The hotel business isn’t a great place to be right now. Many locations have gone under in 2020 because of the lack of business. With conventions and business travel down significantly, it’s easy to understand why a classic hotel like the Palmer House in Chicago is having problems paying off its loans.
When companies are in trouble, other ones see a tremendous opportunity. Such is the case with a hotel operator who’s buying up a property to get a foothold in the New York City market.
The Mint House is a chain of hotels that offer apartment-like living in urban areas. They describe their product in this way.
Combining the consistency and amenities of a high-end hotel with the space and features of a luxury apartment, all available in the best urban locations.
You’d imagine that the reduced business travel could have killed its business, as it did with many of their competitors. However, Mint House adapted to the “new normal” by making deals with “ghost kitchens” (that’s a restaurant that doesn’t really exist and prepares meals solely for delivery services) to provide meal delivery to its guests.
When many gyms at the Mint House locations were closed due to COVID-19, they quickly started installing MIRROR workout kiosks in their rooms.
The plan seems to be working as business people are using the hotels for both longer business trips and a place for digital nomads and work-from-home employees to be more productive.
It’s not surprising when another company shut down a Manhattan location, Mint House snapped it up ASAP. The location at 70 Pine St. in the Financial District will reopen as a Mint House on November 20th.
We’ve stayed in an apartment like accommodation in Leeds, UK several years ago and it was wonderful. Having a washer/dryer, full kitchen and living room was better than any suite you can think of. I can see why these accommodations would be appealing to business people who are spending most of their time in their room when traveling instead of going out to dinners and hanging out in the hotel lounge.
Smaller brands are more nimble and can adapt to the current needs of travelers. Seeing Mint House expanding when other hotels are closing shows that if you rearrange the letters in “slowdown,” it spells “opportunity.” (Brownie points to those who get this reference.)
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This post first appeared on Your Mileage May Vary
