Hundreds of AAHOA Members and leaders from across the country flew into Washington, D.C., for AAHOA’s Spring National Advocacy Conference (SNAC) last week to discuss critical issues impacting America’s hotel owners.
 
As the premier voice of hotel owners, AAHOA seeks to partner with elected officials in Washington to identify viable solutions to the biggest challenges facing the industry. SNAC provided the opportunity for America’s hoteliers to meet with and cultivate relationships with more than 200 elected officials.
 
AAHOA Members focused on obtaining greater access to capital and addressing the severe labor shortages plaguing the industry. AAHOA leaders helped expand lawmakers’ knowledge around the importance of hotels to their communities and the economy at large. When AAHOA Members receive assistance, their local business communities see an uptick in employment rates, profitability, state and local tax contributions, and business sustainability.
 
“It was an honor to attend my final advocacy conference as Chairman of AAHOA. We brought nearly 200 AAHOA leaders to Washington, D.C., to advocate on behalf of our industry and on behalf of AAHOA’s 20,000 members,” said AAHOA Chairman Neal Patel. “Creating relationships with our elected officials is a top priority for AAHOA, and we will continue to work on your behalf, strengthening relationships so we can continue to represent the entire hospitality industry with your best interests at heart.”

Read the full press release about the event here. 

AAHOA Members: We have some exciting news! Yogi, mystic, and internationally renowned speaker and author Sadhguru will be a keynote speaker at AAHOACON23. 
 
A New York Times bestselling author, Sadhguru is acclaimed as a speaker and opinion-maker of international renown. He is the only living Indian to have received three Presidential Awards from three different Presidents, among which is India’s highest annual civilian award, the Padma Vibhushan. Three decades ago, Sadhguru founded Isha Foundation, a non-profit human-service organization, with human wellbeing as its core commitment. The Foundation offers powerful yoga programs for human transformation and wellbeing, and has initiated path-breaking outreach projects to uplift rural communities by providing free medical care and high quality education.
 
View the AAHOACON23 schedule here and make sure you register today if you haven't yet - you don't want to miss this special opportunity to hear from Sadghuru.

On Friday, March 10, AAHOA Past Chair Vinay Patel (2021-2022) joined NPR’s Ari Shapiro and Scott Horsley to discuss the Labor Department’s February jobs report. 

“The U.S. job market is still hot, but not quite as scalding as it was a month ago. Employers added 311,000 jobs in February, according to the latest numbers from the Labor Department,” Shapiro said. “That's a big number, but well below the half-million jobs added the month before. The Federal Reserve is keeping a close eye on the job market as officials weigh how aggressively they need to be fighting inflation.”

“Most of the new jobs are in the services sector, especially the kind of thing you do face-to-face with other people, whether that's going out to eat or getting on an airplane,” Horsley said. “Bars and restaurants added 70,000 jobs last month. Hotels added another 14,000. Vinay Patel owns a dozen hotels. He's starting to see more of his rooms filling up even in the middle of the week.”

“I think people are slowly getting back in the groove of things. I think the leisure component had already been back,” Patel shared. “And then now we're slowly seeing this year some of that corporate travel come back as well. And so obviously that requires us to hire more people with the housekeeping, front desk, pretty much all across the board.”

You can read or listen to the conversation here.

Exciting news! The education session schedule for AAHOACON23 is now available. Attendees will have a front-row seat to world-class content that will empower them to be savvy, solution-driven, knowledgeable hotel owners.

There will be more than 20 individual education sessions, three General Sessions, two HerOwnership-centric sessions, one in collaboration with Wyndham’s Women Own the Room, two Young Professionals sessions, and four masterclasses. Some of the most influential voices in the industry will discuss key topics, including labor shortages, profitability, optimizing online presence, fair franchising, and more.

One of the guest speakers we are excited to welcome in Los Angeles is Cindy Estis Green, Kalibri Labs CEO and Co-Founder, who will help attendees improve profit contribution through commercial strategy during the Demystifying the Digital Marketplace masterclass on Friday, April 14.

Check out the education session schedule and start planning your convention agenda today.

Lifetime Members, we have some great news!
 
The deadline to qualify for reimbursement of your AAHOACON23 registration fee has been extended to Saturday, March 25.
 
At your earliest convenience, please ensure you register before the deadline so you don't miss out on this incredible membership benefit and a chance to experience the biggest trade show in AAHOACON history at AAHOACON23!

Take a look here at the education sessions being offered at this year's convention - including four brand new AAHOA Masterclasses. Don't delay; register today! 

March is here, and with it comes a new webinar for AAHOA Members. In the Point 10 webinar, AAHOA President & CEO Laura Lee Blake sat down with AAHOA Past Chair ChandraKant (CK) Patel (2010-2011) to discuss fair and honest selling practices among franchisor salespersons and agents. Check out part of the conversation below:
“When you were starting your business, and over the years that you owned your various hotels, did you negotiate with the Franchisors on any of the terms?” asked President Blake. 
 
“Always, because when you purchase a property, you negotiate with the sellers, so negotiation has to be there. You just don't sign something which is provided to you. You always go to the attorney to seek their advice,” CK Patel said. “You know how to run the hotel. You are not the attorney. There are so many language discrepancies in the franchise agreement. I would suggest having your attorney read your agreement.”
 
“That's very good advice. Now, when you were first talking to the attorneys that you were retaining or even when you're first talking to the salespersons, did you use the 12 Points of Fair Franchising as a guide for some of the terms you were looking for?” asked President Blake.
 
“The 12 Points were created many years ago. Since then, we've been educating our membership about the 12 points. And to tell you the truth, it is not 12 Points anymore. If you look at the current agreement, it might be 30 or 40 points that you need to negotiate,” CK Patel said. “The 12 Points are a great way to start. Each point has a lot of value. This will give you the footsteps into negotiating the franchise agreement.”

Watch the Point 10 webinar today!

Reminder: Download the AAHOA 12 Points Educational Primer for extensive details on the 12 Points of Fair Franchising. We also invite you to review Points 1-9 on the 12 Points Webinar Series Landing Page. Let’s continue to promote fairness in the franchise industry in 2023.

Last week, AAHOA hosted its Spring National Advocacy Conference, bringing together lawmakers and 200+ AAHOA Members strongly advocating for the hospitality industry. AAHOA rounded out the advocacy event with a HerOwnership panel discussion that featured Sonali Desai, Executive Director of the House Democratic Caucus, along with Women Hotelier Directors Lina Patel and Tejal Patel. This panel was held in celebration of International Women’s Day and focused on championing diversity and representation in government.

Desai opened the panel conversation by sharing her experience breaking barriers on Capitol Hill. 

“When I first came to Capitol Hill, I did not see many Indian faces at all. And that was on the member level and on the staff level. I kept having to explain myself and felt very much like an outlier,” Desai shared. “But as time went on, I learned about different groups in Congress that support staff. I got involved with the Congressional Asian Pacific American Staff Association and the South Asian Staff Association.”

In 2011, Desai kicked off her career in government as a legislative assistant for U.S. Representative Melvin Watt (NC-12), where she worked on legislative issues including energy, environment, small business, trade, tax, welfare/hunger, animal rights, and census. Then, in 2014, Desai moved to U.S. Representative Judy Chu’s (CA-27) office, where she was the legislative director from 2016 to 2019. 

During the panel discussion, Desai explained the importance of having Asian-American representation on Capitol Hill and how to expand opportunities for minorities in D.C.

“Having voices that understand our community and keep an eye out for issues that are important to us is critical. It's not just about getting the members elected, but it's also keeping them elected, so they can then rise the ranks,” Desai said. “On the staff level, it's really important, too. There are a lot of different perspectives, whether it's the communications angle, like how are we messaging and talking about certain policies and are there certain things that we're not being sensitive to? For example, this week, we were writing a statement about Holi, and we were making a graphic about Holi. We talked about what should this look like and talked to folks on the team that are having these experiences.”

While her career path eventually led her to become the executive director at the House Democratic Caucus in January 2023, Desai is no stranger to the hospitality industry. She spent her childhood attending AAHOA events and growing up in her family’s hotel business. 

“My dad had odd jobs when he first moved to the U.S., but then he ended up going into hotel ownership. Eventually, my dad had a few different hotels that he owned and managed along with my uncle, who was also involved in the industry. From there, they had a ton of family and friends who were also supporting their hotel owner goals. It was a big part of the community that we had during my time growing up, and I'll never forget it.”

Check out how you can continue to celebrate women this month: 

• Read about the women of AAHOA in the March issue of Today’s Hotelier
• Watch AAHOA’s Women’s History of Month Video
• Learn about AAHOA’s HerOwnership Initiative

You have worked hard to create and build your hotel and now want to sell the property. There are many stories of success, when the seller was able to find a buyer willing to pay a premium. These stories are often true, but typically don't happen without proper planning. Join us for a discussion of tips to value your hotel, market and promote the sale, and to get from preliminary agreement to closing.

Presenters: Steven Shapiro, Director, Hospitality & Tourism Law Program, American University, Washington College of Law and Matt Bailly, Senior Director, Berkadia

Access the webinar

During the month of February, reports show that nearly 250 AAHOA Members completed the BEST Inhospitable to Human Trafficking, sponsored by AAHOA.

These are excellent numbers, and we highly encourage all AAHOA Members and their employees to complete this invalubale training.

AAHOA offers BEST Inhospitable to Human Trafficking Training, Sponsored by AAHOA, completely digital and free for all AAHOA Members and their employees. Trafficking not only destroys lives, it also can destroy livelihoods. Don’t wait. Get trained today to save lives and protect your business.

AAHOA Members, get 5 percent off all your everyday purchases when you use the Lowe’s LAR business credit card. There’s no annual fee, and you can make purchases by phone, fax, or at LowesForPros.com. You’ll also be able to take advantage of exclusive cardholder promotions and receive discounted delivery on your purchases! Click here for more details, then contact Anthony Ruiz (Anthony.ruiz@lowes.com) to get started.

All Insurance Underwriters (AIU) is a National Managing General Agency giving AAHOA Members the option to retain current Insurance Agents. We also offer all Commercial General Lines of insurance, together packaged with Worker’s compensation (where applicable) extra savings can be found. Check out the website for more information on AAHOA Member benefits, and fill out a form to contact one of our dedicated team members.

Guest Supply, a Sysco Company, is the leading provider of operating supplies and equipment to the lodging industry. With product development and design, manufacturing, and a direct to property sales force, Guest Supply is the only vertically integrated company in the industry. From 16 company-owned-and-operated Sales and Distribution Centers, Guest Supply services more than 26,000 hotels in the U.S. with a comprehensive product line that meets the needs of hotels at all market levels. For more info, contact Justin Haggart (jhaggart@guestsupply.com) or visit the website.