Analyzing Hospitality and Tourism Intersections in Stratford-upon-Avon

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HOSPITALITY PROVISION IN THE TRAVEL AND TOURISM SECTOR

Table of Contents
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................ 3
A. INTRODUCTION......................................................................................................................... 3
B. INTERRELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN HOSPITALITY AND TRAVEL & TOURISM.................................8
C. CASE STUDY OF PREMIER INN STRATFORD..............................................................................10
D. IMPLICATIONS OF INTEGRATION WITHIN HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY.........................................12
E. IMPACTS OF INTEGRATION ON MARRIOT INTERNATIONAL HOTEL.........................................14
F. CONCLUSION............................................................................................................................16
REFERENCES.................................................................................................................................17
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TASK 1
A. INTRODUCTION
Stratford is a market town in the North-west of London. The population of the town is around
28,000. In earlier times it was given permission by King Richard to hold a weekly market and
since then it has continuously increased the scale of trade and commerce and as well as
expansion in the urban areas. Stratford is the birthplace and gravesite of one of the most
renowned poets and dramatist in the world, Shakespeare. Millions of Tourists visit this town
every year to have a glimpse of the rich cultural heritage left by Shakespeare. The Royal
Shakespeare Company is one of the largest theatre companies in the UK employing more than
1,000 people. This report will try to investigate the travel and tourism industry in Stratford and
analyse the feasibility of opening a new hotel branch in the town. To open a new branch in the
area it is important to understand the complete business scenario in the town so that effective
business strategies can be formed to take the business forward in minimum time.
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COMPOSITION OF THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY IN STRATFORD
In Stratford, the hospitality industry is a major source of revenue for the local authorities and a
means of livelihood for the people. Different hospitality businesses functional in the town are
discussed below:
Hotels
The best hotel brands in the UK are present in Stratford. These hotel brands include Holiday
Inn, Hilton Hotel, Travelodge and The White Swan hotel. These hotels provide various facilities
to the consumers such as food, accommodation, events and entertainment. The hotels are
rated form 1star to 7 stars depending on the services provided by them (Smith, 2015). Some
hotels provide basic services of food and lodging while some hotels provide best-in-class food,
leisure and entertainment facilities at premium costing.
Restaurants
These are the places to spend time with their friends and family members and have some good
food. The interior decoration of the restaurants plays an important role in creating a positive
ambience. A variety of food such as Mexican, Chinese, Indian and Italian is served at these
restaurants. Take-away food is also provided at this restaurant which is very useful for the
travellers on the go (Joppe, et al., 2015). These restaurants not only provide food services to
the local population, but a large number of international tourists can also be seen in these
restaurants to experience the British food culture.
Pubs and bars
These establishments have a license to sell alcoholic drinks. These drinks may include beer or
cider. In British culture, pubs and bars are a place for social gathering and in the village area,
these are the focal point for the local community (Timothy and Boyd, 2014). These
establishments also serve wine, soft drinks, snacks and meals. Some non-alcoholic drinks such
as speciality brews, fruit punches and other kinds of mix drinks are also served at these pubs
and nightclubs.
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Event Management
Events such as a big sports tournament, festival, Christmas or Saint Patrick day celebration
involves a large number of local as well as international tourists. The management of these
events needs to be done in a professional manner so that a large gathering of people can be
managed effectively (Watson, 2012). In big sporting events like the cricket world cup, millions
of tourists visit the country from different corners of the world and all these people need
facilities of accommodation, food and transportation on a large scale. During such events, the
demand for hospitality related services is expanded and it is necessary to plan these events well
in advance so that customers can enjoy their time without any hassle.
Catering services
The catering services include food arrangement for office, in-house parties, hotels, hospitals
and weddings. In weddings, the catering services can be hired independently or as a part of the
complete package. Some catering service providers also arrange for light and decoration at the
venue. As the food arrangements are done on a large scale, the cost of per unit food is reduced
to a minimum (Cook et al., 2013). The catering services are an important part of the hospitality
business as in mega events and festivals the food need to manage for a large number of people
and these professional cratering services are very helpful in such times to fulfil the
requirements of the incoming tourists.
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COMPOSITION OF TRAVEL AND TOURISM SECTOR IN STRATFORD
The travel and tourism sector provides specialised services to the tourists. These tourists may
be domestic or international. The tourist services are a major source of revenue for the local
government and different businesses associated with the industry. The primary businesses
associated with this industry are discussed below:
Tour operators and travel agents
Tour operators make guided tours for the traveller. These tours are reserved well in advance to
avoid last minute hassle. The tourists can book these services online. The packages provided by
the tour operators include the tickets for the venue, accommodation, transportation and other
facilities. The prices for all these services are paid in advance (Barrows, 2011). Since the services
are purchased in bulk by the tour operators the effective cost to the customers is effectively
reduced.
Visitor attraction
These attractions may include museums, galleries and theme parks around Stratford, Public
areas including community centres, parks and playgrounds. Natural places like lakes, sea
beaches and forests. These visitor attractions are a major draw for outbound as well as inbound
tourists. The traveller can experience the local traditions and culture by visiting these places
(Holloway and Humphreys, 2016).
Sporting activities
Some tourists also wish to take part in adventurous activities such as white water rafting,
bungee jumping and tracking. The tourists need expert guidance while undergoing these
activities. The safety of the passenger is a major issue in these sporting activities. These sporting
activities can be arranged on a private basis or the tour operator can also arrange for such
services in the tour package.
Travel and transportation services
When tourists visit their area of the tour, they need some transportation medium. The tourist
need to be transported to the airport and seaport form the hotel and therefore reservation for
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these services are done well-in-advance (Kusluvan et al., 2010). The transport services can be
hired independently or the hotel where the traveller is staying may also arrange these facilities.
Online booking of cabs has facilitated to book the transportation services as per the
convenience of the customer. Big tour operators like TUI and Thomas cook have their own
airline services to provide f with the customer.
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B. INTERRELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN HOSPITALITY AND TRAVEL &
TOURISM
Figure 2: Mapping of tourism and hospitality industries
[Source: UK Hospitality, 2019]
The hospitality and travel industry are closely interrelated But there are subtle differences
between these two which need to be understood before starting a new hotel business. The
travel and tourism industry primarily serves travellers who have travelled away from their
home country and are visiting the UK to visit some popular tourist attraction or to attend a
business meeting (Mok et al., 2013). On the other hand, the hospitality industry is dedicated to
providing food, accommodation and leisure activities to the customers and hence it may
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include customers who are a tourist as well as customers who are not a tourist and are local
who wish to enjoy their free time.
Business travel is an important part of the travel and tourism industry. Business people from
different countries travel to the UK and take part in the conference, seminars and business
meetings. Along with these meetings, these travellers also visit nearby tourist attractions. The
arrangement for the transportation and sightseeing are arranged by the travel industry
business and the arrangements of accommodation and food for these business travellers is
done by the hospitality industry and therefore it can be said that the two industries work in
coordination to provide better facilities to these incoming travellers at Stratford.
When a tour operator books a holiday package, the services provided include transportation,
accommodation leisure, aviation and food services. Although tour operating services and the
holiday booking is a part of tourism facilities the services offered in these tour packages are
arranged by the hospitality industry businesses (Cooper, 2012). The hospitality industry
arranges for the comfortable stay of the incoming tourists by the means of hotels. In addition,
quality food is served to the travellers so that they can enjoy their stay.
A variety of recreational activities such as dance and music are also arranged at visitor
attractions. These recreational activities are a part of the hospitality industry. These visitor
attractions also serve snacks and food to visitors. Many restaurants are also located nearby
which comes under the purview of the hospitality industry and therefore it can be said that the
interrelations between these two industries are very strong and sometimes the function of
these two industries overlap.
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C. CASE STUDY OF PREMIER INN STRATFORD
Premier Inn is the largest hotel chain in the UK and uses the most advanced technologies to
serve the customers. Different facilities provided by the hotels are designed according to the
needs of international tourists as well as domestic customers (Bharwani and Butt, 2012). This
case study will try to understand how hospitality service providers in Premier Inn interrelated
with the travel and tourism business. Premier Inn is basically a hospitality sector organisation
but in Stratford, the business of the hotel is highly dependent on the travel and tourism
industry.
Visitor attractions in the UK are one of the major draws for incoming tourists. A large number of
customers of Premier Inn in Stratford consists of tourists who wish to experience the legacy of
Shakespeare and visit other tourist attractions in the town, the business of the hotel is highly
dependent of these tourists visiting the town. The visitors also include business people who are
in the town to attend meetings and seminars.
Inbound tour operators also create a strong business opportunity for Premier Inn. These tour
operators sell holidays with the help of their online channels and retail outlets (Sigala et al.,
2012). The package contains the services of Premier-inn where travellers can relax and refresh
during their tour. This interrelationship between the two is the major business opportunity for
the hotels. The customers are also benefited by this proposition as they get complete services
in the package and the overall price of the package is effectively reduced.
Passenger transport services also need to be arranged for the customers of the Premier Inn and
the cabs drivers, cruise ships, flight services etc. play an important role in commuting the
travellers from one place to another. Pick up and drop facilities from the airport is also provided
by cabs which make it convenient for the customers to check-in and check-out at the right time.
In addition, the cruise service to visit nearby tourist attraction adds up to the experience of the
customers when they visit Stratford (Economics, 2015). Therefore, it can be said that the
business of Premier Inn in Stratford is closely interrelated with the services provided by the
travel and tourism industry and the customer services can be improved by the better
coordination of these two.
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D. IMPLICATIONS OF INTEGRATION WITHIN HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY
Integration is the process of taking control of one business over another business. The primary
goal of the integration process is to consolidate the position of the company among
competitors and increase the revenue base. This report will discuss the impact of the
integration process with the help of a case study (Lopes, 2016). This case study will analyse the
integration process when Marriot international hotel acquired the complete business of
Starwood hotel for £8bn in the year 2015. Mainly there are two types of integration in the
hospitality industry which are horizontal and vertical integration and are explained below:
Horizontal Integration
In horizontal integration, one business acquires other smaller businesses in the same field. The
purpose of this integration process is to reduce competition and develop new business
opportunities. In the Hospitality industry, this kind of integration can be seen very commonly.
The acquisition of the businesses is done which have almost similar value chain. For example, A
fast-food chain merging with a Mexican food company to expand its product offering is an
example of horizontal integration (Ransley and Ingram, 2012). In the UK, Hilton hotel has
expanded its rec in the market by acquiring a chain of small hotels such as Stakis. The horizontal
expansion process also helps n strengthening the brand image of the company.
Vertical Integration
The vertical integration involves acquiring the subunits of the business so that better control
can be gained over the operations. By the help of vertical integration, the supply chain
operations of the company can be managed better (Burghardt and Helm, 2015). Vertical
integration can be of two types, forward and vertical. In forward integration, the company
acquires its retail service partners. For example, a pub and bar establishment gains control over
the brewery unit is forward nitration. When a company acquires its raw material supplying
units it is called backward integration. The same pub and bar establishments acquiring the fruits
and other raw material supplying unit is an example of backward integration.
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IMPLICATION OF INCREASED INTEGRATION IN THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY
In recent years, very large integration has happened in the hospitality industry in the UK. These
integrations help the big hotel groups like Hilton and Marriot international hotels expand their
reach and improve the profit-making capabilities of the existing units. With the help of
integration, the companies become able to gain better control over the markets and over the
time the company becomes able to reduce the prices of the services offered. The integration
also provides talented employees to the company, the additional skills of these employees may
help in improving the quality of services (Morresi and Pezzi, 2014). The process of integration is
also an effective strategy to enter a foreign market. When a hotel business enters a foreign
market, an already established business unit can help the company establish its brand.
With increased integration process, the big hotels like Marriott International, Hilton hotel and
Premier In are getting bigger. When the scale of the hotel groups is increased, the impact can
be seen on the prices of services. The company is able to lower the prices for the services and
the direct benefit is experienced by the end consumers. Buying an existing property is always
cheaper than building a new one (Hassan, 2013). The synergy obtained by combining two
businesses can work wonders and can provide substantial financial gains. By understanding the
advantages and disadvantage of a particular strategy, the company can anticipate the
upcoming complexities and make the business planning more organised.
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