Hotels That Don't Miss a Beat*

Hotels are constantly searching for the perfect formula to provide visitors with a new service experience and music-themed hotels have become popular, particularly in big cities. An example is the Aria Hotel in Prague, Czech Republic, a city known for its musical history.

The five-star luxury property hosts regular live concerts, and even has an on-site musicologist who will advise on which Rudolfinim seats (rare architectural building/theatre in Prague) have the finest acoustics and who is the hottest Prague Philharmonic conductor. Musical virtuosos and their fans can immerse themselves in music with the very first step they take on the property. From the Italian mosaic based on a Gregorian chant, to the surround-sound features in each room, every detail of the hotel is inspired by music.

Hotel Pelirocco rooms, Brighton, U.K

Further west in Europe, the Backstage Hotel in Amsterdam is similarly decorated with a music theme, designed to resemble an off-stage hangout for rock bands. Decked out with saxophones and guitars, the hotel's piano is 'graffitied' with the signatures of visiting performers.

Over the border, the Nhow Hotel in Berlin, Germany goes one step further by providing services and facilities for musicians. Situated on the banks of the Spree River, Nhow not only has its own recording studio with panoramic views of the city, it also offers a music-themed room service, delivering guitars and keyboards to guests at any time. There are two control rooms and a state-of-the-art recording booth in the studio which hosts sessions from 150 euros for a half-day.

Backstage Hotel, Amsterdam

Mexico is home to another hotel with a recording studio, the Hotel El Ganzo in Los Cabos, a trendy designer property that doubles up as an arts and culture centre. Beneath a trapdoor in the lobby lounge lies 'The Underground', a 1700-square-foot, state-of-the-art recording studio where musicians from around the world come to create, perform, and record their work. Guests and Locals can attend El Ganzo Sessions, a free ongoing series of live music performances, and anyone can view the entire catalogue of performances on the Hotel El Ganzo YouTube channel. Each month the hotel hosts various visual artists, filmmakers, and musicians as part of its Artist In Residence (AIR) program. The boutique hotel's white walls double as a blank canvas, beckoning artists-in-residence to leave their colourful mark.

The Hotel da Msica in Porto, Portugal, also holds weekly concerts and performances in order to enhance the hotel's music motif. In addition, vintage violins cover the front desk, music stands act as menu holders, and the bedrooms have treble clef lamps and sheet music painted on the walls above the bed.

The Evelyn in New York (formerly known as the Gershwin) similarly has music-themed bedrooms. The chandeliers are shaped like trombones and the bathroom tiles are decorated with musical notes and famous song lyrics. Rooms also come equipped with hi-tech gramophones that guests can sync up with their smartphones. The hotel is not far from Manhattan's Tin Pan Alley, which was once the centre of the American pop music industry.

Hotel BPM in Brooklyn, New York, has an even narrower focus, targeting budding DJs to its trendy 75-room property. Devised by a local hip hop hero, BPM stands for 'beats per minute'. DJ Bijal has created a hip hop playlist which streams throughout the hotel. To give wannabee DJs an edge, the hotel offers free lessons with the Scratch DJ Academy.

Hotel BPM, Brooklyn, N.Y

Some music-themed hotels are inspired by one artist or band. The Beatles-themed Hard Day's Night Hotel in Liverpool England, for example, is named after the band's film, album and song. The hotel opened four years after the initial conception in February 2008 during Liverpool's reign as European Capital of Culture. It has some 110 rooms, including the famed McCartney and Lennon suites, as well as numerous bars and restaurants. The hotel is situated adjacent to the world-famous Cavern Club from where The Beatles rose to fame.

Another hotel in England, the Hotel Pelirocco in Brighton (see room photos above) has been inspired by local pop culture, touting itself as Brighton's original rock 'n' roll boutique hotel - with 19 individually themed bedrooms. One of them - the Modrophenia room - is a cheery allusion to the fact that Brighton is still pulling in visitors fascinated by the skirmishes between Mods and Rockers that took place on its seafront over the Whitsun Bank Holiday weekend in May 1964, and which spread to several other seaside resorts throughout that summer. The Mod room even has a shiny red Lambretta Scooter coming out of the bedroom wall. The scooter's front half is the left-hand bedside table, its back half the right. The bedspread is parka-coloured with a Royal Air Force roundel in the middle, and the melamine breakfast table is flanked by molded bucket seats in orange plastic. The room is complete with Vespa-style tables and pop art images of original Mod, Keith Moon.

So, what explains the popularity of music-themed hotels? For Zuzana elov, Sales & Marketing Executive at the Aria Hotel in Prague, differentiation is the reason: "There are so many hotels nowadays, it is a concept that gives the added value to the property. The music concept makes the story and people love stories."Aria caters mainly to Baby Boomers who expect the best, so for elov, knowledgeable employees who deliver excellent personal service are the hotel's biggest asset. The Aria does tend to attract celebrities, and that in turn adds to the cachet of the place. 'Grard Depardieu once stayed here for two months and had a suite featuring a view into the Vrtba Garden,' says elov. 'As the windows are quite low, people were stopping and wondering if it's really him sitting on the windowsill reading a book.'

Hans Spuijbroek, from the Backstage Hotel in Amsterdam also believes that differentiating with a music motif enables a hotel to stand out from the pack. 'Standard hotels are not the future of the global hotel industry,' he says. 'The more individual the people get, the more different the demand is going to be.' However, Spuijbroek suggests that success for new entrants into this space is not guaranteed: 'The problem is that a lot of big hotel chains start new branded hotels with a music theme without having a clue what they are focusing on. There are a lot of "Hard Rock" kind of hotels popping up where you can rent a guitar.' For Spuijbroek, authenticity is critical. 'We know what our guests want because we're experienced and passionate about the added value we're supporting. The whole look and feel is real. The staff is real, no dressed up and over-trained robots. It's BackStage. You get it or you don't.' Although the hotel attracts visitors from all walks of life (kids love it, says Spuijbroek) Backstage specializes in hosting bands, artists and crews. But privacy is king according to Spuijbroek. "What happens BackStage... stays BackStage!"

When asked why music-themed hotels are so popular today, Hotel El Ganzo's General Manager, Ella Messerli says: "They say "music feeds the soul. That being said, travel now has become a larger experience selection and music definitely adds another dimension to the experience of visiting any part of the world." Messerli says that his cultural-centric hotel goes beyond music with art interventions within the hotel. "Music has become an integral part of the El Ganzo experience and makes the hotel unique since these musicians are brought in through our Artist in Residence program," he explains. "Only at El Ganzo can you experience an under-the-stars performance of these carefully curated live concerts. Also, our Music Director - who also runs our professional recording studio - carefully selects musicians who offer a high quality of delivery with their genre."

El Ganzo attracts people from all over the world, Messerli adds: "We have successfully defined a new experiential offering for a resort with art, music in a more natural environment of Los Cabos. Our location on the Marina, with our private, swimmable beach gives guests an opportunity to enjoy a relaxing day in the sun or a fun day of paddle boarding, kayaking, or fishing. This has attracted many age groups, as well as weddings, for clients who seek a very private place with activities and a cultural offering that is unique as well as enriching. It is also so enjoyable to meet artists and musicians who discover our corner of Los Cabos for the first time and hear from them how our natural setting stimulates their creative minds."

Messerli's advice for hotel owners or managers around the world who are considering having a music theme is to keep it simple. "But most importantly do it only if you get professionals to help you, and offer only quality. Any experiential offer in a hotel has to be of the utmost quality for it to be real and unique, which is what guests are looking for."

*This case has been adapted from the SAGE Business Cases prepared primarily as a basis for classroom discussion.

Instructions:

Questions: - 75 Marks

You are the Director of Marketing of the Boutique Hotel Division of Four Seasons Hotel and Resorts, aCanadian international Luxury Hospitality company with headquarters in Toronto.

You are responsible for all marketing related activity for a new music themed hotel being built in Toronto and scheduled to open in the late Spring 2024. Four Seasons owns several boutique hotels and has been watching with interest the growth in music themed boutique hotels around the world. A decision was made to open the first Music Themed Hotel in Toronto in 2024.The major reasons are that Toronto is:

• a leading, progressive tourist destination
• its large market size - 4^th in North America
• because Toronto has been the focal point of the Canadian music industry for many years
• is the home of many Canadian musicians and performers who are well known around the world
• because Toronto is a major international recording center.

Question # 1.

Part of your responsibility as the Director of Marketing is to make recommendations and rationaleto the Board of Four Seasons Hotel and Resorts on the following:

1. The best location to build the hotel within Toronto --the areas in Toronto being considered are Queen Street West, Queen Street East (Leslieville) and Yorkville (15 Marks)

1. The music theme for the hotel, the name and positioning statement (5 Marks)

1. Which consumer segment should be the focus of marketing efforts and why - the Primary Target Market (10 Marks)

Note: The required rationale to be included in the recommendation for each of the above is:

1. Location: Develop a S.W.O.T. Analysis for each potential location site for the Hotel in the Toronto market andselect where you think the hotel should be located from among the three possible areas. Provide an overview of the recommended location - population, accessibility to restaurants, attractions, & transportation hubs along with its suitability for your selected primary target market. Also, is there any specific and noteworthy music history in any of the areas that would add to the theming and location

Use this information to explain and support your location recommendation.

1. Name and Positioning Statement:

Provide recommended Music Themeand Hotel Name along with a brief rationale for your recommendation.

Prepare positioning statement that covers the 3 key criteria 1. Primary Target Group, 2. Market Description/frame of reference/category and 3. Unique Benefit. This should be concise, one sentence if possible, two sentences max or use the ABC format used in class and detailed the How to Write Positioning Statement document discussed in class. Whatever you are comfortable is fine.

1. The Primary Target Group:

Identify the key target group that your recommended Music Them would appeal to.

Who are they?Outline your thoughts on demographic, psychographic and behavioural characteristics.

Marketing Plan (Marketing Mix Strategies)

Question #2.

To be successful and understand if Four Seasons is meeting its goals, you need to develop a marketing plan overview that is specific about what Marketing Goals and Objectives are along with the marketing plan required.

1. Outline 2 relevant Marketing Goals for the first 2 years of the New Music Themed hotel (what are you trying to achieve for the first 2 years?)
2. and 2 relevant Marketing Objectives - (what do you need to achieve in the same time period to achieve your Marketing Goals) (10 Marks)

(to help I have added some examples of general Marketing Goals and Marketing Objectives unrelated to this case as an Exhibit at the end of this document along with a link to a very brief article about Goals and objectives. Keep it simple! Also use your class lecture notes (week 11 will help)

Question #3.Outline your Marketing Mix Strategy for each of the 7 P's for the new hotel (refer to class notes and text Chapter 1) For each element briefly state the following:

1. Core Service Product: State clearly and concisely what the Service product is. Provide details about this service and what the package would include in the future - any changes, improvements, upgrades recommended in your plan (week 5 class notes) (5 Marks)

1. Price: State clearly and concisely what the price strategy is - economy pricing? Value pricing? premium pricing? competitive pricing (vs competition) all-inclusive pricing? Free?, extra charges for upgrades? Free trials etc. also identify any changes that you are recommending (Week 6 - class notes notes) (5 Marks)

1. Place/Distribution: State clearly and concisely what the distribution access points will be - e.g. how can customers book a stay, will third party booking services be used? (Week 6 - class notes) (5 Marks)

1. Promotion:Imagine that you have a $1,000,000 Advertising/Communication Budget: (5 Marks)

State clearly and concisely what the communication strategy will be - for example it could be....

- I/We recommend using a combination of traditional and digital communications/advertising platforms or

- I/We recommend Social media only, or

- I/We recommend a PR + Influencer's campaign, along with sales promotions, or

- I/We recommend an employee training and education program

- Whatever your strategy recommendation, briefly state your rationale.

There are lots of combinations depending on your target group. Please note, you DO NOT need to recommend how the $1,000,000 would be spent - just state the overall strategy. (Week 9 - class notes)

• Identify if you also need to communicate with any support/trade audiences that might have influence on your organization's service - e.g. tour operators, airlines, media, publicists

e) People: State clearly and concisely the requirements for the staff recommended. Think about the task and what characteristics are required. Also, any differences in the wait staff for the restaurant or other services on site. (Week 11 - class notes) (5 Marks)

f) Process: State clearly and concisely the service process (think about the flow of the typical day - is it regimented or is it casual letting the guests chose the pace and activities. And indicate the interaction of staff in the process (Week 10 - class notes) (5 Marks)

g) Physical Evidence/service scape: State clearly and concisely what the physical environment for The new Music themed hotel looks like, feels like, smells like- facilities, rooms, welcome/entrance. It should reflect and be consistent with your target group, position strategies and the name. (Week 10 - class notes) (5 Marks)

References:

Hudson, S. (2016). "Hotels that Don't Miss a Beat." Hotel Business Review, 2016, Jan

Albert, Kristy "Hotels for Music Lovers" Fodors,2017 Jan https://www.fodors.com/news/hotels/hotels-for-music-lovers

Sage Business Cases