According to Tim Franzen, president of Graduate Hotels, there are a few factors to keep in mind when looking to develop in a university marketplace.
Diversify your drivers. “Every market we go to for Graduate, it has to have diverse demand drivers or we’re not interested.”
Get to the heart of the action. “A lot of university town hotels are on the outskirts of town, off the highway. You want to be right in the heart of it all so guests can just drop off their cars and walk everywhere the rest of the weekend.”
Appeal to locals. “You want the people who live and work in these towns to come to these properties. And there are two reasons: The first is revenue. The more people to a property, the more money gets spent there. The second is that it gives hotel guests a better experience, a more authentic experience because they’re sitting in a bar or coffee shop next to a local.”
Embrace the youthful exuberance. “These hotels are all about the excitement, diversity, and youthfulness that come with being a university town. It keeps us all young!”
