BEST OPPORTUNITY FOR HOMAGE TO GROW .
Why hasn ’ t someone created a hotel brand that pays homage to black culture ? That is the question hotelier Damon Lawrence asked himself in 2014 when he created Homage Hospitality in Oakland , California .
It was July 2018 when Lawrence finally opened his first property , the four-room The Moor in New Orleans , and started to get his answer . The small property stood out with an emphasis on the culture of New Orleans and its relationship to the multicultural heritage of North African Moors in its design and architecture . The four suites had rustic elements of exposed brick and hardwood floors softened with Moroccanpatterned textiles .
Within three days of going live , the property sold out for the first five months . Even with more rooms , Lawrence believes it would have done the same . With that validation , he started planning a 94-room boutique hotel in Oakland , California , to be called Homage Oakland and set to open in summer 2020 . He eventually fell out of that real estate contract , which was fortuitous as he would have grossly overpaid considering current economic circumstances .
Last fall , an opportunity to sell The Moor presented itself , Lawrence again fortuitously sold in December for a “ really good price .” Have the stars been aligning ?
With the onset of COVID-19 , Lawrence , 33 , has no hotels today , but he has a brand , new investment partners , potentially very good timing to develop at a discount , and a dream to create the brand long overdue in the marketplace . He has his eye on a property in Napa Valley , California , not necessarily known for its inclusiveness , and is patiently waiting to get the best price .
“ These market conditions are the best opportunity for Homage to grow ,” says Lawrence , who had worked in management for Ritz-Carlton , IHG and Dusit International . “ And if we can just be smart ,
THESE MARKET CONDITIONS ARE THE
BEST OPPORTUNITY FOR HOMAGE TO GROW .
creative , a little scrappy , and patient , we ’ ll be fine . I think we ’ re actually just blessed and in a really good position to not actually have anything out in the market right now . Early this year , I didn ’ t think that was the case . I was more so frustrated . But the culmination of not having anything in the market and a new awareness of Black Lives Matter now in the psyche of the American public and to the forefront has really created this perfect storm for us to rise as a brand in the midst of it . So I ’ m pretty excited for what potentially could happen .”
PERFECT TIMING According to research firm Catalyst , in
2019 black people in the United States accounted for 13.4 % of the population and an 8.9 % share of buying power representing US $ 1.4 trillion — a 48.1 % increase in buying power over the past 10 years . Mandala Research estimated that black people spent US $ 63 billion in travel in 2018 . Yet few , if anyone , is catering to their tastes at hotels .
“ The hospitality industry is just missing a very important component , which is diversity ,” Lawrence says . “ And when you ’ re creating space , if you don ’ t have people of all ethnicities , creeds , and sexual orientations at the table , who are you really creating the space for ? I think that ’ s just kind of been my thought process throughout the creation of the Homage brand , but specifically to something that I know very well , which is black culture and black history . What does that mean to American culture and American history , and how can we pay homage to that ?”
As for why a concept shaped by black culture has yet to happen , Lawrence calls it a microcosm of a larger societal problem and due to the fact that not enough people of color have the background required to develop hotel properties .
“ There ’ s a whole learning curve . That ’ s why I don ’ t really fear anyone ’ s going to come behind me and do anything similar any time soon . It is a really challenging industry to crack through when you have a creative endeavor like this . And I think the industry just represents what we ’ ve seen in so many other industries , but this
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