The Hospitality Show, now in its second year, will take place at the Henry B. González Convention Center in San Antonio from Oct. 28-30, 2024. The Show will bring together 5,000 attendees and promises to drive profitability for owners, operators and hospitality innovators through dedicated content, extensive networking and 400+ operations and technology vendors.
In this installment of The Hospitality Show Speaker Q&A, we catch up with Nicolás Aznar, president of Americas for Vingcard.
What do you think is the biggest problem for the industry currently?
Maintaining profitability while finding a solution to the labor shortage currently represents some of the biggest issues that the industry is focused on. Markets are still adapting to the post-pandemic landscape, which is presenting itself as a new normal. Aiming for efficiencies while improving the guest experience is a challenge at every level of the industry, from owner-operators to management companies to all brands.
What new trends do you see affecting the hospitality industry the most in 2024?
Technology has continued to be a driving force behind industry trends for many years. Once thought of as a market that was slow to adapt to innovation, today's hospitality industry has come to rely on technology as a source of additional profit and better guest experience across virtually every touch point. This has translated into high-value opportunities to collect usable data for actionable analysis. As hotels continue expanding their digitalized and physical operations, security needs for guests and staff will only increase in 2024 and beyond.
What do you see as the biggest opportunities for the industry this year?
I believe that challenges and opportunities often go hand in hand. With the right technology, properties can become more efficient, more visible to potential guests, more profitable, and more unique in their services. Today, these goals can be achieved by utilizing the right technology.
What do you think the industry's biggest accomplishment has been in the past year?
The hospitality industry is extremely resilient and continues to demonstrate its ability to act quickly under changing circumstances. The past few years have been a great example of that. More and more brands and independent properties are also conforming to the new generation of guests and adapting to new trends and technologies while maintaining the uniqueness of their brand that sets them apart. This has led to the industry becoming much better at understanding their guests' types in addition to having the means to tailor experiences based on individual expectations.
What are you most looking forward to at The Hospitality Show?
I always look forward to the connections we build during these shows. AHLA and Questex have a fantastic approach, aiming for hoteliers who manage their properties and owners trying to discover what’s out there regarding technology that can assist with their goals and address their needs. It’s great to see all this and more happening during a few days of the show, and we have no doubt that it will be a rewarding experience for everyone who attends.