In a captivating interview at IHIF 2024, Dimitris Manikis sheds light on the latest market segmentation trends shaping the industry. From the booming extended stay segment to the rise of solo and gastronomy-focused travelers, Manikis delves into the evolving landscape of hospitality.
Wyndham's strategic focus on extended stay is underscored by their alliance with Water Walk, poised to make waves in Europe. With a keen eye on France, Wyndham is expanding its footprint with two new hotels and plans for further growth. Exciting partnerships, including a collaboration with Sam Nazarian for expansion in India, showcase Wyndham's commitment to global innovation. Watch now!
Ifeoluwa Taiwo:
Good afternoon. We are here today with Dimitris from Wyndham.
Dimitris Manikis:
Hello. How are you?
Ifeoluwa Taiwo:
I'm good, thank you. You?
Dimitris Manikis:
Lovely. Lovely, beautiful day, great event. Lots of people. Couldn't be more excited.
Ifeoluwa Taiwo:
Thank you. What trends are you seeing currently in terms of the segmentation of markets?
Dimitris Manikis:
Look, it's a very interesting, a lot of interesting things have been happening in the last 12 months. I mean, nothing significantly different to what we've seen right after COVID. Extended Stay. We see Extended Stay still being a great segment of the market and growing.
At Wyndham Hotels and Resorts we just announced our strategic alliance with Water Walk, a leading kind of upscale extended stay brand in the United States, which we are planning to bring into Europe. Extended Stay is a big opportunity. Mid-scale continues to be a winner. Obviously, luxury had a great time during the last two years, but I think mid-scale and economy, they represent a big portion of the world's population. We still see a lot of growth there.
And then we see some really interesting trends being developed. We see solo travelers suddenly being a segment. We see a lot of people who travel for gastronomy. I see a lot of people are opening up new markets just to experience gastronomy. And the other interesting thing that I see is the Nordics. The countries on the North. They're actually becoming a summer destination.
You see how climate changes in the South. A lot of people are turning into holidaying in the North so they can get away from the heat waves. It's interesting to see how consumer demands and travel patterns are actually changing based on climate change. I mean, I thought that was a one off last year, but I see the trend continuing, which is very interesting.
Ifeoluwa Taiwo:
Yeah, summer just keeps getting longer and longer.
Dimitris Manikis:
Absolutely. Absolutely. Absolutely.
Ifeoluwa Taiwo:
Yeah, so speaking of Extended Stay, you had actually stolen one of my questions from me.
Dimitris Manikis:
Oh, nice.
Ifeoluwa Taiwo:
Just tell me more about your plans in relation to Extended Stay, the expansion.
Dimitris Manikis:
Look, a couple of, I think 18 months ago we launched EcoSuites by Wyndham, Extended Stay by Wyndham. This is a new build economy Extended Stay brand. And we launched in the US. Tremendous success. We have hundreds of contracts already, and we have the first EcoSuites by Wyndham actually being developed in the US.
We just, as I said, about three, four weeks ago, we did the deal with Water Walk, which is, again, it's an Extended Stay, but in the upper mid-scale space, we believe in the mid-scale, and obviously, we have Hawthorne. Howard Johnson, Howard Johnson, and Hawthorne Suites. They're very important brands for us.
We believe in the Extended Stay. We believe in its future. We believed in what it offers the consumers, and we believe that is a segment that is here to stay. It's not just the flash in the pan right after the pandemic. It's actually a segment that is here to stay and it's going to grow. We're very bullish. That's why we are actually investing in the segment.
Ifeoluwa Taiwo:
You had said earlier this year that France is a major focus for the EMEA business in 2024. Can you tell me why that is and can you share any plans in relation to that?
Dimitris Manikis:
Yeah, I mean, look, France, it's interesting. Every time I talk to my boss, the CEO, no matter what I do, well, he always says, "Yes, but you haven't grown in France." I've decided that I'm going to take his advice and we're going to grow in France.
We are opening in May. We are opening our Dolce in Versailles, which is a beautiful, beautiful property right next to the castle, or the Chateau. That's an important opening for us. This is a managed property. We manage it as Wyndham Hotels and Resorts. And a month later, we are opening a 700 room together with our partners at HA, Hospitality Alliance in Germany. We are opening a new property, the H4 Wyndham Paris, right across the Olympic Stadium.
For us, France is an enormous market now because not only we're opening the market with two beautiful hotels, but we've got a great plan to expand in the marketplace. That's it. I mean, it is very simple. Wyndham cannot afford not to be in France. It has taken us some time, but now we're getting in with a bang.
Ifeoluwa Taiwo:
Turning into Project HQ, although much of your focus will be in the United States, you're also focusing on part of the EMEA region as well. What's your progress there? What's ongoing where future plans?
Dimitris Manikis:
Yeah, that's another very interesting strategic alliance. We have agreed, or we came to an agreement with a legendary visionary in the hospitality space, Sam Nazarian. Right? I'm actually meeting Sam later this week in Switzerland. And the plan is we're going to sit down and say, okay, how can we grow the brand? How can we bring the brand into India? Which are the priority markets?
And I'll tell you, knowing what I know about Sam and seeing what I've seen in his past and what he has actually achieved, I am so excited that this is going to be a brand that is going to take a lot of people by surprise, by what it offers the great F&B offering. Plus, it's a great concept and it's a concept that has been missing at Wyndham Hotels and Resorts. Sam Nazarian, SBE, HQ together with the power of Wyndham, I think we're going to have an amazing proposition for a lot of hoteliers in the next 18 months.
Ifeoluwa Taiwo:
Oh, perfect. Thank you so much. Projects HQ will also be targeting branded residences. Talk to me a little bit about that.
Dimitris Manikis:
Look, branded residences, we started branded residences. We did an experiment here in EMEA, and we started branded residences in the mid-scale about two years ago. We already have about 12 properties, Wyndham, Wyndham Grand and Ramada branded residences. What HQ is going to do is actually going to complement that offering, and Sam calls it smart lifestyle.
It's all about creating a branded residences product that actually represents what the new generations are looking for. The Generation Z and the Millennials, these are people and generations that they travel differently and they're looking for different things when they invest in a branded residences.
What we're trying to do, we're going to cover some of the population with our legacy branded residences, which is the Ramadas and the Wyndhams. And then with the help of HQ and Sam, we're going to bring a completely new proposition on the new generations who want to get into the branded residency space. Again, extremely excited because this is something that is actually missing from Wyndham at this point.
Ifeoluwa Taiwo:
Finally, ESG technology and the convergence of the two are having really big impacts on the investment market today. What's Wyndham doing around those areas?
Dimitris Manikis:
It's actually part of our core values, and it's one of the biggest conversations that we have in Wyndham. You talk about growth, growth, growth, but how do you actually grow in making the right thing for the planet? Making the right thing for the people? In a franchise environment we have to influence our owners. We have to influence our franchisees to do the right thing.
We have an amazing product and program called Wyndham Green. We are the first company in the world in the economy and midscale that has made Wyndham Green level one certification as a brand standard. Every single hotelier we do business has to comply with Wyndham Green Certification Level One. We are actually walking the talk.
For us, ESG is not just a letter or a three letters or just a marketing talk. It's actually the way we conduct our business. It's an important part of our conversations with our franchisees. And when we recruit, young people, and you know that better than me. People will interview you instead of you interviewing them. People want to find out why it's worth working with you and what are you doing to influence the planet and to influence and create a better day for them and their families.
We want to make sure that we have an answer. Our strategy on ESG, our strategy on sustainable hospitality, we're members of the sustainable Hospitality Alliance. Why we do all that? Because we want to give back more than we take. That's the message and that's what we do every single day at Wyndham.
Ifeoluwa Taiwo:
Perfect. And one last cheeky question. Are you planning any acquisitions over the next 12, 24 months?
Dimitris Manikis:
24 months? A year ago we bought Vienna House. Right? A beautiful brand here in Europe. I will repeat what our CFO actually says all the time. If it is an acquisition that is accredited to our EBITDA, it's strategic, adds a strategic value to our business and it's in a segment that we don't have a presence, Wyndham absolutely is going to look at it.
We are a company that grew by acquisitions. We love to buy stuff that makes sense for us. And that's exactly what we're going to be doing. We're going to be doing our opportunities, we're going to be looking at opportunities, and we're going to be looking at things that we can buy or brands or business that we can buy that can make sense for us, our owners, and the countries we operate. The answer is we're going to be looking at everything that is out there.
Ifeoluwa Taiwo:
All right. Thank you. Such a great conversation.
Dimitris Manikis:
Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you. It's been a pleasure. Thank you.