Innovation

🏠 Mountassir Bouhadba, founder and president of a high-end fitness club chain, launched Gigafit Hotels, a luxury health-focused resort brand, in 2014. Gigafit boasts a network of 100 fitness clubs, including international locations like Dubai. The first Gigafit Hotel is under construction in Le Marin, Martinique, with an anticipated opening in 2026. The 5-star hotel will combine premium sports club activities, dietary-focused dining, children's activities, a spa, and about 20 luxury rooms and suites.

💸 Speakspots introduced Smart Budget, an AI-powered travel budget planning tool, aiming to help travelers manage expenses by comparing their budget with real-time market trends. Users receive personalized recommendations to book at the best dates and prices. Smart Budget analyzes flight, accommodation, and activity data to suggest strategic adjustments for savings, utilizing data from Skyscanner, Booking.com, Viator, GetYourGuide, and Civitatis, offering time savings and financial optimization for travel planning.

📢 Amadeus has renewed its strategic partnership with Microsoft, initially formed in 2021, to innovate in the travel sector using Cloud & AI technologies. The collaboration has led Amadeus to migrate over 50% of its applications to the public Cloud. The partnership aims to accelerate the development of new travel products and enhance operational efficiency and customer experiences leveraging AI solutions offered by Microsoft.

🚀 Vertical Aerospace secured a $90 million funding round, exceeding the initial target of $75 million due to high investor demand. Over $60 million came from new investors while Mudrick Capital contributed $25 million. The funds will be used for R&D, testing, and certification capabilities enhancement, with operational expense increases projected for the second half of 2025. The company, aiming for VX4 eVTOL certification by 2028, appointed aerospace veteran Dómhnal Slattery as board chairman.

🏠 Flexliving achieved profitability with just 620 rooms in three years, outpacing the sector average by four times, positioning for the "flexible living" market expected to double by 2027. The Proptech startup was co-founded by BNP Paribas colleagues, offering a turnkey housing solution for mobile talents facing post-Covid housing challenges. They've developed internal tools and software for efficient management, exemplified by Flexliving Business, a platform providing a seamless user experience for employees and HR departments. Their success includes a €1.5 million funding round in 2022.

📈 On February 6, the Fevad presented a study by Next Content on B2B e-commerce and digital services, revealing 79% buyer satisfaction with the ease and speed of online ordering. Buyers also seek greater autonomy through online services for professional purchasing, including order tracking and product searches.

📌 SOMHOTEL, located at ZA du haut méral, 53150 Montsurs, France, can be contacted via phone at +33 (0)6 82 70 41 18. For modification of details such as website, logo, and descriptions, SOMHOTEL can subscribe to an annual directory subscription by clicking a provided link or contact the relevant service. Reproduction of page content for private use requires crediting "TendanceHotellerie" with a link to the source or a QR Code. The directory includes various industry-related companies offering tools and services to optimize hotel performance and enhance guest experiences.

🚀 Lufthansa Innovation Hub integrates AI travel assistant Swifty into the Line messaging app for Japanese customers in 2023, offering flight bookings for Lufthansa Group airlines. Swifty, accelerated by Lufthansa's startup program, handles business travel tasks—planning, booking, payment, and billing via chat interface. It's based on GPT-4 and marks the first development phase of an autonomous AI assistant. Customers can book Austrian Airlines, Lufthansa, and Swiss International Air Lines flights through Swifty using chat or voice messages.

🚨 Google My Business (GMB) profiles serve as digital storefronts on Google, essential for directing customers to physical locations. Updating GMB profiles to reflect temporary closures or changed hours prevents consumer disappointment. The "Temporarily Closed" feature on GMB displays a red banner stating such a status and is also visible on Google Maps. Properly managing exceptional opening hours and temporary closures can impact local SEO; however, it ensures accurate information and avoids negative customer experiences. Guest Suite offers management and optimization solutions for GMB profiles, serving over 10,000 establishments.

🏨 ALL, Accor's loyalty program, and Emirates Skywards, from Emirates and flydubai, have enhanced their partnership, allowing members to convert Miles Skywards into Reward points and vice versa. Accor boasts over 5,600 hotels with 45+ brands and 5,000+ Limitless Experiences. Members can exchange 4,000 Miles Skywards for 1,000 Reward points for bookings and unique experiences at ALL.com. The two-way conversion optimizes rewards for incomparable travel and everyday experiences.