive to the store.” He provides the machines at no charge and makes his profit from what is sold. He adds that most hotels want a commission on sales as well, between 10 and 15 per cent. The 24-hour, grab-and-go food and beverage area has been all but perfected by Aloft Hotels & Element Hotels in the Starwood family, according to Dan Young of Starwood Hotels & Resorts, with two Aloft hotels in Canada — Aloft Montreal Airport and Aloft

Vaughan Mills in the Toronto area. Young says that although Aloft Hotels do not have traditional vending machines, they have transformed this experience with their concept re:fuel by Aloft, which offers sweet, savoury and healthy food, snacks and drinks such as sandwiches, vegetables and ice cream. Guests charge their purchases to their room or pay directly at the Aloha desk in the lobby. Along the same lines, Element Hotels offers the Restore Pantry, with quick snacks and a variety of gourmet ingredients that guests can use to make their own meal in their guestroom kitchen. Choices range from salads to pastas and sauce to ready-to-go meals. Snacks include yogurt, chips and dip, cookies, candy, biscotti and trail mix. Beverages include smoothies, sodas, energy drinks, water, tea, coffee, beer and wine.

Ice machines or room service ice served on a silver platter Between the exploding popularity of iced coffees and teas, the new range of specialty ice cube sizes and the growing preference for chewable ice, frozen water has not been in such demand (or this sexy) since hockey was invented. The Shangri-La in Toronto and Vancouver understand the important role that ice plays in guest comfort. Accordingly, they bring ice to the guest on a silver platter on demand. Liz Sperandeo, public relations manager, The Shangri-La Vancouver, says the hotel has ice machines located in the service area on every other level to increase cost effectiveness yet not sacrifice delivery efficiency. The fact that ice is not accessible to guests removes any awkwardness about having to search for the ice machine or to have to get dressed to do so. At The Shangri-La Toronto, Julian Darisse, front office manager, says that ice is delivered to guestrooms in a silver pot with a lid within five minutes of a guest ordering it. He says that every guestroom is also provided with ice at turndown. Hoshizaki America, which offers ice machines, dispensers, etc., is seeing a trend towards locating ice machines for guests at the service point, not just in hotel hallways. They also have a small under-counter refrigerator suitable for rooms, bars and convention areas, says Barbara Harrison, director of customer support. Hoshizaki’s new square ice cube is proving popular in bar settings.

ilver.

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“Ice cubes come in several sizes, primarily full (used in cocktails and water) and half cubes (like in soda from McDonalds). Half cubes are often used in guestrooms or hall dispensers,” says Scott DeShetler, director of marketing, Ice-O-Matic, which offers a full line of ice equipment. “If the hotel has a fine dining establishment, one of the trends we are seeing is larger ice cubes for cocktails.” Production and storage facilities per square feet of space is becoming a much bigger deal and most hospitality prep areas do not have a lot of space for new equipment, says DeShetler. “As they start using more ice, for which we see a steadily growing demand, we’re starting to see machines that are taller but narrower so they don’t increase the footprint.” Another trend he sees emerging is that for combined ice and water dispensers. In most cases, this is coming from the hospital industry where they’ve been using them for years, he says. They use chewable ice in hospital settings along with ice water. This is being looked at more and more by people who don’t want the environmentally unfriendly huge containers of water. Chewable ice has a cult following in some regions of the U.S. People go in to convenience stores and fast food restaurants with big bags to pick up the chewable ice. “I was on a cruise ship in October and every food station had an ice and water dispenser at it. They’re touchless and very sanitary,” he explains. Scotsman Ice Systems offers optional smart technology for its line of Prodigy Cubers that allows operators to program ice levels for up to seven days a week and four intervals per day, says Terry Toth, marketing communications manager, Scotsman Ice Systems. “This allows operators to make the ice they need when they need it, or produce it at night when energy is less expensive,” she suggests.

Minibars work if they’re done right Minibar North America offers some interesting statistics related to in-room services such as minibars and refrigerators. They claim that glass door merchandising increases sales by 10 per cent, that water accounts for 15 per cent of minibar products sold, that external snack displays increase sales by up to 15 per cent, and semi-automated minibars reduce labour by 40 per cent while fully automated minibars reduce labour needs by 60 per cent. There is no doubt that, handled correctly and for the right demographic, minibars can add to the bottom line. “We position our minibar to be a profit centre,” says Mickael Damelincourt, general manager, Trump International Hotel & Tower, Toronto. “We use easily recognized products such as Coke, M&M’s and RedBull mixed with local vendors such as the company (Spudniks) that supplies our chips. We also don’t overstock them as this can lead to wastage, which hurts both the environment and profit. “Something that is unique to Trump Hotel minibars are Trump chocolate bars fashioned as blocks of gold and silver. We have also added Veuve Cliquot champagne splits to the minibar in response to guest demand,” he adds. Trump International offers complimentary tea and Nespresso coffee machines in room as well as complimentary Evian in glass bottles. Corinne Lund, operations manager for the 59-room James Hotel in Saskatoon, says the guest is given a choice of complimentary still or sparkling water for their room. The minibar amenities are from Torn Ranch, rather than “off the shelf.” “Minibars can absolutely be a profit centre,” says Lund, who says that for a few years there was a move toward outlandish prices that were viewed by the consumer as an unreasonable cash grab. “Nobody wants to pay $10 for a small bottle of water. Having overpriced stock that doesn’t move isn’t doing anybody any favours,” she suggests. “The hotel inventory becomes stale dated

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www.can-lodgingnews.com and must be removed and you’ve not put any dollars toward your bottom line. Once again, properties need to respond with respect toward what the guest is telling you, which is offer a good product, charge me a reasonable price and I’ll be happy to purchase it.” Hood from Atlific Hotels feels that minibars work in certain cities and not in others. “In Montreal, they are always successful because there is a vibrant nightlife and people like to have a beverage before they go out and when they get back. In more conservative cities, minibars don’t make much,” he says. “They’re either very successful or they break even. They’re labour intensive, so make sure the margin you’re charging is something you can make a dollar on.” The Shangri-La Vancouver strives to have guests feel that they are at home when they are at the hotel, says Carmen Wong, guest relations services manager. “We offer a wide variety of services in room — complimentary wireless, local calls, Nespresso coffee machines for single cup servings without the waste. It’s a high quality espresso capsule that’s not a brand standard; we piloted it here in Vancouver because it’s a well-regarded luxury brand of coffee that really emphasizes the coffee culture in this city. It’s been very popular so Shangri-La Toronto is using it too with a slightly different model,” she says. “Our minibars have two components, a dry storage drawer for nuts, crackers, cookies, chips, chocolates and small bottles of spirits; and a fridge component for white wine, sodas, tonics and beer. At Shangri-La, we cater amenities to the location. All of our properties offer welcome amenities that vary but every guest gets something that will delight them and is tailored to their experience,” explains Wong, who says the guest is never directly asked about preferences. Instead staff note things from the reservation call or they look up previous hotel bills and then, for example, may have a specific brand of beer awaiting the guest in room upon arrival. Robert Hood of Atlific Hotels says that tea and coffee are offered in room in the majority of

their properties because guests expect it. cider and a variety of snacks such as dried fruit “I don’t think we’d ever take that away. One or nuts that our culinary team selects daily.” trend we see is the move from coffee packets to As hoteliers strive to make guests feel at home the individual pods. A lot of people have them at in their lodgings, it is important to realize that home and they enjoy the flavours so when they customer service and quality are integral parts of see a coffee maker with a filter, it can look a bit that experience. antiquated,” says Hood, who notes that the Saskatoon Inn is considering moving to the pods because the hotels in their market set have already done so. At The Park Hyatt Toronto, all guestrooms have minibars with a selection of alcohol, wine, juice and snacks with appropriate glassware. Bottled water is complimentary; however coffee and tea are not offered in the hotel guestrooms. “We decided to enhance the coffee service for guests with a beautiful lobft by bar that serves Illy area at Starwood’s Alo y snacks, -go food and beverage lth nd hea b-a ers gra off ur, ho ich 24cappuccinos, lattes, wh e Th uel vending concept, Hotels includes the re:fs and ice cream. espresso, and a wide ble eta veg es ich dw san variety of steeped and loose leaf teas, day and night,” says Whether it’s ice hand delivered to Bonnie Strome, general manager. the room so the guest does not need to search “Hotels are realizing they need a very high for the ice machine at a high-end hotel, or radiquality coffee offering rather than just any coffee cally overhauling the in-room food and beverage in the room that may not taste that great. To be experience by sourcing more local suppliers or a good host it’s also nice to be able to welcome offering only higher quality items, this is an area guests with a cappuccino or latte as soon as they of management that can reap large rewards for arrive at the hotel. There is seasonal warm apple effort invested.

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CANADIAN LODGING NEWS

PEOPLE

Bob Leoppky, VP Western Canada, Atlific Hotels, passed away Mar. 11

Maria Delos Reyes, event co-ordinator, Comfort Inn & Suites Victoria

Garrett Turta, GM, The Fairmont Hotel Macdonald, Edmonton

Alessandro Usseglio, director of F&B, Fairmont Château Frontenac

Jayné Childs, curling artist in residence, The Fairmont Empress

Kay Koot, general manager, Harbour Towers Hotel, Victoria

Bryant Mao, director of wine, Hawksworth Restaurant, Vancouver

David Roberts, regional VP & GM, The Fairmont Banff Springs hotel

Troy Furbay, chief investment officer, Loews Hotels & Resorts

London, England with an eagerness to grow his knowledge and fuel his passion for wine. Mao returned to Vancouver for the 2010 Olympics and met several of the current Hawksworth team members, before returning to Europe. Maria Delos Reyes has been named conference and events coordinator at Comfort Inn & Suites, Victoria, BC. She specializes in marketing and events management, and she joins the hotel with more than five years of experience within the hospitality industry. Delos Reyes worked with well-known hospitality brands including Parkside Victoria Resort & Spa and Rosewood Inn, Victoria; New World Renaissance Hotel, Philippines and Westin Philippine Plaza Hotel. She was a restaurateur extraordinaire as she used to own Crepes N Cream in the James Bay, area of Victoria. Concept Amenities INC. is pleased to announce that Tracey McRae has been named vice president of marketing and communications of the Americas division. With a broad understanding of marketing and media, McRae brings nearly 12 years of marketing experience and accountability in developing result-driven campaigns. Before joining Concept Amenities, McRae oversaw new business development for VIRGEN Inc. Prior to that, she served as media/ marketing director at Consolidated Resorts. The Fairmont Empress welcomed curling artist, Jayné Childs, during the 2013 Ford World Men’s Curling Championships, March 30 – April 7, 2013. Childs returned to her childhood hometown of Victoria, BC for the opening of her exhibition featuring a watercolour portfolio of curling champions. As host hotel and silver sponsor of the 2013 Ford World Men’s Curling Championships, The Fairmont Empress is delighted to host Childs’ works of art.

Matthew Mackenzie, general manager, Keltic Lodge Resort & Spa

Daryl MacDonnell, executive chef, Keltic Lodge Resort & Spa

Kris Crundwell, right, accepts the HAC Humanitarian Award in Feb.

Robert Guy Leoppky, vice president Western Canada for Atlific Hotels and Resorts, passed away of cancer on March 11 at age 59. Known as “Bob” or “RL”, he was a member of the Atlific family for 40 years. “I’m so very sorry to say that Bob Leoppky passed away this morning after fighting cancer for several years,” said Suzanne Allemeier, general manager of the Residence Hotel by Marriott Vancouver Downtown, in an email to CLN on March 11. “There is so much talk about leadership today and what it takes to be a good leader. RL was always ahead of the game! He was one of the GREAT leaders of his time: an extremely kind and compassionate man, generous to a fault with everything of value: time,

experience, and knowledge. In leaving us, he leaves behind an incredible legacy in the world of hotels in Canada.” Leoppky’s valued mentorship of many in the industry will ensure that his memory lives on. Accordingly, a scholarship will be established in his name at a college in Vancouver, BC. Since his cancer diagnosis in 2010, Bob had been a passionate supporter of the BC Cancer Foundation, raising more than $100,000.

d’Argent Restaurant, Paris and since then, has held several progressive positions in Hawaii, Hong Kong and Indonesia. In 2011 Alexandre joined The St. Regis Hotel, China in his most recent position as director of F&B for the pre-opening team.

Alexandre Usseglio started his job as new director, food and beverage at Fairmont Le Château Frontenac in mid-February. He brings over 15 years of F&B experience to this position. Usseglio began his career in 1997 as waiter/assistant captain, La Tour

Leading the award-winning wine program at Hawksworth Restaurant, Bryant Mao joins in the role of wine director, coming there from one of London’s foremost restaurants. From humble roots at recognized Vancouver restaurants Brix and George Ultra Lounge in 2006, where Mao established a passion for both the bar and wine programs as well as the front of house service experience, he was drawn to the metropolitan hub of

The Fairmont Banff Springs, celebrating its 125th anniversary in 2013, is proud to welcome back David Roberts as regional vice president and general manager. A familiar face in Western Canada, Roberts returns to his home and native land after dedicating the past five years of his career to driving hotel performance and international brand growth as the company’s executive vice president, operations. Garrett Turta takes the helm as general manager, The Fairmont Hotel Macdonald, Edmonton. With more than 17 years of experience in the hospitality industry, Turta joins the hotel from his most recent position as general manager Fairmont St. Andrews, Scotland. Over the course of his career Turta has worked at several different

Fairmont locations including postings at The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, The Fairmont Vancouver Airport, and The Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise. SilverBirch Hotels & Resorts has appointed Kay Koot as the new general manager of Harbour Towers Hotel & Suites in Victoria. Koot first joined SilverBirch in 2006 as GM at Regina Inn Hotel & Conference Centre. While in that role, she oversaw multiple renovation and refurbishment programs. Additionally, the hotel was nominated for Hotel of the Year and Associate Satisfaction Award in 2011 under her leadership. Troy Furbay is the new chief investment officer for Loews Hotels & Resorts, responsible for leading the company’s property acquisitions, real estate development and capital raising. Furbay, who joined Loews in 2010, has played an integral role as the company continues to expand its brand. Under his leadership, Loews has recently acquired hotels in Los Angeles, Washington, DC and Boston ,as well as hotels under construction in Chicago and Orlando. Prior to joining Loews, Furbay held the position of senior vice president of acquisitions and development for Kimpton Hotels. Matthew Mackenzie will return to the Keltic Lodge Resort and Spa in Ingonish Beach, Nova Scotia, as general manager. Mackenzie managed the resort for the 2012 season. A career hotelier, he was the general manager of the Atlantica Hotel & Marina Oak Island and has held positions at Sooke Harbour House and Fairmont Chateau Whistler. Lifelong Nova Scotian, Daryl MacDonnell, is now executive chef of Keltic Lodge. He comes to the lodge after being executive chef for the Membertou Trade and Convention Center as well as Cape Breton Resorts. He also trained up and coming chefs as an instructor at Nova Scotia Community College. Earlier in his career , he trained under renowned chefs Takashi “Tony” Murakami and Marcel Kretz. The 105-room hotel is one of Atlantic Canada’s Signature Resorts and is owned by the government of Nova Scotia. New Castle Hotels and Resorts has operated the property since 2002. Kris Crundwell has left Pacrim Hospitality to take over as VP sales for the Halifax World Trade and Convention Centre, as of March 25. “Thank you for your support and I am off to a new challenge,” Crundwell said in an e-mail. “Pacrim Hospitality has been a wonderful place to work and grow.” Crundwell spent more than five years at Pacrim. Prior to that he spent seven years as director of global sales for IHG. Recently, Crundwell won the HAC Hall of Fame Humanitarian Award 2012.

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Choice Hotels Canada celebrates 31 hotels across the country T H E

W I N N E RS ’

Charlottetown, celebrated the achievements of its members with the presentation of 11 awards. The TIAPEI President’s Award was presented to Robert Jourdain of Little York B & B and the Premier’s Award was given to chef Michael Smith. Platinum service: Josee Kaye, guest service agent at Other 2012 awards recipients for the eveComfort Hotel Bayer’s Lake, welcomes a guest. ning were: TORONTO—Choice Hotels Canada recently an- o Barry Balsom, Arlington Orchards – Hosnounced the recipients of their 2013 Hospitality pitality Award for Prince County; Awards. The properties honoured are the top 10 per o Corrie MacDonald, Confederation Cencent of more than 300 Choice Canada properties across the country. The 31 recipients included 11 who received Platinum Awards, putting them in the top three per cent. The remaining 20 received Gold, placing them in the top 10 per cent.

o o o o o

CIRCLE

tre of the Arts – Hospitality Award for Queens County; Karen Davey, Inn at St. Peters – Hospitality Award for Kings County; North Cape Area Tourism Partnership – Walt Wheeler Media Award; Vicki Francis and Martha Jacobson, Cranford Inn – Operator of the Year; Three Rivers Roma Inc. – Parks Canada Sustainable Tourism Award; Thom and Heather MacMillan, Cavendish

Entertainment – Dr. Kent Ellis Quality of Excellence Award; o The Great George, Kevin and Kathy Murphy – the Tourism Advisory Council Brand Essence Award. The Lieutenant Governor’s Award was the final presentation of the evening, given to Matthew Jelley of the Maritime Fun Group. The conference included tourism related sessions, an industry tradeshow and fundraisers for the TIAPEI Tourism Scholarship Fund.

2013 Platinum Recipients o o o o o o o o o

Comfort Inn, Bridgewater, Nova Scotia Comfort Hotel Bayer’s Lake Halifax, Nova Scotia Quality Inn & Suites, Matane, Québec Quality Inn & Suites, Petawawa, Ontario Quality Inn & Suites, Val d’Or, Québec Quality Inn & Suites, Victoriaville, Québec Quality Hotel & Suites, Woodstock, Ontario Quality Suites, Drummondville, Québec Chateau Saint John Hotel & Suites, an Ascend Collection hotel, Saint John, New Brunswick o Econo Lodge Montmorency Falls, Boischatel, Québec o MainStay Suites, Winnipeg, Manitoba For a complete list of award winners, go to www.canlodgingnews.com.

Newfoundland Tourism awards announced at HNL grand finale ST. JOHN’S—The annual Tourism Excellence Awards Gala was hosted by Hospitality Newfoundland and Labrador (HNL) on Feb. 22. The gala was the grand finale to the HNL’s 30th Annual Conference and Tradeshow that saw more than 350 delegates and exhibitors gather at the Delta St. John’s hotel from Feb. 20-22. The awards recognize businesses and people who work to advance Newfoundland and Labrador’s tourism industry. “The Tourism Excellence Awards are a means to both celebrate the achievements of the tourism industry and show appreciation for the hard work and relentless efforts to bring success to our industry,” said HNL chair Darlene Thomas. The award recipients were: o H. Clayton Sparkes Accommodator of the Year Award – Ocean Delight Cottages, Whiteway, NL. o Cal LeGrow Innovator of the Year Award – Newfoundland Chocolate Company, St. John’s. o John Atkins and Co. Tourism Champion of the Year Award – Gordon Slade. o Maxxim Vacations Tourism Business of the Year Award – Anchor Inn Hotel and Suites, Twillingate, NL. o Corporate Partner of the Year Award – Gander International Airport Authority, Gander, NL. o Restaurateur of the Year Award – Bonavista Social Club, Upper Amherst Cove, NL. o PRIDE Award – Prints of Whales Inn, Sandringham, NL. o The Norman Parsons Memorial Award – Fishing Point Bed and Breakfast, St. Anthony, NL. o Cultural Tourism Award – The Cupids Legacy Centre, Cupids, NL. o The Doug Wheeler Award – Stan Cook Jr. o The Sustainable Tourism Award – Nunatsiavut Solutions, operators of the Torngat Mountains Base Camp and Research Station.

PEI tourism industry celebrates CHARLOTTETOWN—The Tourism Industry Association of PEI (TIAPEI) presented its 32nd Annual Tourism Conference and Awards Gala on Mar. 6 and 7. The event, held at the Confederation Centre of the Arts in

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*This is not an offering. Federal laws and regulations and the laws and regulations of some states and provinces regulate the offer and sale of franchises. An offering will only be made in compliance with those laws and regulations, which may require that we provide you with a disclosure document. (MNREG#4544). Contribution and RevPar information is based on samples of La Quinta Inns & Suites lodging facilities that had been open 3 years as of December 31, 2011 as described in the March 30, 2012 US Franchise Disclosure Document. Performance and results vary by hotel, location, market and experience of the operator. *Based on data provided by Smith Travel Research for midscale, limited-service hotels from 2001 year’s end to 2011 year’s end. © 2013 La Quinta Worldwide, LLC. All rights reserved. LA QUINTA, Returns and PROVEN NAME.PROVEN NUMBERS are registered of trademarks of La Quinta Worldwide, LLC in the US and in other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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CANADIAN LODGING NEWS

Travelodge New Glasgow, NS

OP E N I NG S , S A L E S A N D R E NO VAT ION S

Travelodge adds properties in Nova Scotia and Alberta CALGARY—Travelodge Canada recently announced the opening of the Travelodge Suites New Glasgow, NS as the newest member of its Canadian franchise system. This 64 room property is conveniently located near the Caribou Ferry terminal and New Glasgow business districts. Close to area attractions such as the Pictou County Wellness Centre, Highland Square Mall and Sampson Walking Trail, this New Glasgow hotel is an excellent option for travellers looking for a comfortable place to stay within minutes of the area’s most popular activities. “We are extremely happy to add another property to our portfolio in maritime Canada,” said Travelodge Canada president Steven Robinson. “The addition of the Travelodge Suites New Glasgow to our family will be welcome news to our guests travelling throughout the east coast,” he added. There’s also a new Travelodge location in Spruce Grove, Alberta. Formerly a Royal Inn Express hotel, Travelodge Inn & Suites Spruce Grove offers a central location on Highway 16A, just a ten minute drive to the city of Edmonton Travelodge Spruce Grove offers rooms designed with extras such as in-room refrigerators and microwaves and free high speed Internet. With an inviting lobby, a bright and spacious breakfast room, and on-site laundry facilities, this pet friendly Spruce Grove hotel is suitable for both business and leisure travellers. The Spruce Grove location is the third Travelodge Canada property for Jack Au and his family. “The Au family are stellar operators who consistently deliver high quality guest experience,” said Robinson. “We’re thrilled they are adding this property to their Travelodge portfolio which includes Travelodge Stony Plain and Edmonton East,” he added.

Canad Inns’ $40 million hotel at Winnipeg HSC

WINNIPEG—Winnipeg-based Canad Inns has opened another hotel on home turf, a new $40-million property located at Winnipeg’s Health Sciences Centre (HSC). Dubbed the Canad Inns Destination Centre, the 191-room facility, located at Manitoba’s largest healthcare campus, features three floors of executive space. There are also three restaurants, including AALTOS, ‘l Bistro, and Starbucks. “Attaching a hotel to a major health facility, I believe, is the first of its kind in Canada. Our hope is we’ll be able to make things a little easier for patients, by removing the worry of where their loved ones will stay while they’re visiting,” said Leo Ledohowski, Canad Inns’ president and CEO, in a news piece on the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority website. The rooms include mini fridges, microwaves, hot-beverage stations, luxury linens, large-format TVs and high-speed Wi-Fi. Executive amenities include walk-in showers, European-designed leather furniture, deluxe bedding and access to a private executive lounge. Headquartered in Winnipeg, Canad Inns is Manitoba’s largest hotel chain with seven Destination Centres in Winnipeg, one in Portage la Prairie, one in Brandon and one in Grand Forks, North Dakota. It’s been named one of “Canada’s 50 Best Managed Companies.”

More Winnipeg news— Days Inn Airport opens TORONTO—Realstar Hospitality is expanding its portfolio with the opening of its newest property, Days

Inn & Suites—Winnipeg Airport in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The franchised property is owned by RC Hotels Manitoba Ltd. The new construction property is based on the brand’s G2 prototype (designed in Canada) and features 90 spacious guest rooms with 42-inch LCD TV, free Wi-Fi Internet access, microwave and refrigerator. Suites with kitchenettes are also available. In addition to a fitness room and indoor salt water pool with waterslide, the hotel also offers an on-site business centre and generous meeting space. “Days Inn & Suites—Winnipeg Airport is a highly anticipated addition to our portfolio of hotels,” said Irwin Prince, president & COO, Realstar Hospitality. “The hotel offers travellers the experience of enjoying a brand new hotel facility at an affordable price, in an ideal location.”

A few facts about Hampton Hotels’ growth in Canada MCLEAN, VA— Hampton’s first international property opened in Canada in 1993—Hampton Inn at the Falls in Niagara Falls. Four years later, Hampton Inn & Suites opened its first international hotel property in Calgary. Today, Hampton currently operates 36 properties in Canada and has 17 properties in the pipeline. There are four in the pipeline for 2013: o Winnipeg/Airport, MB to open April 1, 2013; o Chilliwack, BC to open June 10, 2013; o St. John’s Airport, NL to open July 15, 2013; and o Calgary/Airport North, AB to open Oct. 15, 2013. There are nine scheduled for 2014: three scheduled for 2015 and one set to open in 2021. Hampton Hotels boasts a number of firsts: o First mid-priced national hotel brand to offer guests complimen-

Travelodge Spruce Grove, AB

Hampton Inn Chilliwack, BC

Days Inn & Suites, Winnipeg Airport

tary continental breakfast. o First hotel brand ever to be ranked #1 in Entrepreneur Magazine’s annual Franchise 500.. o One of the first major hotel companies to distribute chain-wide and individual hotel information via the Internet. o A brand experiencing stable and

consistent growth with more than 70 combined domestic and international hotels opening in 2012 and nearly 1,900 properties globally. o Among the first in the lodging industry to offer an unconditional 100 per cent satisfaction guarantee.

The Marketplace Enjoy Village Life? NOAH’S INN is a beautifully restored historic Inn in the picturesque village of Neustadt, an hour north of Guelph. Turnkey operation. Upstairs, 4 lovely ensuite bedrooms plus a large 1 bedroom apartment opening onto a spacious private deck. Downstairs a stunning dining room, licensed bar, patio, and modern commercial kitchen. Zoned for restaurant, bar, coffee shop or retail. Municipal water and sewers. A great opportunity for a change of pace. The owner is retiring and listing at the asking price of $495,000. Call 519 799 5231 for more Information.

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Apr. 30 – May 2: SIAL Canada, the International Food & Beverage Tradeshow, SET Canada, the National Food Equipment and Technology Tradeshow, Direct Energy Centre, Toronto, ON. For information go to: www. sialcanada.com. May 18-21: NRA Show (National Restaurant Association), McCormick Place, Chicago. Website: http://show.restaurant.org/Attend/Register. May 28-29: Canadian Hotel Investment Conference (CHIC), Hilton Toronto Hotel, Toronto. Contact: Orie Berlasso. Phone: 416-924-2002 or 866-887-4453. E-mail: orieberlasso@bigpictureconferences.ca. Website: www.hotelinvest.ca. May 29-30: Canadian Restaurant Investment Conference (CRIC), Hilton Toronto Hotel, To-

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“The difference in the public spaces is really a wow factor. We have a beautiful lobby that is bright and vibrant,” said Schweighardt. There are pods instead of a formal front desk, with mirrored glass tiles behind. The designer was Chill Vancouver, and the builder was Sherway Construction of Toronto. They began renovating the 291 guestrooms in 2009, closing 90 rooms off at a time. Then they started on the public spaces. Renovations to the hotel’s 15,000 square feet of meeting space were just completed in November. Connections Café is an innovation of SilverBirch, the hotel management company. Located at the top of the staircase, overlooking the lobby, the café can also be used by convention guests. The theme of the café is “all day your way.” Food includes individual servings of fruit and vegetables, cottage cheese, boiled eggs, and granola and pastries that are made in-house. In the afternoon, they serve homemade chocolate chip cookies, and guests can build their own trail mix. The coffee machine dispenses espressos, cappuccinos and lattés.

E V E N T S

ronto. Contact: Orie Berlasso. Phone: 416-9242002 or 866-887-4453. E-mail: orieberlasso@bigpictureconferences.ca. Website: www.hotelinvest. ca. May 29-June 1: 50th Anniversary CCFCC, Marriott River Cree Resort, Edmonton, AB. Website: ccfcc2013.ca. Oct. 8: The Manitoba Hotel Association Tradeshow, Victoria Inn Hotel, Winnipeg. Website: www.centrex.ca. Nov. 9-12: International Hotel, Motel & Restaurant Show, Javits Convention Center, New York, NY. Contact: Phil Robinson, HMG. Phone: 513-263-9331. E-mail: phil.robinson@stmediagroup.com. Website: www.ihmrs.com.

MGM’s 1,200 room proposal is big by Canadian standards TORONTO—MGM proposed a “scaled down,” 1,200 room hotel as part of its Exhibition Place casino pitch. But while that size of hotel may be small for Las Vegas it is big by Canadian standards. Canada has just five hotels with more than 1,000 rooms according to Wikipedia and verified with other sources. They are: 1. Delta Chelsea Toronto—1,590 rooms; 2. Sheraton Centre Toronto—1,377 rooms; 3. Fairmont Royal York Toronto—1,365 rooms; 4. Fairmont Queen Elizabeth, Montreal—1,037 rooms; and 5. Fallsview Hilton, Niagara Falls—1,000 rooms. A 1,200 room hotel would rank 119th in the world.

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Four ways to boost guest satisfaction By Anthony Melchiorri According to a recent study from Cornell University’s Center for Hospitality Research (CHR), a hotel’s online reputation directly affects its occupancy levels and RevPAR. To help hotels achieve higher customer satisfaction levels and a more positive online reputation, hotel guru Anthony Melchiorri and Cintas Corporation teamed up to announce four best practices regarding hotel image, cleanliness, guest safety and security. 1. Promote Image: One of the most effective ways hoteliers can enhance the atmosphere and customer service is through employee uniforms. This includes providing employees with uniforms that are functional, stylish and comfortable and also teaching them how to properly care for the garments to maintain a professional look at all times. To help, hoteliers can consider partnering with a qualified uniform provider that understands their property’s unique image and how to promote a cohesive, consistent brand through an apparel program. When employees look their best, they will feel their best—able to more confidently and efficiently deliver outstanding guest experiences. 2. Increase cleanliness: A clean, odour-free hotel is a basic, yet critical way to provide an exceptional stay for guests. Ensure that guest rooms and common areas are clean by partnering with a tile and carpet deep cleaning provider. For the best results, confirm that their services are Platinum-certified by the Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) and use a combination of steam, agitation and extraction to ensure the highest level of cleaning efficacy. In addition, it’s important to routinely deep clean air conditioning (A/C) coil units to improve indoor air quality and remove unpleasant odours from guest rooms. 3. Encourage safety: One misstep from hotel management to ensure guest safety during an emergency can cause a whirlwind of negative reviews and a damaged reputation. Ensure that guest safety is top of mind by equipping the hotel with up-to-date fire extinguishers, fire and smoke alarm systems, emergency lights and illuminated exit signs. For additional peace of mind, hold fire safety training sessions for employees and make sure detailed emergency evacuation procedures are outlined and displayed throughout the property. 4. Maintain security: Each day, a hotel collects an extensive amount of sensitive and confidential guest information through bookings, loyalty programs and on-site purchases. Ensure that guests’ personal information remains secure by partnering with a comprehensive document management provider. By properly shredding sensitive documents, hotels can prevent guest information from ending up in the wrong hands. “Although these are simple practices, when overlooked, they can prove detrimental to the hotel’s quality of service and reputation,” said Melchiorri. “Hotels that are dedicated to these four pillars can improve their operations and brand and drive more repeat business.” About the author Anthony Melchiorri, also known as the “hotel fixer,” has more than 20 years of industry experience and has transformed several properties across the U.S. As the host of his own show, Melchiorri now applies his expertise and knowledge to turn struggling hotels into profitable establishments. For more information about Cintas’ solutions for hospitality, visit www.cintas.com/hospitality.

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