PERSONALITIES
hospitality careers , not just hospitality jobs . This comes by way of better pay , better benefits and more respect for employees in general .
H : Can you explain what the profitsharing program entails ?
RD : We distribute 5 % of what we call ‘ net cash to owner ’ to our hourly employees . Our biggest distribution resulted in an extra US $ 7 per hour . There are pros and cons to the approach . In terms of attracting employees , it ’ s a tough sell because it ’ s not guaranteed , but in terms of employee retention , it has been incredible . We are still fine-tuning the best ways to take care of our team , but it ’ s been a great program at The Ramble Hotel . In 2020 , we just didn ’ t have much profit to speak of . We ’ ve had some nice distributions in 2021 , though .
H : What are your biggest challenges ahead ?
RD : Selecting the right property in the right market at the right time . We ’ re confident in our ability to create and operate something special , but some markets require years of understanding before an opinion can be formed . We hope to fast-track this process while being respectful of the nuances each city , neighborhood and street corner bring .
H : If you were standing in front of a big group of hotel owners and operators , what would be your key message , especially right now ?
RD : Independent hotels have a stigma of being riskier investments than branded properties . Our case study at The Ramble Hotel and onward with Midnight Auteur continues to show that when trying to drive occupancy and ADR , a differentiated and irreplaceable experience is the only way to insulate a property from neverending room supply increase .
King Room at The Ramble Hotel , Denver