THE BULLETIN
Everything to Everyone
EDITORIAL David Eisen Editor In Chief
Type in relentless . com into your web browser . Go ahead — try it . What you find is not a website selling persistence . In fact , it ’ s not even relentless . com ; rather , it ’ s the most-trafficked retail website in the world with more than 2.5 billion monthly visitors : Amazon . com . That ’ s right : relentless . com redirects to Jeff Bezos ’ ecommerce empire . It was the first URL registered by Bezos for his would-tocome “ everything store ” and could have been the place to buy everything from dog food to lobster-shaped slippers ($ 12.99 and come in three different colors ).
Amazon was founded in 1994 before the invention of search ( Google came four years later ). At the time , internet users used website directories , many of which listed websites in alphabetical order . According to lore , Bezos pored over the A section of the dictionary and settled on Amazon to sell books . Imagine if he stopped there ? In his 1997 letter to shareholders , Bezos wrote about Amazon ’ s “ relentless and obsessed ” focus on customers .” For his 1998 goals , Bezos wrote : “ We are planning to add music to our product offering , and over time we believe that other products may be prudent investments .” Smart choice , Jeff . Lodging companies equally say they are as consumed with their customers : the millions of loyalty members on their rolls make that imperative . Today , lodging companies are more and more mimicking Amazon , offering everything to everyone — a kind of “ supermarketification ,” if you will . Marriott to Hilton , Hyatt to IHG have always offered traditional lodging products . But even Marriott started out as nothing more than a root beer stand . Adapt or die is not just a fleeting aphorism and over the past several years , dictated by customer tastes and wants outside of orthodox experiences , lodging companies have expanded their offerings outside what is perceived as traditional lodging . Recent deals , from the likes of Marriott to Hilton , Hyatt to BWH Hotels , showed companies literally going outside their comfort zones and into what is known as outdoor lodging accommodations . It is but one example .
Short-term or alternative accommodations are another , already offered through the likes of Marriott and Accor and others . Speaking of which , at a recent conference , Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky , without specifics , commented that his company ’ s future might look more like Amazon than Airbnb .
Did I mention cruise ships ? Lodging companies are getting into that , too .
Famed computer scientist Alan Kay is credited with saying that the best way to predict the future is to invent it . Bezos proved it . He also founded and now chairs what is considered a still fairly young company in the arc of history . The top five hotel companies by number of rooms are much longer in the tooth . Rolling into 2025 , expect these companies to be even nimbler and more fluid in the types of enterprises they get into , which , while at the very least tangential to the travel experience , will push the boundaries of it .
Bezos ’ obsession with the customer experience is legendary . He proved that being everything to everyone is not anathema and can be a winning strategy if done right . Can , will lodging companies follow a similar path ? They ’ ve already started .
David Eisen
Editor In Chief
Kathakali Nandi Editorial Writer
Tatiana Valenzuela Editorial Coordinator
Juan Cruz del Val Designer
Contributing Writers Harvey Chipkin , Derek Herscovici , Alicia Sheber
PUBLISHING Ali Jahangiri CEO
Brian Levine Publisher
INTERNATIONAL ADVISORY BOARD Gilda Perez-Alvarado Group Chief Strategy Officer , CEO of Orient Express , Accor
Arash Azarbarzin CEO , Highgate
Danny Hughes President , Americas , Hilton
Jeanelle Johnson Partner , PwC
Raj Chandnani EVP & CDO , WATG
Cindy Estis Green Co-founder & CEO , Kalibri Labs
Raúl González CEO EMEA , Barcelo Hotels & Resorts
Alan Fuerstman Founder , Chairman , CEO , Montage International
Patrick Scholes MD , Lodging and Leisure Equity Research , Truist Securities
ADVERTISING Caroline de Donnea José Sylvester
ADMINISTRATION Kristi Carlson Kimberly Guidry
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