MINNEAPOLIS, MN— Change was the operative word for the three keynote speakers who delivered motivational words, as well as a look at shifting trends, to some 400 attendees at AmericInn International’s annual convention Monday. Former St. Paul, MN, mayor Norm Coleman, currently in a race for the state Senate, leveraged his expertise as a noted formulator of public/ private partnerships to advance development in his address. “In a nutshell” said Coleman, “life is tough, development is tough and creating a business and expanding a business is tough. Everybody in this room understands that. I learned that any idiot can kill a deal.” He stressed there was a need for growth. “Growth is important. You can’t stand still. A lesson in life is if you stand still in business, what happens? You die.” Coleman said he had traveled around the state listening to small-business owners, those who are part of what he called the entrepreneurial spirit. “I have great respect and admiration for your courage,” he told the attendees. “These have been some difficult times for your business and a lot of business. But if you’ve got that sense of optimism and hope and you understand the American spirit, then you go out there and take risk. Without risk, there’s no reward.” Borrowing a term from Wall Street, Peter Yesawich, president/CEO of Yesawich, Pepperdine and Brown, told attendees the industry is facing a “triple witching hour,” the convergence of three significant factors within an economic quarter that must be assessed and acted upon (or not) in terms of the subsequent quarter. Lodging’s TWH consists of the aftermath of Sept. 11, the languishing economy and the new consumer, and each separately and in combination has changed the way travel is thought about, purchased and utilized. “Leisure is what is leading the recovery in the hotel business unlike demand for business travel services,” said Yesawich, noting the latter has basically flatlined. “Regrettably many corporate CFOs and CEOs all across America took the events of Sept. 11 as the occasion to finally implement a decision they had been contemplating for the eight months prior, and that was to throttle back on business travel. That directly impacted the performance of the industry nationally and certainly continues to do so.” Additional fallout includes an upshot in family travel, greater consumer activism concerning driving their own pricing, especially via the Internet, for all aspects of travel, and an erosion of brand loyalty in favor of price loyalty, although Yesawich noted “price is not the issue, value is.” Toward that, he cited a survey of leisure travelers in 2000 and 2001 regarding what type of accommodations they would be looking for: economy, mid-price or luxury. “There’s a clear migration from the high-end of he market to the middle and from the middle back to the economy segment,” said Yesawich, telling attendees, “you are clearly positioned with the AmericInn brand in the right place at the right time,” and the trend would continue to see consumers “trade down” for some time to come. Author and consultant Ira Blumenthal, backed by Bob Dylan’s “The Times They Are A-Changin’,” gave a lively presentation, noting change is not new, “it’s the speed of change that is new.’ “Each and every one of us has to raise the bar on our activities in the lodging business, and be better and swifter and stronger and smarter than ever before,” he said. Change can be approached three ways, Blumenthal said. Ignore it (it’ll get worse); react to it (survival mode) or make other changes (reinvest, reposition, reengineer, reinvigorate). “In times of stress, you have to learn new behaviors, he noted, and advised when a person is through learning, they’re through. “Be a change catalyst, he suggested, adding “Don’t grow old.”
Peter Yesawich