Serviced apartments are taking the mainstage in the hospitality industry.
The hospitality industry has opened its arms up to embrace the slow migration towards Serviced apartments and adapt its best aspects into various other business models under the larger umbrella of hospitality.
Hotels or Serviced Apartments?
A large portion of the hospitality industry is still occupied by hotels and many conservative investors are skeptical about the entry of the relatively new service apartment in the business.
But since the early 2000s, there have been 4600 serviced apartments in London across 116 properties, which constitutes only 2% of the total temporary accommodations available in the city.
While such an occurrence is not possible in the near future due to the perceived popularity that hotels still enjoy, it is not totally impossible.
Serviced apartments have taken multiple strides in providing their guests with the comfort of more space along with other amenities tailored to the needs of the time without any hidden charges, something that hotels are slow to adapt. Amenities like a well-equipped kitchen, a washer and dryer, Wi-Fi, and a work desk are becoming increasingly important for guests. And historically, service apartments have fared comparatively better in times of crises, like the 2007-09 global economic crisis and more recently the covid crisis.
However, if complacent for much longer, the growing popularity of the serviced apartment will engulf the hotel industry by putting its shortcomings on display and establishing itself as the superior option.
Investor Attention
The key to any successful business is the element of constant invention. A business has the power to hold someone’s attention by keeping the prospective customers interested in the next steps that a business will take and eventually set a trend for many others to follow.
Investors will always have interest in projects that have low risk with high rewards and serviced apartments fit the bill perfectly.
Properties in prime locations of various cities only need a fixer-upper and a good interior design to be put on the market. It doesn’t have a lot of staff owing to the fact that there is sparse social interaction between the guests and the landlord. A small team of cleaners, electricians, plumbers and concierge can cut a lot of costs that an investor has to pay out of their pockets for.
Now with newer software to facilitate secure and contactless check-in, service apartments are trying to fit into the ever-changing mold of guest needs without changing the core ideals that the service apartments embody- luxury that is affordable.
Such fascinating inventions also make for a strong argument for investors to confidently put their resources into, as they become lucrative deals in the long run.
While the coronavirus pandemic has slowed down the momentum of many SAs, as things return to normalcy after a successful and nationwide vaccine roll-out, service apartments will regain their momentum and will have a successful pay-off in the long term.
