Hospitality & Tourism

Forget assumptions about what a 'high-value visitor' looks like. The new part luxury, part basic traveler is a real contrast: - They might book a Contiki trip but with business-class flights. - Or want remote camping but arrive via helicopter. - Road-tripping in a campervan but dining at the best restaurants? - A off grid wellness retreat but with their own villa and private pool. These are some of the demands coming from "non millionaire travellers" who now account for more than a 1/3 of the luxury tourism market (Mckinsey: Now boarding: Faces, places, and trends shaping tourism in 2024). They're younger (under 40), aspirational, and are unlikely to own their own home. Ultimately, they’re redefining lux as value driven, experiential, and memorable (not just expensive). To keep up, tourism businesses can give options that try and meet the requirements of being both simple and aspirational. Partnerships (eg high end business with low price operator) would be a great way to ensure you can capture some of this growing market.

The most counterintuitive marketing strategy: Tell people exactly how to spot bad products in your industry. Been noticing this trend where successful brands are doing something unexpected, they're teaching customers how to evaluate their entire industry, not just their products. Saw a perfect example with Lakme's approach in the Indian sunscreen market. Here's the context that makes this brilliant: The market is worth ₹6,900+ crores and growing at 7% annually. But until 2019, 65% of Indians had never used sunscreen in a year, and 25% didn't even understand basic terms like SPF. It's a highly price-sensitive market where consumers often just choose the cheapest option. Most brands competed on price, celebrity endorsements, and flashy packaging. Lakme did something different. →They adopted international ISO testing standards in 2015, way before competitors. →They worked with Bureau of Indian Standards since 2016 to standardize the entire industry. →Then in 2025, they launched consumer education campaigns teaching people how to verify any brand's SPF claims. Here's the genius part: Instead of exploiting consumer ignorance, they eliminated it. While competitors fought for uninformed customers making decisions based on price alone, Lakme built a base of educated buyers who understood quality. In a market where per-person spending is approx ₹47, they created customers willing to pay a premium for verified value. This isn't just about skincare. I see the same pattern everywhere. →The agency that teaches clients red flags to watch for. →The SaaS company that openly shares their limitations. →The consultant who tells prospects when NOT to hire them. The counterintuitive truth: In price-sensitive markets, education beats discounting. When you teach your market how to evaluate quality, you don't just build customers, you build advocates who will pay a premium for verified value. What's one red flag people should watch for in your industry? #ad

Mass Tourism is dead. Hilton 2026 trend report says what's next for the industry. For decades, the tourism industry was built on volume. Crowded resorts. All-inclusive packages. Selfie sticks and bucket lists made on Instagram. But that era is fading fast. The next wave of travel isn’t about where people go, it’s about why. According to Hilton’s new 2026 Trends Report, travellers around the world are making a radical shift: from mass tourism to meaningful tourism seeking connection, calm, and authenticity instead of crowds and checklists. Here are the key trends reshaping the future of travel: 1. “Hushpitality”: Seeking Silence and Stillness In an overstimulated world, travellers crave peace. Hilton found that almost half of travellers now add extra days to disconnect before or after family trips and many are choosing destinations where they can simply breathe. Wellness, mental clarity, and calm have become new luxury. 2. Home Comforts Are the New Carry-On The modern traveller wants familiarity. From favourite streaming shows to pet-friendly rooms, people are bringing their routines with them. Even abroad, 77% of travellers enjoy browsing grocery stores, proof that comfort and local discovery can coexist beautifully. This is also why long-stay travel and remote-work destinations are booming: people want a “home away from home” they can trust. 3. Generation Remix - Families Are Redefining Travel Family vacations aren’t what they used to be. Children help plan itineraries. Grandparents take grandkids on “skip-gen” trips. Families are seeking shared play, not screens. Travel is becoming a tool for bonding and shared growth across generations. 4. Inheritourism: Travel With Legacy and Meaning People no longer travel to escape their lives, they travel to understand them. More than half of families now plan trips to connect with their roots and local traditions. “Cultural immersion” isn’t a buzzword anymore — it’s a priority. 5. Purposeful Journeys: The Rise of the “Whycation” The biggest transformation is philosophical Travellers are asking why they travel. To rest. To reconnect. To grow. This emotional motivation — rather than location — is now the foundation of modern tourism. And This Is Why We’re Transforming Roatán At the Roatán Tourism Bureau, we see these shifts as a once-in-a-generation opportunity. We’re helping local businesses evolve from mass tourism to meaningful tourism, from quick visits on cruiseships to long-term value. That means: - Supporting hotels and hosts to create spaces that feel like home. - Training local operators to attract digital nomads and wellness travellers. - Promoting authentic cultural experiences that connect visitors with the island’s people and traditions. - Partnering with communities to ensure growth benefits everyone. Travel is changing — fast. And Roatán is getting ready to lead this new chapter: quieter, deeper, and more intentional.

BCG just dropped a new influencer marketing projection—if you’re a marketing head, you have to take notice. By 2030, India’s creators will influence $1 trillion in consumer spending. Today, they already shape over $350 billion—and the curve is steepening fast. But brands won’t win this wave with old playbooks. • Treating creators like billboards is a dead end. Consumers scroll past forced promos in seconds. What works now is integration—where the product fits naturally into the creator’s content, tone, and community. • The next frontier is regional creators. Most influencer strategies today still revolve around urban, English-speaking faces. But real growth lies in Tier 2 and 3—where trust, relatability, and language matter more than follower count. • Spray-and-pray influencer campaigns are losing relevance. Audiences are savvy. They can spot insincerity—and tire quickly of influencers who promote twenty five competitor brands in the same category. Brands need curated, long-term partnerships with creators who truly resonate with their ethos. Throw in product co-creation with influencers because that’s going to be a game changer. The new game is alignment, curation, and depth. Creators who live your brand, not just mention it. Integrations that feel native, not disruptive. Smart CMOs will treat creators not as media buys, but as long-term brand collaborators

India’s airports are bursting at their seams. Travelers took 1.7 Bn trips in 2022 which should ↑ to 5 Bn by 2030. The Indian travel sector is a massive opportunity… Just take a flight and you’ll see it for yourself (as you know I do a lot of that 🤣). Flights are packed even during off peak hours. India’s travel market is different from anywhere else in the world because 99% of travel is domestic. With different cultures and cuisine across the country to the availability of every kind of terrain - why do you need to leave?!? Travel is back and higher than the pre-pandemic numbers. India is buying the most planes and December 2023 had the highest number of flights ever. In 5 years, India is predicted to be the largest travel market in the world. So, let’s outline where the opportunity lies: → The gems are beyond Tier 1 💎 As with many other things - the opportunity is in Bharat. Tourists want something unique that isn’t available in the urban setting they stay in. Religious tourism and offbeat travel are getting serious government support and will see huge growth. No wonder we saw all those ‘Ayodhya Stocks’ rally.  With tourist traffic, infrastructure becomes crucial. Thus, ancillary services like tour guides, tech based taxi services (like Uber and Ola) and catering/QSR will also see a fillip. Tourism will bring massive economic benefits to tier 2/3 cities and present big opportunities for founders to build. → Travel Loans for GenZ 💸 GenZ doesn’t save up for that one trip every year. They want to travel every long weekend. EasemyTrip saw a 2x jump in demand for their 'travel now pay later' programme! Today’s generation is different. Holidays>Savings. → Last Minute Convenience ⏳ Indian travelers are known for last-minute bookings. The average trip planning window for Indians is ~30 days – Much shorter than other markets like Japan (57) and the USA (63). With this behaviour unique ways to book hotels/flights last minute or forex delivery at home will be massive opportunities. → Unique Experiences in a Budget 💰 What started with work from home has now turned into workations at the Himalayas. Budget travel is the fastest growing space in India but, there is still white space in the hotel space at INR 1500-3000 price point. As a result, I predict that alternative stay options such as hostels and home stays will scale much faster than hotels over the next decade.  This is just the tip of the iceberg and, I didn’t even talk about luggage (that needs another post in itself). The average Indian is 10 years younger than the global average and is keen to travel and experience new things in ‘Incredible India’! Our travel opportunity is immense but like any other industry it’s nuances are unique to our nation. Understanding this is crucial. Agree with this assessment? Have you seen any other travel trend lately? PS: A photo from our last holiday of 2023 in Udaipur :) #travel #india #business #opportunity

During my recent stay at Novotel Hotels Vijayawada Varun, I saw firsthand how hospitality brands are beginning to embrace sustainability. While I know these steps don’t yet make the hotel fully sustainable, it’s good to see meaningful action being taken. From biodegradable dental kits and refillable dispensers to glass water bottles, and cloth napkins, their commitment to reducing waste was clear.  They even provided sterilized reusable footwear - a practical and sustainable alternative to the typical disposable white slippers. Here are the three most impressive sustainability efforts that stood out during my stay: 1️⃣ Green Building: Powered by solar energy and equipped with LED lighting, sustainability is built into its foundation. 2️⃣ EV Charging Station: The first in Vijayawada, encouraging greener travel. 3️⃣ Composting & Herb Garden: Onsite composting and a vertical herb garden reduce waste and support local sourcing. These initiatives have earned Novotel Vijayawada Varun a Bronze Level in Accor’s Planet 21 initiative, a recognition of their efforts to support environmental stewardship. Accor, the parent company, has also committed to net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 and significant emissions reductions by 2030. While there’s still a long way to go, it’s encouraging to see brands I’ve grown up with starting to integrate sustainability into their operations. Every step counts, and it’s these thoughtful initiatives that can inspire broader change in the hospitality industry. What small sustainable changes have you seen recently that made an impression? Let’s share ideas! #Sustainability #GreenHospitality #EcoFriendly #ResponsibleTourism

I've just learned how Dishoom got to 44,000+ reviews with a 4.8 rating. And the trick isn't the food. I mean, the food is great too. But when a restaurant has the same number of reviews as Westminster Abbey, about half of Big Ben, and a higher rating than both, you start wondering how they managed to pull that off. So I visited one of their locations and it became pretty clear. They use qr payment at the table. No waiting for the bill, no chasing staff, you just pay and leave. But what happens next is where it gets interesting. Right after payment, they ask you to rate your experience inside their own flow. And based on that input, they decide what happens next. If you give 5 stars, you're directed to Google to leave a public review. If you rate it lower, the feedback stays internal. As a result - a high volume of highly distilled traffic to Google Maps. In a world where 50-70% of discovery traffic comes from Google, and even a 0.1 difference in rating can impact revenue, your Google Maps presence becomes something you want to design and influence. Of course, the food and the experience have to be great. But for many places, that's already true. They just underperform when it comes to turning that into reviews. Design your flow, ask for reviews, and do it smart. That's how you get into the same league as Big Ben.

Trade policy is often discussed in numbers. Duties. Percentages. Revenue projections. But tariffs also reach places the data does not immediately capture. Tourism is one of them. As new U.S. tariffs approach, coastal communities in Canada are already feeling the hesitation. ▶ American visitors are unsure whether they are welcome. ▶ Seasonal businesses face uncertainty before peak travel begins. ▶ Local economies that rely on cross border tourism absorb the risk early. These effects show up long before official data does. They influence bookings, supply access, and the confidence that keeps tourism driven regions operating. Tariffs may be written at the federal level, but their consequences surface locally. Often far from ports, factories, or customs filings. ➜ Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/e5p9s-G3 #BenEngland #GlobalTrade #Tariffs #TourismIndustry #CrossBorderTrade #TradePolicy #EconomicImpact #SupplyChain #FDAImports

🤯 Chocolate can have a HUGE carbon footprint… Here’s how to avoid that and buy the 'best' chocolate: -- AVOID ❌ 𝗟𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀 / 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗼𝗱𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲 Mass-produced chocolate comes from cacao that is all mixed together. There’s little transparency, and prices are set by “the market”, which ignores what farmers actually need to earn a living. Certifications like Fairtrade and Rainforest Alliance are valuable, but they are closer to a bare minimum. They often still can’t trace cacao back to specific farms. ❌ 𝗩𝗮𝗴𝘂𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗺𝘀 Be sceptical of claims without clear numbers, named places, or real people. -- LOOK FOR (one or more) ✅ 𝗔𝗴𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘆, 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗱𝗲-𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄𝗻 Cacao trees thrive when grown among other trees. This protects forests, supports biodiversity, stores carbon, and makes farms more resilient to climate change — while often producing better-tasting cacao. ✅ 𝗦𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗹𝗲-𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻 / 𝗯𝗲𝗮𝗻-𝘁𝗼-𝗯𝗮𝗿 (𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗵𝗼𝘁𝗼𝘀) This means cacao comes from one farm or region and is kept separate from the global commodity pile. Doing this costs time and money, so it usually only makes sense when quality is high and farmers are paid better. Single-origin is a useful signal for sustainable practices because that's how you get high-quality cacao. ✅ 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲 / 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 This chocolate costs more because it doesn’t externalise costs onto people and nature. Most other chocolate is cheap because it exploits both. Paying more takes some getting used to, but many of us can afford it. A bonus: high-quality dark chocolate is so rich that you naturally eat less. 🍫 𝗘𝘅𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗡𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀 Many small brands sell good chocolate online or in speciality shops. I often buy Chocolatemakers because it's available at a supermarket (Ekoplaza or Odin). An 80 g bar costs €3,99, compared to €2,59 for a 90 g Tony’s Chocolonely bar — a good illustration of how price can signal different supply chains. -- Source: Poore, J., & Nemecek, T. (2018). Reducing food’s environmental impacts through producers and consumers. Science, 360(6392), 987–992

Crumbl has 200+ flavors in rotation. In-N-Out Burger has 4 menu items. That's not a contradiction. It's a lesson most brands miss. Let's do a Brand Reality Check. Brand Reality Check = how demand is created, sustained, and stressed. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆: • Crumbl: 1,000+ locations, ~$1B+ in sales, rotating weekly menu • In-N-Out: 400+ locations, ~$2B+ in sales, same menu since 1948 They're not doing the same thing. They're solving different demand problems. 𝗖𝗿𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗹'𝘀 𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲: • Novelty. "What's new this week?" • Scarcity. That cookie might disappear forever. • Social currency. TikTok drops every Sunday. • Repeat visitation. You come back because the menu changed. People line up because the menu changes. 𝗜𝗻-𝗡-𝗢𝘂𝘁'𝘀 𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲: • Consistency. Your burger tastes exactly like it did last year. • Trust. Fresh, never frozen, every time. • Ritual. It's muscle memory at this point. • Decision relief. Four items. No thinking required. People line up because the menu never changes. Here's the mistake brands make: They copy Crumbl's rotation without Crumbl's content velocity, social reach, or operational tolerance for chaos. Or they copy In-N-Out's simplicity without having earned obsession first. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘁𝗵 𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗻: Lines don't validate strategy. They validate alignment. Alignment between: → Brand promise → Operating model → Customer expectation Crumbl isn't wrong. In-N-Out isn't right. They're proof that focus can look like either discipline or chaos, depending on whether the system supports it. Most brands fail because they mix the two. ----- Before you copy a strategy, ask: do I have the system to support it?