Conversations with Leaders - Paul Kerr, CEO Small Luxury Hotels of the World
By Hershel Sarbin
SLH first got my attention early in 2008, just a few months after we launched Luxury Travel 360. "Compellingly simple" I said to myself. "Most inviting".
More recently I saw the announcement about a dedicated SLH travel agency site, and set about connecting with Founder and CEO Paul Kerr. We braved the buzz (noise, that is) at SLH's super-networking exhibit space at ILTM, and zeroed in on the elements that have earned the SLH brand its global All-Star status.
You could, for openers, cite growth from 70 to more than 480 member hotel properties since 1992 - all independently owned. Or its 55,000 club members who enthusiastically participate in hotel inspections and consumer insight research. Or the sense I had of a brand that constantly reinvents itself-witness today's energetic focus on travel agency relationships.
Here's a brief summary of Kerr's responses on what really defines the SLH experience, and where does SLH go from here?
It's important that our member hotels are small enough to fit comfortably into the local landscape and culture. At the same time our properties are not too small -(average 55 rooms but a good number at 100) to provide the services that experienced travelers demand for their comfort.
SLH hotels are married to the community-better able than much larger hotels to identify and create enriching special interest experiences-truly indigenous to the location-- not accessible to the general public. Think of Le Case Del Borgo in Tuscany, where the local ‘mommas' do the cooking. An ‘earthy' differential in customer experience
The consumer comes away with the sense that something out of the ordinary has happened. And happily, they give credit to the SLH brand.
Travel agents are an integral part of the business-here to stay, and even more so. We are here to help hotels, and with 70% of our bookings being leisure, agents are critical to our future.
The upcoming dedicated agent web site reflects the importance of our agent investment, and strengthening our bonds with agents gives SLH hotels a competitive edge. And clearly, our GDS capability -with its LX for Luxury access code -is also an advantage.
Agents are able to bring the total guest experience to life in conversation in a way that online selling cannot achieve. You ask what an agent can do that an independent hotel cannot do directly? That is a matter of experience, habit, incentive, and the fact that the agent and the customer live in the same community reinforces mutual trust.--another essential dimension, with a huge multiplier effect over time.
We are not just selling luxury agents, even though "Luxury" is well ingrained in our brand. We work with all agents, and of course value our partner relationships with top tier agent groups-Virtuoso, Ensemble, Signature, Amex, Vacation.com and others.
Summing up for myself, and my privileged open book look at SLH marketing, I felt that the alignment of interests-SLH, hotel, destination, travel agents-was at a very high level-- a brand strategy designed for our time in high end marketing.
Hershel Sarbin
For more, visit www.slh.com
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