Skift Take
Even though every day with the new Trump administration seems unpredictable, early signs have convinced many in the hotel industry that this might just be the year that corporate travel rebounds from its 2016 slump. However, given the new executive order banning travel from seven Muslim-majority countries, some executives throughout the travel industry may be rethinking their outlook on corporate travel.
To say 2016 was a bit of a bumpy ride for hotels' corporate travel business, specifically transient, would be an understatement.
The uncertainty of a U.S. Presidential election, coupled with mega mergers, Brexit, Zika, and numerous geopolitical events left many corporations, especially those in the U.S., with tightened corporate travel budgets in 2016. And comments from hotel and travel industry executives in 2016 demonstrated that.
Just before the U.S. election results arrived, executives' responses were muted, and cautious.
Arne Sorenson, Marriott president and CEO, said, "Corporate customers are clearly cautious … For transient business, we expect current weak corporate demand to persist, although comparisons should get easier."
Hyatt president and CEO, Mark Hoplamazian, said, "… We've got clear data that says that short-term corporate bookings are weak or weakening."
Fast forward to January 2017, however, and many of Sorenson and Hoplamazian's peers seem to have a much rosier outlook than before. And there's a chance, they say, that this could be the year corporate travel bounces back.
The reasons for their optimism have to do with the fact that the stock market is at an all-time record high and the new U.S. President, a fellow hotelier, is more committed to lessening regulations on corporations, slashing their tax rates, and building up a more robust transportation infrastructure.
At the annual Americas Lodging Investment Summit conference in January, Skift spoke to a number of hotel executives and industry analysts for their thoughts on corporate travel in 2017. [Editor's Note: These executives' comments were given prior to Trump's executive order restricting travel, which was issued on January 27.] Here's what they had to say:
Christopher Nassetta, President and CEO, Hilton: Positivity Prevails
"As we come into this year, my reason for optimism is not, and I think I said this, not trying to be a Pollyanna, I do think that sentiment, particularly in the U.S., in corporate America is more positive. That can certainly move from here up or down, depending on things that happen. But from my point of view, I think it's hard to debate that, post-election, the psychology has changed in a more positive way."
"Certainly, decisions could be made that reverse the momentum. But at the moment it feels as if there's a bit of positive momentum. The psychology has improved. That psychology, I think, will ultimately drive more capital sp
