With the pandemic forcing many hotels to chase so few customers, it stands to reason that competition would get cutthroat. But that’s not how Chris Pardo looks at it.
Pardo, co-founder of boutique brand Arrive Hotels & Restaurants, isn’t shy about reaching out to his competitors and colleagues in the hotel space to share ideas and empathy as the industry struggles through a difficult and unpredictable year, he told Editor in Chief Jeff Weinstein in this week’s HotelsLife interview.
“When COVID hit we started talking to other hotel operators to find out what they’re thinking about the market,” said Pardo, who along with business partner Peter Karpinski, co-founder of Sage Restaurant Group, have been growing Arrive to five hotels across the U.S. since they formed the company in 2011. “I think it is great for us to make these connections and feel more comradery.”
“Right now,” he said, “it’s knowing how to make the right decisions so that you still exist in a few years. That’s the hard part.”
Read the HotelsLife interview.