Happy Fourth of July from The Refinishing Touch!

Tradition is important. It’s important to us in our personal lives – whether it’s the Fourth of July, Thanksgiving, or Memorial Day, we tend adopt a similar routine each year. It’s a great feeling – a shared experience and chance to reflect that brings us closer together. But tradition is equally important to the hospitality industry. It helps hotels keep business plans updated – to plan guest numbers, stock levels, staff requirements,  handle furniture assets, and to schedule renovations.

So when something happens that breaks tradition, it has the potential to catch hotels by surprise. A new survey out this week has revealed that this year’s Fourth of July celebrations might be one of those times.

The study was conducted by TNS Global, and commissioned by SpringHill Suites by Marriott. It discovered that the July summer holiday could be many families’ main vacation this year – it’s surprising because traditionally Thanksgiving is considered the ‘big one’ for families.

Of course, it’s unlikely many hotels will be unable to cope with the extra volume. Thanksgiving holds a special place in our hearts, but the Fourth of July isn’t exactly an unimportant date on the calendar. Even so, if this does mark the start of a trend it could have an impact on the way hotels manage things like product improvement plans (PIPs) and furniture renovations.

Here at The Refinishing Touch, we spend a lot of our time working with hotels to maintain, refurbish or remake their furniture. We’ve learned that hotels need to be prepared for those times when the market reacts differently than expected. Maintaining furniture throughout the whole year is a sensible idea, and working with a refinisher is a quick and affordable way to do that. It means that even when surprised, the hotel is ready to react to the event, meet demand, and give their customers the high quality experience they demand.

So ultimately, tradition is great. But let’s not be afraid to start new ones.

And from all of us at The Refinishing Touch, have a great holiday!