Hong Kong, September 23, 2016 — Revenue Strategy Forum (RSF) Hong Kong brought together more than 100 revenue management innovators, hotel executives and thought leaders from one of Asia’s most prestigious hospitality schools to share best practices for thriving in an increasingly complex distribution landscape. Co-host Hotel ICON welcomed RSF Hong Kong back for its second year and accommodated an expanded lineup of speeches, networking and hands-on educational sessions.
Programming focused not only on top-line growth but also on managing customer acquisition costs to grow revenue and profits holistically in a recessionary environment. Executives from co-host Duetto led several key sessions, including RSF’s keynote speech by CEO Patrick Bosworth and an interactive master class in revenue management taught by Chief Product & Analytics Officer Marco Benvenuti.
Duetto's Philip Niemann discusses Revenue Strategy best practices during a session at RSF Hong Kong on 22 September.
A general-session panel of hospitality and online travel agency executives discussed the intensified competition for direct bookings and other digital disruptions in hotel distribution. Bosworth’s speech, “Break the Cycle and Win the Next Downturn,” elaborated on those challenges and identified key pieces of a Revenue Strategy meant to grow market share in a likely recession for the hotel industry.
“The attendees at RSF, from revenue managers and GMs to hotel owners and asset managers, were very focused on having the right plans in place for optimizing their profits and outperforming their competitors when the hotel industry’s cycle inevitably turns downward,” Bosworth said. “The ideas shared on stage and in the audience will help hoteliers manage through adversity now as well as succeed over the long haul.”
Richard Hatter, general manager of Hotel ICON, touted the educational session — in which Benvenuti led a hands-on revenue management class — as an ideal fit for Hotel ICON, which is the “teaching hotel” aligned with the School of Hotel and Tourism Management at Hong Kong Polytechnic University.
“We were extremely pleased to bring thought leaders from within the hotel industry and from the university to give real-life experience and context to the challenges of modern revenue management, including a distribution environment that gets more complex every day,” Hatter said. “None of us can predict exactly how the industry cycle will play out, but we can feel confident that events like RSF prepare hoteliers to respond with the right Revenue Strategy.”
A final Revenue Strategy Forum for 2016 will focus on the European market and will take place in London on 7 November at Amba Hotel Charing Cross. Register for RSF London here.
About Hotel ICON
A luxury Hong Kong hotel that takes a new look at hospitality, Hotel ICON is all about individuality and a celebration of Hong Kong’s finest. Passion for local culture — art, design, fabulous food and a modern sparkle packaged up with perfect service — and an undeniably international style reflected throughout every aspect of service are what make Hong Kong and Hotel ICON unique. The ambience here is familiar and comfortable — the perfect balance of high style and traditional hospitality — exciting yet informal, responsive and passionate. This hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, reflects the true essence of Hong Kong.
Hotel ICON is a very special hotel with an equally special purpose: Not only does it embody all the creative energy and spirit of Hong Kong, it’s a “learning environment” on which the aspirations of future hoteliers come to life as part of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and an extension of its School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM).
About Duetto
Duetto delivers the most powerful Revenue Strategy solutions to the world’s leading hotels and casinos, allowing them to better manage pricing, revenue and business-mix decisions with superior, actionable data.
The unique combination of hospitality experience and technology leadership enables Duetto to provide new insights on pricing and demand as a true cloud-based software-as-a-service. With solutions that address the challenges of today’s distribution landscape, Duetto’s applications are a GameChanger — optimizing profit and guest loyalty.
More than 1,200 hotels and casinos in more than 60 countries have partnered to use Duetto’s Revenue Strategy solutions.
michael@mfcpr.com or (212) 808-6559