Paper Example Undergraduate 11,230 words

Luxury Hotels Embracing Executive Lounges

Last reviewed: August 26, 2015 ~57 min read

¶ … executive lounges of luxury hotel in London

Promotion of Executive Lounge

Overview of the UK hotel industry

Executive lounge market research and trends

Advantages and disadvantages from the hotel perspective

Tourism data

SERVQUAL theory

Methodology and previous research

Research strategy and tools

Sample selection

Reliability and validity

Executive lounges are sections set aside by hotels to cater for guest or customers who are would not mind paying more in order to receive a premium or preferential services (Nguyen, 2015). Just as in the airline industry, the hotel industry has recognized the need to have special services for clients who have huge demands, especially business travelers. The major benefits of executive lounges are the services or amenities offered. Most executive lounges allow guest to have an early check-in and late checkout, business center, allowing guest to take a shower before their rooms are available, private meeting areas, and free meals. The number of executive lounges has been increasing, and it is projected that almost all luxury hotels will have these lounges in the next three to five years. Executive lounges are mostly found in luxury hotels, and their main target is the business traveler, who spends most of his/her time away from family. In order to maintain room occupancy, luxury hotels have been forced to renovate the club lounges. Club lounges have been around for decades and they were mainly used by a select few, but now the hotels have realized there is a growing need for premium services and the hotels can leverage on this especially considering that the economic slowdown. A hotel that intends to capture and retain existing clients has to look for innovative ways of reinforcing their brand, creating the ambiance within the hotel, and offering comfort and convenience (Wernick and Von Glinow, 2012). Initially, executive lounges were a preserve for the weary business traveler, but they have caught on with leisure and family travelers. Normal hotel lounges are crowded and stuffy, but the executive lounges offer a serene environment where one can relax and enjoy luxury services. Executive lounges are not accessible to all hotel guest, but rather to only a select few who are willing to spend an extra thirty to forty percent in order to enjoy the services (Sutthijakra, 2011). Many hotels will offer the lounges to a guest who book certain rooms within the hotel.

In addition, executive lounges also discourage guests from leaving the lounge area by the amenities. By doing so hotels can be assured that most of their guests would also request for other additional services since they prefer to stay within the lounges and not visit other location in London. Consequently, this would result in additional profits since the visitor would not receive all their services free. Executive lounges enhance the probability of attracting business traveller. As most business traveller prefer staying in hotels, where they can hold meetings and meet with clients in a quiet location. The executive lounge provide this business traveller the amenities and space to do so. Thereby, business travellers are more incline to stay in a hotel that has an executive lounge.

Promotion of Executive Lounge

The travel trade is an important channel for the promotion of UK tourism, and in a number of markets it is the key to increasing visits. For example, up to 75% of travel bookings in China are over 70% in Australia. More strategic engagement with the leading operators and travel agent groups and associations in key trade markets could ensure the greater prominence of Britain product in brochures, and increase the range of product on offer to potential visitors. In addition, it is important to increase the range of Britain product, which is packaged together, and put on offer in overseas markets, particularly from beyond London.

Work with the travel trade in key markets in order to get Britain on the shelf, in brochures and sold by the travel trade. Package and promote more areas of the UK to the trade and hence to increase the number of overseas visitors, which would help to increase the number of visitors to the executive lounges. VisitBritain to deliver a product and distribution strategy, which will allow Britain to work with the travel trade both in the UK and overseas to exploit fully the tactical advertising campaigns. Support the promotion of business visits and events in the UK in order to have more business travelers and corporations holding conferences in London. The travel trade is key to increasing visits from a number of markets. For example, up to 75% of travel bookings in China are still made via the trade.

Overview of the UK hotel industry

We have analysed that hotels are set to enjoy a strong performance in the coming years due to an upward momentum of the tourism industry in the UK. Our report has shown a number of positive trends of the hotel industry in UK especially London. We believe that it is important to capitalise on the current opportunities within the hotel and tourism industry given over the current prospects and statistics.

The indication has shown an increasing international and domestic tourism in UK. It is estimated that the number of overseas visitors to the UK will rise by 600,000 this year to 32.6 million, the highest since 2008 (Visit Britain, 2013). The value of inbound tourism is forecast to grow from over £21bn in 2013 to £57bn by 2025, with the UK seeing an international tourism balance of payments surplus in 2023, almost forty years since the UK last reported a surplus. In 2013, the UK ranked eighth in the UNWTO international tourist arrivals league, a position held for a number of years, behind France, USA, Spain, China, Italy, Turkey and Germany. The UK accounted for 2.8% of global arrivals in 2013. The UK accounted for 3.4% of international tourism receipts in 2013. In 2014 France, Germany and the U.S.A. were the top three markets in terms of number of visits to the UK accounting for nearly one-in-three visits. The top three markets measured in terms of visitor spend were USA, Germany and France, accounting for a little over one-quarter of all overseas visitor spend. In addition, UK population will experience an increased perception of wealth due to a rise in house prices together with a stronger labour market, which could prove positive for internal tourism.

A record breaking 2014 in terms of both visitor spend is also expected. Spending by international visitors is forecasted to grow by over 6% a year in comparison with domestic spending by UK residents at just over 3%. The record 34.4 million overseas visitors who came to the UK in 2014 spent a record £21.8 billion. These figures represent a 5% increase in volume and 3% (nominal) increase in value compared with 2013. With London accounting for 54% of all inbound visitor spend, the hotel industry is expected to see a significant growth.

Forecast

In 2015, Visit Britain (August 2013) predicts 2.5% growth in volume, and 4.5% growth in value for inbound tourism. These forecasts suggest that there will be 35.1 million visits in 2015 generating visitor spending of £22.2 billion. The forecast envelope for our volume forecast is -0.5% to +5.5% while for visitor spending it is +1.5% to +7.5%.

London

The hotel sector has been experiencing the highest levels of average daily rates, occupancy and revenues per available room since 2008. In London, occupancy/RevPAR have increased from 80.4%/£116.79 in 2012 to 82.05%/£118.42 in 2013. According to Hotstats, it is reported that London continues to outperform the regions and gross operating profit per available room (GOP PAR) in January to December 2013 was almost three times higher in London, at £75.85, in comparison to the regions' rate of £26.56. Occupancy is over 10 percentage points higher in London than the regions with the capital benefitting from strong demand from overseas visitors. Nevertheless, 2013 was variable for London overall, suffering a slow start and tough Olympic comparisons over the summer but recovering well (see Figure 2). London's GOP PAR declined by 1.5% overall compared with 2012 and ARR also fell slightly.

Sustainable economic growth in London make the capital's Hotel Sector as a safe positive investment in the future. London recognition as a world city strives the demand of international visits. The capital has long been a 'Gateway' to the UK. Many tourist visit London prior to travelling to other parts of UK. It is noted that the capital enjoys excellent global connectivity, with well over 100 countries having direct air connections to the UK in 2014. In addition, it is also recorded that 72% of overseas visitors arriving via one of London airport. As such with more visitor are spending time in the capital, hotel industry in London will continue to perform well in the future.

It must be recognised that the success of London as a tourism destination is linked to the success of the UK as a whole as a tourist destination. As such, London is a national asset, which must be invested in as a tourist destination (PricewaterhouseCoopers, 2002).

According to International Passenger Survey Figure, about 51% of 17.4 million inbound tourist to London is on holiday, 23% on visiting friends or relatives, 29% is for business purposes and the rest is made up of miscellaneous and study at 6% and 1% respectively.

We believe that there is likely a direct correlation between the duration of stay and the likelihood of an upgrade. In this case, we believe that the shorter the duration, the more likely guests will pay for an upgrade. As such given at about 45% of inbound tourist to London is staying between 1-3 nights, this represents a healthy figure for the development of executive lounge.

According to International Passenger Survey figure -- breakdown by region, about 64% of the 16.8 million staying visits in London are staying in Hotel. With the majority of people are favoring hotels, this will benefit executive lounge. As the likelihood of people staying in hotel has a knock on effect on people paying an upgrade for the access of executive lounge.

Hotel and guest houses are definitely the favoured choice for anyone in Britain for business.

The volume of nights spent in hotel / guest house has enjoyed a 51% increase since 2001, a year in which it held a 21% share of nights

Conversely, UK domestic visitors to London are increasingly likely to stay in a hotel.

Longer-term trends for international visitors show an incline in people staying in hotels.

Visitors from overseas can be affected and for longer periods than domestic tourists by global and domestic events and crises and naturally by currency fluctuations. Greater concentration on growing business tourism, broader overseas markets and the domestic market can help to alleviate such effects.

Full year accommodation usage figures for 2013 - staying visits (000's)

All staying visits

Own home

Hotels or similar

Camping or caravan sites

Other short-term rented

Friends or relatives

Other (non-rented or long-term rented)

London

16, 784

10, 839

4, 424

Our analysis shows that the executive lounge aims to make major high-end establishment an already luxury experience a little bit more luxury (Higgins, 2011). However, as economic climate becomes ever bleaker it is important that customers are educated about hotel upgrads where they can get an excellent value to take advantage of the benefits. As hotel upgrades can come in a number of guises, whether the assess to an executive lounge or the same room but a bundle of upgraded benefits. (Diversification).

UK has a strong perception image overseas that is likely to drive the demand of international visitors and spending. For example, according to the 2014 Anholt Gfk Nation Brand Index produced by collating the views of 20,000 people around the world each year, UK retained third place as a 'nation brand' behind Germany and the U.S.A. (Rankings are out of 50 nations, including leading and emerging economies).

The overall nation brand is made up of scores for six dimensions - Tourism, Culture, People, Immigration-Investment, Exports and Governance, as shown below. Looking at the dimensions relevant for tourism the UK ranked third out of 50 nations in terms of a 'Tourism' brand and fifth for 'Culture'.

Our strongest 'Tourism' dimensions are for our 'vibrant city life and urban attractions', ranked 4th and being 'rich in historic buildings and monuments', ranked 5th. Aspirations to visit the UK were also strong with the UK ranked fifth as a place people 'would like to visit if money was no object'. Our strongest 'Culture' element is for 'contemporary culture', ranked 3rd with our 'cultural heritage' ranked 7th out of 50.

Trends

Business tourism remains a significant component of international tourism to the UK, and it is performing strongly. The prospect of executive lounge looks promising as business tourism is performing strongly. London is set to continue to attract international and domestic business travellers. For example, international business visits and spend is believed to be growing at a faster rate than other visitor segments -- seeing 2% growth in 2012 in volume, the best year since 2008.

It is increasingly clear that businesses and associations cannot function effectively without face-to-face meetings. Over the ten years to 2004, there was a 50% increase in all business trips (with 27% of overseas visitors travelling on businesses to the UK in 2004) exceeding the overall tourism growth rate. On a global scale, 16% of International tourist arrivals worldwide were for the purpose of business in 2004.

According to the Greater London Authority - Hotel Demand Study Grant Thornton and the Leisure and Tourism Organisation, it was estimated that some 170,000 delegate-days would be additional to the London economy. Meetings, equating to an additional 0.2% of visitor nights spent these largely big international association in London by overseas residents (Greater London Authority, 2006). The forecasts carried out in 2001 projected a growth in all business tourism trips of 39% between 2001-2011 with growth in real spend of 16%, with further expansion likely (as mentioned above), as a result of the Olympic Games. On an international basis, leisure travel previously growing at a superior rate to that of business is predicted to grow at 4.4% annually on average between 1998 and 2020 compared to 5.5% for business travel which is set be to more competitive, driving the tourism market and reflecting the slower maturity in the business market. The loss of events to destinations outside the UK appears to have stemmed in 2005, with only 6.5% of corporates holding events overseas (down from 8% in the prior year).

Corporate travelers

UK corporate is likely to increase the amount of cash reserves spent on business trips, hospitality and conferencing. Although overall levels of investment spending is increasing, corporate spending still remain 3% lower during crisis hit 2009.According to the global business travel association (GBTA) latest outlook, UK business travel spending grew by 1.9% in 2013 and domestic business travel is forecasted to grow by 4.4% in 2014.

Business and conferences

The business and conference industry is an important component of business tourism. A key part of business tourist market is from conference and events attendance. The current value of event tourism is worth over £36 billion and is estimated to grow to over £48 billion by 2020. There were 103 million delegate attendances at 1.3 million business events last year with some 7 million international business visitors. Over £12 billion of investment is underway in new venues, and a further 20% of existing facilities reporting upgrades and extensions (Pattie and Watson, June 2009). In addition, it is revealed in 2004 that London accounted for 60% of the UK corporate convention market. The capital is leading the UK market of corporate organizers holding an event. In 2003, 3% of domestic visits to the UK were for attending conference and exhibition. Statistics gathered in 2003 showed that of 107 London hotels, conference/convention business accounted for 6.9% of rooms sold. In 2001, Conference and exhibition trips accounted for 10% of all business trips (including overseas visitors). In 2002 and 2001, the percentage of total rooms that were sold to the conference/incentive sector in London was 10.4% and 10.9% demonstrating the importance to the hotel industry of business tourism. 2005 saw optimism in UK conference venues with sales up and 65% expecting further growth ahead. A survey conducted across all conference desks and venues in the UK reported an average of 421 conferences per venue in 2004 (an increase of over 10% from the prior year), with venue income estimated to have grown 67% from 2003 to £12.9bn. London in particular saw a 21% growth in the corporate sector.

In addition, London's central position to Europe and America also makes it well placed to capture the event market. In the international arena, London has performed well with two annual surveys ranking London as a key city for meetings throughout the world, holding 166 meetings in 2014, as shown below.

Moreover, London is well placed internationally, being one of three world financial centres and within Europe, only Paris compares with London as a global city. Of the world's largest companies, 26 per cent have their European headquarters in London and 65 per cent of the Fortune Global 500 companies are represented in London, more than any other European city.

The present and future demand for meeting facilities in London will lead to hotels with a larger number of hotel bedrooms; greater and more flexible conference and seminar rooms; and apartments being provided within or as an adjunct to new developments. A reasonable assumption seems that the conference/incentive sector will grow in line with the business tourism sector as a whole.

Chapter 2: Literature review

Executive lounge market research and trends

The business traveler will only be in London for business purposes like meeting with clients or conducting business on behalf of their company. These travelers do not have time to tour or visit restaurants for meals and other services. This is why most of them prefer to use the executive lounges offered by the hotels they are staying. These facilities allow them to have meals in a cozy place and not feel alone while they dine, and they can conduct meeting within the lounges (Sirkia, 2013). Market research has shown that there is room for improvement in regards to the executive lounges because not all hotels are offering executive lounges. There are hotels that have perfected the executive lounge strategy. However, concentrating on the business traveler can be detrimental to a hotel's executive lounge strategy. Luxury travelers are mainly looking to enjoy the best services that a hotel has to offer and allowing them to access the executive lounges can be profitable to the hotel (Ab Hamid and Akhir, 2013). There has been a growing number of luxury travelers and some hotels have noticed this trend, which has allowed them to offer their executive lounges to guest in specific rooms. Using this strategy, the hotel can be assured that it would have room occupancy attached to the services offered within the lounge. Regarding the profitability of executive lounges, hotels that have perfected the model have managed to brand the lounges and run adverts within the lounge screens. This allows the clients to learn of other chains or locations where they can receive the same services. Any advertising is beneficial to a business, and hotels have realized that they need to have separate or different advertisement strategies within the executive lounges. Hotels can use the lounges to reinforce their brand using decor, convenience, ambiance, amenities, and comfort (Penner et al., 2013). Branding the lounges with the hotel colors and having strategic decor can give a guest the impression of luxury, which is what they expect the minute they enter into an executive lounge. Client referrals are the best advertising methods that a business can leverage upon (Razi et al., 2012). A satisfied customer will inform their friends and they in turn will desire to visit the suggested locations or hotel. Families are also looking to have cozy and secure areas where they can relax and enjoy their stay in a hotel. Spending whole days in the rooms or hotel lounges can be boring and tiresome. Informing them of the executive lounges and giving them a tour of the facilities can encourage them to upgrade their rooms. If the lounge were not available, a hotel would not benefit from the additional charges that guests have to pay in order to enjoy the amenities. The cost involved in setting up the executive lounges can be high, but with a good strategy, the hotel can break even within a short period.

Executive lounges are beneficial to any luxury hotel's strategy. The whole idea is to look for innovative ways to attract and maintain clients within the hotel. By using the executive lounges, hotels can be assured that most of their guests would also request for other additional services since they prefer to stay within the lounges and not visit other location in London.

Advantages and disadvantages from the hotel perspective

A hotel that has an executive lounge will charge more to access these premium facilities and offer the clients less. This way the client will feel they have been treated like royalty and will most likely be interested to spend more in order to continue enjoying the services and amenities offered (Becker, 2013). From a hotel perspective, what they offer in the packages is minimal, and there are other services that are charged at a premium. Most hotels will not offer meals as part of the package, but they will have unlimited soft drinks, and hors d'oeuvres. Using this strategy, the hotel can reduce its operating costs and increase its profits. The premium charges that the clients incur are mainly from meals and service offered. Considering that the hotels will charge up to 40% more than a normal room (Hsu, 2014), it is quite clear that the hotel benefits more than the client does. In return, the hotel would manage to increase its profits. Business traveler prefer staying in hotels where they can hold meetings and meet with clients in a quiet location. Giving the business traveler such amenities at the executive lounge will definitely attract more clients, and the hotel can increase its profitability.

The world economic situation has resulted in reduced bookings within the hotels (Cohen, 2012). Guests are looking for something different, and they are not willing to pay for the same old hotel room. To attract new guests and encourage repeat stays, hotels have had to modify their strategies and include the executive lounges. These lounges have the potential to attract new visitors (Lasune, 2012), and the visitors will surely enjoy their stay. By opening up the executive lounges, hotels have managed to attract a different crop of visitors like families and luxury travelers. Guests like premium services, and if they can enjoy the same VIP services like others, they would be more willing to pay the extra charge for an upgrade.

Ramanathan and Ramanathan (2013) posits that the decor used within the lounge, and the correct placement of magazines and other pamphlets would give the hotel a good advertising platform. Free advertising would be received, and the hotel can rest assured that the guests would read the materials placed on coffee tables or around the lounge. In case the lounge has screens, the hotel management can run promotional content or advertise its other locations in the world. The main goal of an executive lounge is to cater for the guest who does not want to tour or visit the city. The services offered in the lounge would also encourage a visitor to stay indoors the whole day this would result in additional profits since the visitor would not receive all their services free. Executive lounges also discourage guests from leaving the lounge area by the amenities and views they have of the city. Since most executive lounges are located on the upper-level floors, guests can have a panoramic view of the town or location.

There are some disadvantages that hotels are faced with when operating executive lounges. An executive lounge is not a cheap facility to create within the hotel. The costs involved in creating the perfect lounge are high, and most hotels are unwilling to incur the costs. Since the lounge would offer premium facilities, it is vital that it be different from the hotel decoration. The intended ambiance is not easy to create, and these costs make it costly to renovate or create an executive lounge. Advertising outside the hotel regarding the facilities offered in order to attract guests is vital. The advertisements would be run in magazines that have a high circulation internationally, because the target market is not only the local visitors. The costs of advertising would be quite significant based upon the magazines chosen.

Once the executive lounge has been opened, it immediately brings in additional maintenance charges. To maintain the level of decor and standards, the facilities have to be maintained within a timely period, and any breakages replaced immediately. The standards of the executive lounge are quite different from the hotel, and this should be demonstrated in all aspects including maintenance. Therefore, it is not the guests pay a premium price only, but the hotel management as well when performing maintenance.

Tourism data

According to (London & Partners, 2015), it has been noted that the number of business travelers is fewer than that of holiday visitors. This might be the reason that most hotels are trying to modify their executive lounge packages in order to attract more holiday visitors and not just business travelers. Using the same old strategies have not worked for the hotels (Martin and Isozaki, 2013), and they have been forced to incorporate luxury holiday visitors. In the past year, there were almost 3 million business travelers to London. This is a small number compared to the holiday visitors who reached almost ten million. The number of leisure guests who use the executive lounges is not comprehensively combined, but it has been estimated that close to one million leisure visitors use executive lounges each year. Compared to the past years, last year recorded the highest number of guests using the executive lounges. This is encouraging because it indicates an increasing interest and preference to using the lounges by visitors. Another reason for the increase is the desire to do something different and try out the new lounges, which were a preserve of the wealthy.

Almost all major hotels offer meeting or conference facilities that corporates can make use within London (Shen, 2015). Many corporates prefer to hold motivational meetings outside their corporate offices, which is deemed as a motivator for the employees. Taking the employees to luxury hotels demonstrates the commitment of the company to them and this by itself is motivational. Data from 2014 indicate that 19% of the corporates located in London had at one time or another used the hotel conference or meeting rooms. A majority of the business travelers who booked rooms that offer executive lounge held meetings within the lounges with different clients. The preferred executive lounges are the ones that offer private meeting areas.

Market trends indicate that the executive lounges will continue to flourish provided there would not be another economic slump down (Bjorn, 2013). Business travelers are now demanding more from what they pay for and hotels will have to increase their offerings if they intend to attract more business travelers. Luxury visitors have increased their spending power, and most of them are willing to pay extras in order to enjoy VIP services. This demonstrates that executive lounges will become the norm in all hotels, just as the business class is in the airline industry.

Servqual theory

This theory is mainly used in the services industry to measure the level of customer satisfaction (Hansen, 2014). According to Lu et al. (2015) customers are more likely to return to an establishment if they were well treated and satisfied with the services they received. In order to determine the level of customer satisfaction, business that are using this theory would make use of questionnaires. The questionnaires would be used to measure the expectations of the customer and the quality of service they received (Jemmasi et al., 2011). Service quality would be deemed low if the customer expectations were higher than their perception of the service received. The theory is not only a tool for measurement, but also a model for management. Five gaps have been identified that would result in the customer experiencing poor service quality. They are customer expectation vs. management perception, management perception vs. specifications of service quality, specification of service quality vs. service delivery, external communication vs. service delivery, and service expected vs. service experienced (Cetin and Walls, 2015).

The services offered within the executive lounge should always be top notch. Premium paying customers always expect to be treated differently from all other customers, and most hotels have considered this (de Araujo Batista and Dumke de Medeiros, 2014). Premium customers will pass the check-in line and head straight to their rooms, where they will undergo the check-in process. The quality of service offered might not be to every client's expectations, but the hotels have managed to please over 90% of their clients (Ye et al., 2014). Encouraging them to try out the service again is done based on how well the client is treated during their stay. To attract new business, the hotel would have to offer their best services to the current guests who would then recommend the same hotel to the friends and family (Chin and Tsai, 2013). Guests should be informed in advance if they are eligible to use the executive lounge based on their bookings. The services offered should be communicated clearly to all guests to reduce and eliminate any misunderstandings.

Chapter 3: Methodology

Methodology and previous research

The methodology chosen for conducting this research is qualitative. This methodology was chosen because it allowed the researchers to understand the various meanings, describe, look at and understand experiences. Qualitative research methodology mainly uses interviews to collect data (Miller et al., 2012). Interviews will allow the researchers to conduct face-to-face discussions with the human subjects. When a researcher decides to make use of interviews, they need to decide on whether to take notes, rely on memory, tape the interview, or have the subjects write their answers. This research will make use of closed and open-ended questions. The interviews would be conducted via iPad to ensure that the responses were accurate, and there was little error of data collection. The use of closed questions would make the interview process shorter because the respondents would only be required to select or give yes or no answers. Most of the questions have a list of possible answers, which the respondents could select. Using this method, the researchers would easily manage the data and quantify the responses received. Since the research would be carried out on the streets and the respondents would be rushing somewhere, it is vital that the questions be closed-ended. This way the amount of time taken per respondent is reduced.

The main limitation of closed-ended questions is that the responses a respondent can offer are limited, and they cannot think deeply regarding their response (Salaberry and Comajoan, 2013). If the researchers had used open questions, the interview data would be too much and the time taken to conduct a single interview would increase tremendously. There were three interview locations initially selected, but eventually the interviews were only carried out in two locations namely Kingcross and Paddington train stations. We had initially intended to conduct the research at City London Airport station, but this was not possible. The data collected from the two stations would be more than enough for the research.

There are various research studies that have been carried out in the past, but the research mainly focused on why a hotel should introduce an executive lounge within their hotel, and the pricing strategies to employ. The researchers did not consider the motivation for people to visit or stay in an executive lounge. Our research would be aimed at filling this space and identify various things that the researchers might have missed. Speaking to the visitors, business travelers, tourists, and families would offer the vital insights to establish why or why not they would prefer using an executive lounge. VisitBritain has conducted different researchers on executive lounges, but they mainly focus on the hotel perspective and never on the visitor's perspectives (Visit Britain, 2013). This means there is a void that should be filled, and this research aims to fill that void. The London Government has also carried out various studied aimed at identifying the number of visitors who visit London and where they stay during their stay. The report has identified the different classes of visitors, and it has established that most of the people who visit executive lounges are business, travellers. The report used information received from the different hotels within London. Visitor numbers were analysed for a period of one year, and it was established that most tourists prefer staying in guest houses because of the limited budget. The people who are most likely to use executive lounges are business travelers and families on holiday. London is mostly perceived to be an expensive location. Which makes most visitors to stay away from high-end hotels. The visitors have the perception that the hotels are too expensive for them. Therefore, they prefer to keep away and not even inquire about the charges. The number of visitors to Europe has also been analysed, and the results indicate that most tourists will stay in London for two to three days, which limits the number of places they can tour. The city of London has carried another research to identify the number of hotels that can offer conference facilities. The research was conducted because there is a predicted increase in the number of conference facility demand within London. There are predictions that indicate there is likely increment in the number of companies that will want to host their conferences within London, especially fortune 500 companies. The companies have more offices in London when compared to other European cities. This augurs well for London if it could have enough hotel facilities to handle and satisfy the demand. The conference facilities offered by most hotels should have the capacity to handle over 500 guests in one sitting. In the year 2014, London was marked as a key city for meetings by two annual surveys. The number of meetings that London hosted within the year (2014) was 166. It is clear that there is information lacking regarding the use of executive lounge, and it is this research main purpose to fill that void.

Research approach

Qualitative research is an approach that is associated with the social constructivist paradigm that emphasizes the socially built nature of reality. Qualitative research is also about analyzing, recording, and attempting to uncover deeper significance and meaning to human experiences (Maxwell, 2012). Our main goal for using qualitative research is to allow us to gain a rich and complex understanding of the people's experiences. We are not interested in obtaining information that can be generalized to a larger group. Our research approach is inductive, in that, we have a pattern that we have identified, and we would like to identify the meaning for this pattern. It should be noted that most qualitative research is not based on any pre-determined hypotheses (Corbin and Strauss, 2014). We have identified a topic that we would like to explore and some of the information we have gathered from different authoritative sources guide us. We will gather our data using iPads in a textual format from the interviews we conduct. We shall also base our research from some of the telltale signs that our respondents give out during the interview process. The data would not be statistically analysed, which would save us the time required to analyse the data. We will collect the data over a period preferably one month, but the data collection will not take place daily. There are days we would skip conducting the interviews due to weather, or lack of willing participants. During the interview process, there are some questions that might be dropped, and other might be added based on what we learn during the process. Our aim is to conduct the interviews when the respondents are least busy or in a rush. Avoiding rush hour would allow us to have enough time and increase our chances of finding willing respondents. We aim to carry out the research until we have achieved an acceptable number of respondents.

Our research questions have multiple answers that the respondents can choose from, which will allow our respondents some freedom of answering the questions. We are willing to accept answers that are not part of the select answers provided, but we intend to limit the number of respondents that can provide their own answers. Since we would be using qualitative research we have the opportunity to adopt a less formal method of interviewing the respondents (McMillan and Schumacher, 2014). This flexibility is necessary for this research because we might not manage to capture all the possible answers the respondents provide. The number of participants we intend to interview is around 100. We chose this number because our research does not require a large number of participants. Conducting the research at a public train station might be challenging and having a huge number of respondents might not be viable. In addition, qualitative research does not require the researchers to have a huge number of respondents for statistical analysis. However, having a smaller number does not mean that the method is less scientific. Qualitative research allows us to go beyond the initial question by seeking further clarification (Denzin and Lincoln, 2011). This would allow us to create further questions that might not have been part of the initial interview questions.

Research strategy and tools

Research strategy refers to how the researchers intend to conduct their research. The strategy can involve different approaches such as action research, experimental research, interviews, surveys, case study research, or a systematic literature review. The choice of the research strategy employed will mainly be based on the expected outcomes and nature of the research itself. In our case, the chosen strategy is interviews. The tools to be used during the interview process are iPad for recording the answers, and survey monkey is the software we will use for analyzing the data received. These are both simple, and easy tools to use, and they will lighten our data collection and analysis work.

The research onion illustrates the various stages that should be covered when one is developing a research strategy (Garner and Scott, 2013). When the research onion is viewed from outside, each layer of the onion would describe a more detailed stage of the research process. The research onion through which a research methodology is designed provides an effective progression. The research onion can be adapted for any kind of research methodology, which makes it quite useful. It can also be used in different kinds of contexts. The steps within the onion are structured in a manner that ensures that each step builds upon the next step. The first step offers the definition for the research philosophy, which creates the starting point for the suitable research approach that is adopted in the second step. During the third step, adoption of the research strategy takes place, and the fourth step establishes the time horizon. The last stage makes up the stage where the data collection methodology is identified.

Research philosophy is concerned with the set of beliefs concerning the reality being investigated. Any assumptions created by the researcher philosophy will provide the justifications for the methodology the research will follow. The various research philosophies will differ in terms of the research goals and the appropriate method for achieving these goals. These are not at odds with each other, but the research philosophy chosen is informed by the kind of knowledge that the researchers want to uncover. Therefore, in order to explain the assumptions inherent in the research process one should understand the research philosophy being used. Positivism and constructionism are the two main ontological frameworks that can inform a research process. There are different ways that these frameworks might be defined such as empiricism and interpretivism, but the fundamental assumptions are similar. Positivism presumes that the reality exists independent of what is being studied. What this means is that the phenomena meaning is consistent amongst different subjects. Conversely, constructionism proposes that each group or observer develops the inherent meaning of a social phenomenon. When using this philosophy, the research should not presume that one participant's observations are similar to the others. The key to this philosophy is examining the nuances and differences in the respondents understanding.

Objectives of the research

In evaluating the development of an executive lounge within a luxury hotel in London, there are various objectives that we need to analyse in order to offer concrete and inclusive information. The client would like to know the feasibility and return of investments for the proposed development of an executive lounge. The benefits the client wants should be both tangible and intangible. In order to accomplish this task successfully it is vital that we identify and quantify the criteria that can be used for the development of the executive lounge. This means that we should gather information regarding the requirements for developing an executive lounge and suggest the pricing strategy to be used. Within our research, we will also analyse the cost of construction, which will be based upon the costs from other hotels that have built executive lounges. The overall cost would be prorated to reflect the current costs of materials and labour. Using this information, we can easily determine the expected return of investment from the lounge. An analysis will also be carried out to establish the advantages and disadvantages of having an executive lounge within the hotel from the perspective of the hotel and the hotel guest. This information is vital to determine if there is a need to include or construct an executive lounge and what should the hotel expect in return. It has been proposed that there is a potential for the hotel to market itself with an executive lounge. The impact of this would be part of our objectives. The aim is to evaluate how the executive lounge would affect the hotel's sales and marketing strategies. Using these objectives, it would be possible to determine if developing an executive lounge is a good investment for a luxury hotel in London.

Our research would require us to identify and quantify the features that are available in some of the executive lounges found in different hotel within London. The hotels we analysed include Langham London, Corinthia hotel London, Grosvenor hotel, Hilton Park Lane, Hyatt Regency, and Intercontinental Park Lane. The information we gathered has been presented in the table below.

Hotel Name

Entry fees

Complimentary F&B

Other features

Hours

Additional entry fees

Grosvenor Hotel

none