8 Things Your Hotel Needs to Consider Before a Refurb

When thinking about undergoing any sort of refurbishment project, there are multiple factors which should be taken into consideration. Be it an entire home, a specific space or area such as a garden, or even the garage, thought needs to be given before the project begins. 

Factors such as cost and time weigh heavily on the decision you take. Working to a budget, making sure estimates meet within you given range. Ensuring the work can be completed within your time constraints mean care and attention need to be given over the final choice you make. 

Now take all of those factors and think about trying to make those decisions for your hotel business. You’ve now got to consider the impact everything will have on your customers, what they will think and how it will affect business. To help make the decision easier for you, we’ve come up with a few things you’ll be best served to take into consideration before you get cracking on that brand-new refurb.

1. Plan early

Planning ahead is imperative to ensuring the project has clear objectives. This also helps you to think about any external factors that could help or even hinder the project. Giving yourself a proper project plan with achievable milestones, will help to keep things on track, as you move through each phase of your project. Planning ahead will ensure you give your project the best chance of success. Leave no stone unturned, nothing is too trivial, every single detail matters.

2. Refurbishment vs Upgrade

This is just as important as planning ahead. Refurbishment and upgrading shouldn’t be confused with one and other. Refurbishing your hotel means starting all over again. It means you’re moving in a new direction and you want the new look and feel represent just that. For example, if you decide to target a new type of customer base you will need to ensure the hotel, the services and features you offer meet their requirements. Upgrading means, just that, all you’re doing is giving a few chosen areas a new lease of life. For example, this could be upgrading all the bathrooms, beds and or your communal areas. 

Deciding between a refurbishment and upgrade is therefore a very important decision as it will affect the entire project.

3. Timing Time is essential with such a project. You need to decide when to start the project, ensuring it causes minimal disruption where possible. The worst thing would be to start during your peak trade period, so making sure you choose the right time of the year to undergo a refurbishment is important. Furthermore, you want a time efficient project, therefore you need to make sure that the project is completed as fast as possible. That will enable you to minimise any downturn in trade as well as giving you more time during the year to make the most the new look. Agree proper achievable timescales with your developer and draw up a timetable of deliverables to make sure things don’t fall behind.

4. Manage expectations This is all about communication, making sure everyone affected by the work has a clear idea of what is happening, how long it will take and what the end result will be. This means letting staff know about the project and ensuring they are included from the start. This will help them answer questions from customers and prospects. Clear communication needs to be given to your customers and prospects as they will need to plan around any work that may affect them and their visit. You need to make it clear what services if any will be affected and for how long. Furthermore, you need to make it clear what they are to expect from the refurbishment, as their decision to visit will be based on what you promise you can deliver. Therefore, you must make sure you manage their expectations and deliver just what you promise. 

5. Cost Cost will be the biggest driver in what you want to achieve and what you can achieve. Make sure you get as many quotes as you can for the work, try to make your budget stretch. This might mean you get in different suppliers for various parts of the project. For example. You might have one supplier doing all the building work, another for the plumbing and another for the fixtures and fittings. Conversely you might find one who can do it all. Make sure you get the most for your money and get as close to your desired plan as possible. Doing this ahead of time will make sure costs don’t spiral out of control, stick to your budget. 

6. Think about your brand Whatever your plans are, you need to consider the impact they will have on both the business and your customers. Everything you do needs to be done with a view to improving the customer experience and ensuring it adds a unique value to your hotel. This will make it stand out from the competition and be the reason you get repeat visits. Think about the improvement to the image of the hotel and the changed perception of your establishment. This will help when you come to promote the refurbishment and draw more customers in.

7. Engage staff As mentioned above, it’s important to make staff feel part of the project. The more they fell involved the more they will feel part of the team. When running any business, your staff represent the business, they are your eyes and your ears. They can collate feedback from customers, manage expectations and work around the project to make sure there is as little disruption to the business as possible. Your staff are your most valuable asset as they make the wheels turn in your hotel, make them feel part of it, value their time and feedback.

8. Make the most of it Once the project is complete and you’re ready for the big reveal, make sure you maximise the opportunity to promote the new look and feel. Look for opportunities to promote the improvements with local businesses, online and through regional media. Maximise the opportunity the new look and feel brings. Make sure that when visitors come through the doors, they enjoy the improvements. The more they enjoy the experience, the more they will let others know. 

Undertaking a refurbishment project of any kind will come with various risks and rewards. Taking the above factors into consideration will help to make a decision which is right for your hotel. When looking to finance such a venture a Business Cash Advance could be the perfect solution for your hotel. It works perfect for businesses that take a majority of the sales via card as repayments match and mirror your businesses performance. You can rest easy and use the funds to undergo your refurbishment and repay as your business performs. Find out more about how a Business Cash Advance can help.

If you are experiencing cash flow challenges or want to realise your business growth plans, get in touch with our team of Funding Specialists today on 020 7839 9451 or email [email protected].