Ronald Stilting 
Ronald Stilting
It was already clear after African Hotel Investment Forum (AHIF 2019) and with the return to the ‘New Normal’ after COVID-19, it is more obvious than ever; hospitality in Africa is full of opportunities. At AHIF the focus was on the brands and chains while most likely almost the same number of rooms were on their way by local owners/ entrepreneurs. Post-COVID -19 projects are delayed and a large number of mostly sub-standard and poorly financed hotel rooms will, however, most likely disappear or come up for sale. The hospitality market is clearly being reshuffled, which provides unique opportunities to ‘leap-frog’ for those who recognise the potential and are willing to adapt or rather innovate.
Merge existing and new requirements
Several requirements/demands by guests were becoming more important and COVID-19 has added some more, which must be addressed to be able to attract the post-COVID-19-traveller. Guests are hungrier than ever for ‘experiences.’ They want to see, feel and eat something ‘genuine.’ Bland generic hotels with cookie-cutter approach will not be the winners in this scenario. Guests (especially the younger generations) expect instant feedback on their issues, as they are used to ‘instant gratification’ while using their smart phones. Information and feedback have to be available ‘at their fingertips.’ Due to COVID-19 guests want even more to feel safe and trust has to be regained. There is a strong need for active communication regarding hygiene and safety protocols and other relevant developments. All procedures and information should nevertheless be easy to access and handle.
Focus on a strong African identity, appealing to modern travellers
The guest experience is initially impacted by design, atmosphere and lay-out but certainly also on the way the corporate culture (the ‘Why’) translates in the product, service and communication. There are mostly in the leisure segment, hotels and resorts in a traditional African or colonial style but most new business and city hotels do not go beyond the ‘alibi’ – Africa-elements. This day clients expect an experience in a hotel/resort with an identity and they want their demands to be dealt with here and now, which is nearly impossible on a larger scale without digitalisation. The brands will work with professional interior designer who will, up to some extent, include some local materials or art, but it remains an X-brand-style hotel. African local owners will usually not engage an interior designer, as they often do not tend to work with architects who have experience in designing hotels. In a good number of cases personal taste prevails or ‘Madam’ decides, while ignoring target group and upcoming trends. This results in: Hotels with no design, style, identity or atmosphere; Dubai style hotels, as they enjoy going to Dubai and love it. Typically it has container loads of marble, brass and gold-plating; Chinese style and material, as this is where most furniture and fittings are being bought. Besides often being of poor quality it has a somewhat dark and glossy appeal. The mixture of styles and materials are sometimes horrific but ‘awkward’ at best as it feels that the buyers were overwhelmed by the enormous range of beautiful things in different styles. Hotels fitted with cheap locally purchased and/or produced furniture and fittings of low standard. Sometimes imported from China but never of a consistent design language; Art is usually of the ‘art and craft’ – quality, which can be had a dime a dozen.
Embrace technology and digitalisation to improve on guest experience, be more efficient and profitable
African hotel owners/investors, especially when hospitality is not their corebusiness, also ignore the possibilities of digitalisation in operations management and guest communication/service as they may have not encountered and used it very often in their hotel-visits abroad. No alt text provided for this imagePrivate owners tend to invest in the costly basics (PMS/POS), depending on their advisors, and leave out useful components such as digital guest information (Including online check-in, etc), digital operations management and communication tools, revenue management tools and CRM for efficient personalised guest communication (and offer a personalised alternative to the loyalty programs). Digitalisation and personalisation of service as expected from the new generations of guests has only been addressed by -some- brands, which will incorporate considerably more ‘systems’ to manage the hotel but in general, the industry is lagging behind the possibilities in the implementation of technology. The knowledge on these systems is not widely spread but they will make the difference between operating a ‘leading’ property (on every level) or being part of ‘the rest.’ In the 21st Century, the guests can no longer be confronted with shabby, dirty, worn-out, poorly designed menus, which are not up-to-date and often contain manual corrections. The same applies for various flyers, room directories and other anachronistic guest-information. In addition to the fact that the guest information is crucial for guest experience and satisfaction, COVID-19 forces us to provide this information in such a way that there are no health risks for those reading and touching it. Let’s join hands and create an innovative hotel/resort with a real contemporary African identity I am a passionate hospitality and tourism manager with a great love for Africa but also a creative and photographer. During more than 20 years I have developed a vision of a medium size property that has a truly African identity and would be operated in a highly efficient way, using digitalisation to optimise guest experience. It would most likely have space efficient rooms but larger common spaces where guests could relax, work, meet and mingle.
It would incorporate:
Artefacts representing the fascinating local culture and history in a modern context; Modern art installations made from local items, such as canoes, driftwood etc; Use of the latest technologies to manage operations, personalise and optimise service focused on ‘instant’ contact and gratification; Provide ‘real’ experiences and possibilities to indulge directly in local culture and lifestyle. Use of local materials, such as bamboo mats, mud walls, zinc, etc in a ‘modern’ way (though mostly decorative) and the stunning colorful fabrics, such as ‘Ankara’ or ‘Lappa’; Creative photography – the real life and beauty of the country; ‘Real’ modern art from local artists and ‘platform’ for various art-forms, including performing arts to support local culture; and Great involvement and interaction with local communities and entrepreneurs to maximise impact on local economy and society. It would be only logical to include as much other local contents as possible in all areas and work with surrounding local communities, despite the challenges this may bring. This will also be recognised and appreciated by African and foreign guests alike. The truly African character will appeal to many Africans who are increasingly self-confident about their identity but also to foreign visitors who want to experience something real from their destination, instead of the ‘generic’ hotel experience. This brings many opportunities to be in-sync with society and it will have positive effect on the business As a visionary African hotel investor/ owner or brand you can benefit from my experience (20+ years Africa/ eight pre-openings) and creativity. My expertise, besides pre-opening and operational management, ranges from creating and optimising hotel lay-outs, project management and, partially in cooperation with interior designers, local artists, communities and craftsmen, the ability to create an African hotel.
*Ronald Stilting, is of 21H Hospitality & Tourism Consultancy; ronaldstilting@ gmail.com
