News Briefs

Sonesta International Hotels Corporation (Sonesta) announced the debut of its unified loyalty program, Sonesta Travel Pass, and combined website, ushering in a new era for its six million members around the world. Following Sonesta's acquisition of Red Lion Hotels Corporation, the updated Sonesta.com brings Sonesta's brands, including Royal Sonesta, Sonesta Hotels & Resorts and Sonesta ES Suites, together with the Red Lion brands, including the eponymous Red Lion Hotel, Americas Best Value Inn and Signature Inn under one umbrella and into a centralized booking site.

With Sonesta Travel Pass now serving as the singular loyalty program for the entire portfolio, members now have access to unified benefits and a single currency across a network of 1,100 hotels. Members can accrue and redeem points across all 13 brands, with former Red Lion Hello Rewards members seamlessly transitioned into Sonesta Travel Pass. Unlike competitor's programs, Sonesta Travel Pass points accumulate rapidly and hold a higher per-dollar value, eliminating the need to accumulate tens of thousands of points for a single night's stay. Additionally, members enjoy perks such as complimentary upgrades, welcome gifts and premium parking with every stay.

"Sonesta Travel Pass members now have endless opportunities to make memories at nearly 1,100 hotel destinations," says Chris Trick, Sonesta's Chief Marketing Officer. "By creating a unified booking platform and loyalty program, we are not only expanding opportunities for rewards and benefits but also forging stronger connections across our family of brands. For example, frequent guests of Red Lion Hotel, Inn & Suites by Sonesta can now explore a Sonesta MOD hotel with their points, while Signature Inn by Sonesta guests might also become Sonesta Simply Suites loyalists."

Sonesta Travel Pass Ultimate Sweepstakes
To celebrate these milestones of enhanced point accumulation and new members, Sonesta is hosting an Ultimate Sweepstakes, offering guests the chance to win points redeemable at any Sonesta property. One winner will win one million points, 10 winners will receive 100,000 points; 100 winners will receive Platinum Status for life. Travelers can sign up for the sweepstakes at LINK. One million points can provide accommodations for the lucky winner around the world. For example, the one million point winner could currently spend 33 nights at The Royal Sonesta San Juan or Nautilus Sonesta Miami Beach, or 25 nights at the Royal Sonesta Kaua'i Resort. 1,000,000 points could fund an Instagram-worthy road trip across every Red Lion Hotel, twice. Platinum Status entitles the guest to a complimentary breakfast, an exclusive reservations line, additional savings on special rates and promotions and more.

"Rewards Season" Campaign with Judy Greer
To support this launch, Sonesta released a new consumer campaign in May, entitled Rewards Season. With promotional materials starring actress Judy Greer, Rewards Season encourages members to join the newly expanded Sonesta Travel Pass (STP) and book or redeem their travel through Sonesta.com. Inspired by awards season, the Rewards Season campaign uses Judy's iconic comedic presence to introduce Sonesta Travel Pass, where everyone can feel like a winner. Throughout the spot, Judy's status quickly elevates from Bronze to Platinum, showcasing the way loyalty members move through the STP tiers faster than with other loyalty programs (only 40 nights/year are required to be eligible for Platinum). While Judy may be dressed in her awards season finery, Rewards Season highlights the everyday perks available to every member of Sonesta Travel Pass, black-tie attire is optional, including complimentary upgrades, free breakfast (for gold members) and welcome gifts for every stay. While Judy dreams of stays in Miami, Hilton Head and Puerto Rico, STP members earn points at every Sonesta location, from Cairo to Kauai.

"Our portfolio has so much breadth, we wanted to make sure that Sonesta Travel Pass members are rewarded for different types of stays," says Elizabeth Harlow, Chief Brand Officer, Sonesta, "Whether they're booking a family vacation at a Sonesta Hotel & Resort, saving up points for an Americas Best Value Inn road trip, or booking a luxurious Royal Sonesta long weekend, Sonesta has a brand to fit every traveler and every trip, all now bookable with points."

PopID and Steak n Shake announced today that all Steak n Shake locations in the United States now accept PopID Check In (to review favorite orders and loyalty points) and PopPay for checkout. With more than 300 locations, Steak n Shake is the first national restaurant brand in the United States to adopt biometric check-in and checkout nationwide. PopID’s biometric check-in feature makes kiosk ordering faster, easier, and more personalized.

The implementation of PopID in every Steak n Shake location was accomplished rapidly and at low cost through a partnership between PopID and ACRELEC, a leading supplier of kiosk-ordering hardware and drive-through products. Cameras were shipped to every restaurant for attachment to the existing ACRELEC kiosks. “As explained in our recent publication, ACRELEC believes that our integrated biometric solution provides various benefits to restaurant operators related to throughput, ticket size, and loyalty engagement,” says Bruno Lo-Re, President of ACRELEC America.

“We are thrilled about our partnership with PopID and to be on the edge of biometric technology for the benefit of our customers. Our guests now have the option to use biometrics for a faster and more seamless experience,” says Sardar Biglari, Chairman of Biglari Holdings, the parent company of Steak n Shake.

Now that biometrics are enabled for all ordering and payment inside Steak n Shake restaurants, PopID and Steak n Shake will begin implementing biometric check-in and checkout at the restaurant’s drive-through units. “Similar to the kiosks, biometric check in can increase loyalty participation and revenue at the drive thru while also reducing payment processing costs,” says John Miller, CEO of PopID and Chairman of Cali Group. “Additionally, biometric payment at the order confirmation screen enables staff members to work on tasks other than taking payments by card and phone at the order pick-up window.”

TGI Fridays opened a new restaurant inside the Hilton Garden Inn in Hollywood, Calif. 

Located in the heart of high-traffic Hollywood tourist destinations, the newest Fridays is core to the brand's transformation strategy – offering hotel guests a quintessential Fridays experience while creating a model that's focused on operational value and efficiency.

A Profit Center for the Hotel

To develop the new Fridays location, the brand reimaged existing restaurant space within the Hilton Garden Inn Hollywood to create a profit center for the hotel and a value add for both its guests and the surrounding community that chooses to dine-in or order delivery. Executed in collaboration with Aimbridge Hospitality, the leading, global hotel management company operating the Hilton Garden Inn Hollywood, the renovation maximized underutilized space to create an elevated full-service bar and restaurant experience at a fraction of the cost and time than traditional streetside restaurant locations.

• Related: Denny’s Courts Hotel Partnerships 

The new restaurant opening comes as TGI Fridays continues to see dominance across travel and tourism-focused destinations, including airports, hotels, and casinos. Following the July 2023 renovation of the brand's Dallas Fort Worth International Airport Terminal B restaurant, the location is on track to be the highest volume sales location of any U.S. airport restaurant. Across the country, full-size Fridays restaurants attached to hotels are seeing significantly higher sales volumes than traditional streetside locations.

"Whether domestic or international, leisure or business, we're seeing travelers gravitate to the familiar comfort of the beloved and iconic Fridays brand while they're on the road and away from home," said Chris Devlin, Chief Development Officer at TGI Fridays. "There is massive white space for TGI Fridays within travel-driven locations, representing an incredible growth opportunity for our brand, as we continue to find innovative ways to bring That Fridays Feeling™ to our fans wherever they crave it."

• Related:  Hotel Debuts Pizzeria Uno Franchise

The Hollywood location seats 150 guests across 4,000 square feet, including an outdoor patio overlooking a pedestrian walkway. This is the second Fridays hotel location for RLJ Lodging Trust, the hotel owner which also owns the full-size Fridays attached to the Courtyard by Marriott location near Chicago Midway International Airport.

Maestro PMS, the hotel industry’s leading Web Browser based cloud and on-premises all-in-one property-management system, will showcase the latest enhancements to its industry-defining technology at the upcoming HITEC 2024 event in Charlotte, N.C. Updated mobile functionality, enhancements to payment processing tools, and more will be on display at Booth 1844 at the Charlotte Convention Center from June 24-27.

“Maestro never stops evolving, and with 45 years of experience in hospitality innovation behind us, we remain dedicated to finding new ways to innovate and improve operations for independent hoteliers everywhere,” said Warren Dehan, president of Maestro. “Independent hoteliers seek greater control over operations, including improved visual aids and more intentional design. We are taking these needs to heart and improving the capabilities Maestro offers independent operators, as well as the training and support they need to remain competitive and successful. HITEC attendees will have hands-on experience with our newest innovations, and we are excited to showcase them at Booth 1844.”

Maestro PMS is designed to be intuitive, easy to use and simple to train for. The adaptable technology benefits from FREE updates to new versions, reliably providing a safe and secure digital guest experience. Current updates have added an array of new capabilities to Maestro’s award-winning PMS suite, all of which will be available for demo at HITEC 2024.

Touch Tablet Functionality

While Maestro’s industry-defining tools have been available across all browser-based devices for some time, the company will showcase a purpose-built “Touch” interface designed to assist accessibility on touch-based devices. Operators can now leverage touch-enabled screens to manage their hotel’s operations, including mobile devices, tablets, laptops, and more. Front desk workers, new employees, and seasonal staff all benefit from the implementation of touchscreen functionality through its simplified interface, optimized for mobile operating systems. Maestro Touch provides a cutting-edge solution with unprecedented ease of use within hospitality through access to check-in functionality, check-out functionality, mobile signature capture, real-time room availability, integration and data synchronization and more.

Embedded Payments Through MezzoPay

Maestro recently implemented embedded payment processing directly into the hotel PMS through integration with MezzoPay. Embedded payments allow merchants to factor their payment processing options directly into the hotel PMS, simplifying guest purchases while controlling hoteliers’ operational costs. This will enable guests to associate purchases on property with the hotel and not a third-party merchant while conferring the most accurate possible accounting information to business owners. Through embedded payment processing, Maestro PMS is helping independent hoteliers attain the same prestige as branded operators during the purchase process.

Client Reference Incentive Program

Maestro is rewarding its users for sharing their experiences with other hoteliers through a newly implemented incentive program. Participants receive expanded access to training, discounts on Maestro products or services, exclusive access to Maestro events, personalized support and complimentary mobile PMS tools. Speak with a Maestro representative to learn more about the program.

Learning Management System

According to Hospitality Technology’s 2024 Lodging Technology Study: Digital Transformation & ROI, 54 percent of hoteliers believe the lack of skilled workers with technology expertise is among the top technology challenges facing the industry in 2024. Maestro provides unparalleled support for newly onboarded personnel and veteran hoteliers alike through centralized PMS training, personalized learning paths, progressive education and simplified tracking metrics. Maestro’s learning management system also comes with gamified learning tools, complete with rules, point scoring, and other elements typically associated with games, which are now applied to task management and training reinforcement. These elements work in concert to train and prepare Maestro PMS users for the unexpected while reinforcing the core ideals of hospitality.

“Independent hoteliers are looking for support, and they are finding it in the technology and tools leveraged at the property level,” Dehan said. “It’s our responsibility as PMS providers to listen to their needs and work to provide necessary innovation to assist independent operators wherever possible. Training, improved payment processing, simplified workflows and ongoing support are all necessary for success today. While hoteliers will always face new challenges, our ability to collaborate and create new innovations alongside our hotel partners ensures we are helping prepare them for tomorrow.”

Mews has completed its successful rollout of its Property Management System (PMS) across the entire Strawberry hotel portfolio. Today, 9,000 hotel employees across almost 230 of the group’s hotels are now all using Mews, enabling ease-of-use and consistency across Strawberry’s staff.

Strawberry is one of the largest hotel groups in the Nordic region, and they chose to migrate to Mews because of the platform's flexibility, scalability and security. Their brands include Comfort Hotel, Quality Hotel, Clarion Hotel and Clarion Collection Hotel, and approximately 50 independent hotels, all of which are welcoming guests through the Mews platform.

“This transformation was integral in our continual push for innovation, and we’re delighted that our entire hotel portfolio is now powered by Mews,” said Eirik Bogsnes, Executive Vice President at Strawberry. “The speed at which our teams have adapted to the new software is a testament to its ease of use, and it’s already having a big impact across operations and guest experiences.”

Since migrating their first property to Mews, Strawberry have already handled over 2.5 million reservations through the PMS. One in three properties use Mews Kiosks to provide guests with an easy self-serve check-in option, with an average time of two and a half minutes spent per session, which includes purchasing in-kiosk upgrades.

“Implementing Mews across over 200 properties was a huge operation, as each hotel also uses a number of integrations that had to be seamlessly migrated,” said Kari Anna Fiskvik, Senior Vice President Technology at Strawberry. “We have updated our tech ecosystem and rebuilt over 20 different systems during this transformation to make full use of Mews’ marketplace. All the teams involved did an outstanding job during the changeover, ensuring our high standard of hotel operations were maintained.”

On average, each Strawberry hotel is connected to 15 active integrations, highlighting the importance of easy and reliable connectivity through Mews. In addition to connecting to leading hospitality software via Mews Marketplace, Strawberry used Mews Open API to build custom connection to several bespoke tools.

“In the last two years we’ve got to know the Strawberry team really well, and their openness to new ways of working and commitment to delivering remarkable guest experiences is a source of inspiration,” said Matt Welle, Mews CEO. “I’m delighted that every hotel is now powered by Mews. An exciting future lies ahead.”

Condado Tacos has appointed Derrick Pratt as the next Chief Executive Officer, effective July 1, 2024.

“On behalf of the entire Board of Managers, we are thrilled to welcome Derrick as the next CEO of Condado Tacos,” said John G. Troiano, Chairman of the Board. “Derrick brings a wealth of experience in running successful growth-oriented restaurant brands and has an exceptionally strong track record of guiding companies through periods of significant expansion through strong leadership and innovation. Condado Tacos has doubled over the last three years to 50 locations across 10 states and 18 markets to date, and we are thrilled to have Derrick lead the company through its next phase of growth.”

Seasoned Restaurant Executive 

Pratt is a seasoned restaurant executive that brings nearly four decades of restaurant experience to Condado Tacos, with a proven track record in driving best-in-class operations, performance results, world class culture and people development. Since 2021, he has served as Chief Operating Officer of the fast-growing restaurant brand, Portillo’s, where he had leadership experience in operations, real estate development, marketing and supply chain management. As COO,  Pratt was instrumental in the implementation of various technology initiatives and driving industry leading net promoter and guest satisfaction scores and helped lead the organization through its successful IPO in 2021. Prior to joining Portillo’s in 2020, he served in a variety of operations-focused roles of increasing responsibility at Starbucks, where he was Regional VP of Operations leading 800 locations and $1.4 billion in revenue. Prior to Starbucks,   Pratt spent 22 years in various VP-level positions within the McDonald’s organization and was also a franchise owner/operator.

Condado Tacos started in 201. Since its founding, the award-winning taco concept has grown to 50 restaurants in 10 states.