Courteously Industrious
Why a work-from-hotel scheme may outlive the pandemic
The real estate world has been vigorously reinventing itself in recent years. The asset management approach has pivoted to a focus on hospitality to accommodate mobility, changing demographics, and technology. Catalyzed by the Covid-19 pandemic, a work-from-hotel scheme has emerged and is likely here to stay.
Co-working space providers are offering hoteliers the opportunity to generate revenue while the travel industry looks for ways to rebound. In fall 2020, Industrious partnered with Proper Hotels and its Avalon chain across four U.S. cities to launch a program called “Work From Here.” Guests and visitors who need a break from working from home can book studios and lofts for as short as one day. By the same token, the Dutch “affordable luxury” hotel brand CitizenM also allows visitors to book properly sanitized in-person meeting rooms for 5-hour slots in more than a dozen locations worldwide.
The creative repurposing of hotel spaces as offices may enjoy longevity well beyond a post-pandemic return to in-person work. While the scheme caters to an immediate need for guests right now and helps hotels generate additional revenue, it also allows more people to interact with the space and helps hotels grow their roots deeper in local communities in ways that an old-fashioned business center never could. What’s more, the gesture of opening up spaces during a pandemic touches the very core of what hospitality is: making visitors feel welcome and empowered in strange and unfamiliar places.
Sources: Work From Here by Industrious | CitizenM | Image: Laura Pittaccio