News Briefs

BWH Hotels, a leading global hospitality powerhouse with 19 distinct brands, has chosen Canary Technologies to power its AI-driven Guest Management System. The all-in-one platform will elevate the guest experience and streamline hotel operations across BWH Hotels’ portfolio. 

This strategic partnership marks a significant milestone by integrating Canary’s industry-leading platform and AI-powered solutions with BWH Hotels’ renowned hospitality. From Canary’s Mobile Check-In to Smart Checkout to Dynamic Upsells, Digital Compendium and Guest Messaging, the guest journey at BWH Hotels is set to become more personalized and efficient.

"Modernizing the guest experience with digital touchpoints is no longer a nice-to-have; it’s a necessity,” said Harman Singh Narula, CEO and co-founder of Canary Technologies. “We're excited to partner with BWH Hotels to propel hospitality into the digital age and engage guests in more seamless, personalized and delightful ways. This partnership strengthens our commitment to evolving the guest journey."

Under the agreement, BWH Hotels will utilize Canary’s industry-leading Guest Engagement Platform, which includes Canary AI, Mobile Check-In, Smart Checkout, Dynamic Upsells, Guest Messaging, Digital Tipping and Digital Compendium. BWH Hotels will be able to manage guest engagement across multiple touch points in one platform that unlocks better guest experiences, increases revenue, and provides smoother staff operations. 

“We are excited to partner with Canary to streamline hotel operations and create an elevated, modern and customized guest experience,” said Larry Cuculic, President and CEO for BWH Hotels. “This partnership aligns with our commitment to catering to the evolving needs of today's travelers, who increasingly seek technology-driven guest services. We selected Canary after a comprehensive evaluation and believe this collaboration will position BWH Hotels at the forefront of hospitality innovation.”

Chris Kung has joined Zaxby's as its new Chief Digital Officer. He will lead the transformation and acceleration of the company's Loyalty and e-Commerce initiatives.  

"Zaxbys rapid expansion requires the investment of world-class leaders and resources," said Bernard Acoca, Zaxbys CEO. "Chris's expertise in e-Commerce and loyalty programs will help drive incremental growth and enhance the Zaxbys experience as digital touchpoints continue to proliferate throughout the customer journey. His arrival will help us build stronger relationships with our guests by deepening our understanding of their needs and rewarding their patronage with personalized experiences." 

Growing Loyalty

Kung brings over 20 years of innovation and strategy experience to Zaxbys and most recently served as Chief Digital Officer at Dollar General, where he led initiatives that transformed the company into a digital innovator. Kung played a central role in creating the myDG loyalty program. Under his leadership, the company's e-Commerce sales grew 40x in three years, app usage surged from 1.8 million to 7 million monthly active users, and the DG App earned the distinction of the #1 couponing app in America.

Prior to Dollar General, Kung held key leadership positions at Macy's Inc., where he drove omnichannel technology and innovation.

Zaxbys is establishing a new Loyalty & e-Commerce Team, which will report to Kung. This new team will spearhead efforts to make Loyalty and e-Commerce significant contributors to its growth. The creation of the Chief Digital Officer role will open capacity and drive focus for Mike Nettles, Chief Technology Officer, and Patrick Schwing, Chief Marketing and Strategy Officer, who both previously oversaw a portion of this role.  

Leveraging Loadmill's advanced AI technology, Papa Johns will further improve its software testing approach. 

Beyond automating repetitive tasks, Loadmill empowers the team to construct a robust, interconnected testing framework encompassing their entire ecosystem. 

• Related:  RTN Marches Towards Restaurant Industry Standardization with Object Model Repository Milestone
   

By expansively testing digital ordering platforms, store technologies, dispatch applications, and related systems, Loadmill will help ensure a flawless customer experience, accelerate development, and drive innovation, ultimately enabling faster delivery of new features.

Accelerating Innovation 

"Partnering with Loadmill is a pivotal step in Papa Johns journey to deliver a better experience for our customers," says Joshua Sullivan, Senior Director of Digital Engineering at Papa Johns. "Loadmill's AI-powered API testing will significantly accelerate our ability to delight customers with innovative features and products while maintaining the highest quality standards."

"At Loadmill, we're dedicated to delivering seamless digital experiences, and we're honored to embark on this journey with Papa Johns," says Ido Cohen, CEO of Loadmill. "Our team is eager to help Papa Johns continue its legacy as a digital pioneer as the company evolves its software testing and reaches even higher levels of customer satisfaction."

The ultimate goal of this partnership is to enhance the customer experience. By integrating Loadmill's AI-driven API testing platform, Papa Johns can ensure that their digital platforms are always running smoothly and efficiently. This means that updates can be deployed faster, creating a superior user experience for Papa Johns customers. 

DNA Payments' Pay at Reception, Pay at Counter and Pay at Table solutions are now available on Oracle Cloud Marketplace and can be deployed on Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI). 

Oracle Cloud Marketplace is a centralised repository of enterprise applications offered by Oracle and Oracle partners.

The Pay at Reception solution enables high-level business benefits for the hospitality sector. Oracle Payment Interface (OPI) communicates with axept PRO payment devices over the merchant's local area network through a secured HTTPS connection. The OPI service connects to the premise-based Oracle Property Management System (PMS). 

The Pay at Counter and Pay at Table solutions enable a range of benefits for hotels, hospitality, food and beverage, and quick serve retail (QSR) businesses. DNA Payments' axept  PRO is integrated with Oracle Simphony to deliver Pay at Counter, which will allow payments to be accepted at the counter or bar using its payment terminals for QSR and retail concession outlets and enable sales, sale plus gratuity, refunds and more.

• 66% say enabling new payment options like mobile wallet is impacting POS upgrade decisions in 2024,  according to HT's 2024 POS Software Trends Survey

Pay at Table allows customers to pay at their table without going to a counter. The server logs on to a payment terminal and retrieves the bill. Before asking for payment, the server may print the itemised bill or ask the customer to confirm.

The axept  PRO Split Check Calculator helps customers determine which portion of the bill they wish to pay. Customers can also enter a gratuity added to the payment amount before the transaction is processed. A receipt is printed, and the amount paid is passed to the Oracle Simphony system, which then deducts the amount paid from the outstanding balance.

Sonesta International Hotels Corporation (Sonesta) today announced the appointment of Christopher Trick as Chief Marketing & Performance Officer. In this new role, he will lead the company’s greater marketing and revenue focused efforts, underscoring Sonesta’s continued growth and maturity as an organization.

“We congratulate Christopher Trick on his new role as Chief Marketing & Performance Officer, a key position that marks an exciting new chapter for Sonesta,” said John Murray, CEO of Sonesta. “Chris is known industry-wide for his energetic and enthusiastic leadership, collaborative spirit, and data-driven yet creative approach. We are confident that in this new position on our leadership team, he will continue to successfully execute his strategic and competitive vision for the company, further amplifying Sonesta’s presence through innovative marketing solutions.”

Mr. Trick assumes this new role after four successful years as Sonesta SVP and Chief Marketing Officer, managing brand marketing & media (B2C & B2B), e-Commerce, product development, public relations, field marketing, distribution and channel management services. For more than 20 years, he has helped hospitality companies grow their business footprints. He is a specialist in customer experience, acquisition and retention, consumer engagement, brand strategy and all aspects of hospitality marketing. Under his leadership, earlier this year Sonesta relaunched Sonesta.com as a single storefront for all 13 brands and rolled out the award-winning Sonesta Travel Pass program across the Red Lion legacy brands in March.

Prior to joining Sonesta, Mr. Trick worked in various roles including marketing, brands, sales, distribution, revenue management and loyalty at Red Lion Hotels Corporation, Realogy, Marriott International, Wyndham Hotel Group, La Quinta and IHG.