Wyndham Leans on Leisure Travel, Essential Workers for Profit Recovery
Photo Credit: A focus on drive-to and leisure markets consistently delivered strong results for Wyndham through the pandemic. Wyndham Hotels & Resorts
Skift Take
Sticking to the basics like affordable hotels in drive-to destinations floated hotel companies like Wyndham through the pandemic. But there’s still room to improve with higher-end offerings.
There aren’t any concerns about a leisure travel demand drop-off this fall at Wyndham Hotels & Resorts.
Wyndham posted strong third quarter results this week with a $103 million profit. This isn’t surprising given the company’s faster return to profitability during the pandemic than companies like Accor or Hilton. Wyndham’s mix of affordable, drive-to hotel brands like La Quinta and Days Inn are popular with leisure travelers as well as so-called “road warrior” business travelers and essential workers who still needed to travel during even the early months of the pandemic.
Roughly 70 percent of Wyndham’s business comes from leisure travelers, which might make analysts nervous for a company like this heading into fall when students are back in school and adults are generally back in the office. But company leaders maintain their customer profile is the right mix for the future of travel.
“In this work from anywhere world we're living in, and, with the flexible hybrid approach so many companies are taking to retain talent, we are seeing a strong rebound in consumer leisure travel,” Wyndham CEO Geoff Ballotti said on an investor call Thur
