Property Portfolio Analysis of Upper and Lower Scale Accor Brands

This article provides a detailed analysis of the facilities, services, room rates, revenue streams, housekeeping functions, food and beverage outlets, and other services provided by Accor's upper and lower scale brands - Novotel and Mercure. It also discusses the differences between the two brands and their target audience. The article is relevant for students studying hospitality management or anyone interested in the hotel industry.

Assignment
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Table of Contents
Property Portfolio Analysis of Upper Scale Accor Brand (Novotel)..............................................4
Facilities Provided.......................................................................................................................4
Services Available.......................................................................................................................4
Room Rates..................................................................................................................................5
Revenue Streams.........................................................................................................................5
Housekeeping Functions..............................................................................................................5
Food and Beverage Outlets..........................................................................................................6
Other Services..............................................................................................................................6
Property Portfolio Analysis of Lower Scale Accor Brand (Mercure).............................................6
Facilities Provided.......................................................................................................................7
Services Available.......................................................................................................................7
Room Rates..................................................................................................................................7
Revenue Streams.........................................................................................................................8
Housekeeping Functions..............................................................................................................8
Food and Beverage Outlets..........................................................................................................8
Other Services..............................................................................................................................9
References:....................................................................................................................................10
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Property Portfolio Analysis of Upper Scale Accor Brand (Novotel)
Novotel is one of the most popular upper scale hotel brands managed by the Accor Group of
hotels. Having first been established in France in 1967 (Resource, 2018), it went on to be one of
the most internationally popular luxury hotel brands in the world. Presently, Novotel has more
than 400 hotels in 60 countries all around the world.
Facilities Provided
Novotel provides a wide array of facilities to its customers apart from providing rooms for
staying. The rooms contain Wi-Fi connection, large screen television and also provide access to
music. Novotel also provides a special kind of bedding material to ensure maximum comfort for
the guests (novotel.accorhotels.com, 2018). However, there are certain incremental facilities that
one can avail for paying higher prices which might include better and larger rooms or more
amenities.
Services Available
A whole lot of services are available for the consumers at Novotel. Apart from the food which
the resident can opt through room service or can choose from a number of dishes offered in the
gourmet bar. The kitchens of Novotel boast of authentic food made of the highest quality
materials. Apart from the food there are also recreational facilities offered. It has an elaborate
setup of fitness equipments which can provide opportunities for guests to relax
(Accorhotels.group, 2018).
There are provisions for recreational activities of the children of the guests as well.
Room Rates
Room rents usually depend upon a lot of factors including the location and the time when the
room is reserved. However, the prices of rooms are set according to various facilities that are
provided. Accordingly, there are standard rooms, executive rooms, superior rooms and suites. A
standard room in Paris or London or any major European city might cost anywhere in between
$300 and $400.
Revenue Streams
There are multiple avenues from which Novotel can earn revenue. Apart from the rooms which
are the basic sources of revenue, there are various other services that the hotel provides its
consumers and thus, earns profits. There is an elaborate gourmet bar which provides food and
beverages to the guests according to their preferences. There are also recreational facilities aimed
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at helping the guests relax like spa. Meetings and conferences can also be held through corporate
bookings (Demirçiftçi and Kızılırmak, 2016).
Housekeeping Functions
The prices charged by Novotel calls for an efficient housekeeping service. Housekeeping in
Novotel is aimed at providing clean and comfortable rooms for the customers. There is twenty-
four-hour housekeeping assistance to the guests and services are provided promptly should there
be any need (Sen and Kaushik, 2016). Rooms are maintained regularly and the linen and bedding
changed every day.
Food and Beverage Outlets
The food and beverage outlets in Novotel aim at providing the best quality food to the customers.
Every effort is directed towards maintaining the taste and quality which shall be worth the price.
The guests can have any kind of food to their liking and there are provisions for preparing
authentic food (Li, Fang and Huan, 2017).
The beverage outlets provide both alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. Being an upper scale hotel
brand, the kinds of alcoholic drinks available are usually the highly priced ones of different kinds
and brands which allow the guests to have plenty of items to choose from. It must be
remembered that the maximization of the choices offered to the customers shall increase the
chances of extracting revenue (Wood, 2018).
Other Services
Other services by Novotel include transportation facilities for the departing and arriving guests.
Tourism services are also provided based on the location of the hotels. There is also a store both
online and offline that sells bedding equipments to the customers. The items that are sold
correspond to the ones that the rooms are furnished with. Therefore, once the customers
experience the comfort of the rooms they might wish to experience the same in their own homes.
Property Portfolio Analysis of Lower Scale Accor Brand (Mercure)
Mercure is a chain of 3 to 4 stars hotels managed by its parent concern Accor Group. It is also a
famous chain and has nearly 800 branches in over 60 countries. Although founded in 1967 the
first hotel under the name of Mercure was opened in 1973.
Facilities Provided
Mercure group of hotels too has a number of facilities but they are not as varied and diverse as
that of Novotel. Standard facilities like the WiFi and the television are of course provided by
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going by the budget constraints elaborate facilities like gyms, swimming pools and other
recreational activities might not be always available. The rooms are definitely smaller in size and
are not as decorative as the ones in Novotel. However, there is gradation of the rooms like the
deluxe, super deluxe, executive et cetera.
Services Available
A number of services are made available to customers of Mercure. There are kitchens and bars
however; the variety of food available would be much restricted. Moreover, there is no provision
for authentic cuisines which is evident from the fact that Mercure does not employ highly
specialized and experienced chefs. Spa services are not available inside the hotel and guests do
not have the scope to exercise due to the unavailability of fitness equipments.
Room Rates
Room rates in Mercure are obviously much lower in Mercure than that of Novotel. The prices
are low on account of the generic furnishings used in the rooms are also not much attention is
paid to the aesthetics. Moreover, the room hotel might not always be located in the most prime of
locations. All these factors contribute to the relatively lower prices of rooms (Radojevic et al.
2018). In first world cities like New York or Paris a deluxe room might cost from $100 to $150
whereas in third world cities like Sao Paolo or New Delhi prices are much lower and can vary
from $50 to $80 (Mercure.accorhotels.com, 2018).
Revenue Streams
There is no dedicated store from where to buy other items as in Novotel. As can be inferred quite
naturally, there are much fewer revenue streams other than the rooms themselves from which the
hotel group can earn profits. Transportation facilities are available but there are no opportunities
for guests to seek assistance in case of tourism.
Housekeeping Functions
Although Mercure has a quite modern and updated housekeeping system it is nowhere close to
that of Novotel in terms of efficiency. There are a lot less staff members assigned to each floor
and thus, the service cannot be as prompt as that of the former. However, basic functions of
cleanliness and room service are obviously very competitive and satisfactory indeed as
cleanliness and presentability are very compelling attributes in the hotel management business
(Luo and Qu, 2016).
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Food and Beverage Outlets
Before talking about this point one must keep in mind that in order to maximise the revenue that
the hotel can earn the food and beverages should be kept according to the purchasing power of
the customers (Davis et al. 2018). Food is of good quality but not authentic and beverages
include both alcoholic and non-alcoholic ones. However, the price range of the drinks and the
choices offered to the guests are far lower than that of Novotel. The bar of Mercure abounds in
cheap and budget liquors that can be easily afforded by the customers going by their level of
income. Exotic drinks and cocktails might not be available in the bars.
Other Services
Mercure hardly provides any other services other than ones mentioned above. Its target audience
is quite different in comparison to that of Novotel and therefore its services are designed in
accordance with the affordability of the consumers. Inclusion of additional services would only
increase the overhead costs of budget hotels (Sigala, 2016).
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References:
Accorhotels.group. (2018). AccorHotels Overview. [online] Available at:
https://www.accorhotels.group/en/group/who-we-are/accorhotels-in-brief [Accessed 30 Aug.
2018].
Davis, B., Lockwood, A., Alcott, P. and Pantelidis, I.S., 2018. Food and beverage management.
Routledge.
Demirçiftçi, T. and Kızılırmak, I., 2016. Strategic branding in hospitality: Case of Accor Hotels.
Journal of Tourismology, 2(1), pp.50-64.
Li, Y., Fang, S. and Huan, T.C.T., 2017. Consumer response to discontinuation of corporate
social responsibility activities of hotels. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 64,
pp.41-50.
Luo, Z. and Qu, H., 2016. Guest-defined hotel service quality and its impacts on guest loyalty.
Journal of Quality Assurance in Hospitality & Tourism, 17(3), pp.311-332.
Mercure.accorhotels.com. (2018). Our Best Hotel Offers - Mercure.accorhotels.com Asia.
[online] Available at: https://mercure.accorhotels.com/gb/asia/promotions-offers/index.shtml
[Accessed 30 Aug. 2018].
novotel.accorhotels.com. (2018). Novotel experience. [online] Available at:
https://novotel.accorhotels.com/gb/discovering-novotel-hotel/novotel-experience.shtml
[Accessed 30 Aug. 2018].
Radojevic, T., Stanisic, N., Stanic, N. and Davidson, R., 2018. The effects of traveling for
business on customer satisfaction with hotel services. Tourism Management, 67, pp.326-341.
Resource, H. (2018). The Brands and Hotel Rooms of AccorHotels, by the Numbers -
USATODAY. [online] Hotelnewsresource.com. Available at:
https://www.hotelnewsresource.com/article101257.html [Accessed 30 Aug. 2018].
Sen, K. and Kaushik, T., 2016. Recent innovative measures across different functions in the
Indian hospitality industry: A case study from Accor Hotels. Worldwide Hospitality and Tourism
Themes, 8(4), pp.481-489.
Sigala, M., 2016. Introduction to Part 1. In Social Media in Travel, Tourism and Hospitality (pp.
29-32). Routledge.
Wood, R.C., 2018. Strategic questions in food and beverage management. Routledge.
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