Indigo Hotels, a sub-brand of the parent Intercontinental Hotel Group, is touting itself as a “Pet Friendly Hotel.”
It’s certainly a point of difference, but does it discourage those who are not keen on having Sparky and Fluffy around and (potentially) making noise in the early morning hours?
Is there a segment large enough to make this an attractive brand feature? What’s the cost to cater to canines?
What do you think?
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I do believe the segment for consumers for traveling with pets is increasing as pets are now considered another family member for most people rather than an animal. In my opinion though this traveling would be kept to more domestic trips since it’s difficult to incorporate your pet in to all aspects of an international vacation. Along with the cost for up keep and cleaning routine for these hotels being significantly increased, there are many consumers who do not view pets as family members and will be very willing to take their business else where. For this to be successful I think it would be best to implement pet hotels as a niche market and only transform smaller, bed and breakfast suited hotels into pet friendly. Indigo can test the market this way without loosing existing guests who are not on board with pet friendly.
I think this is a great move by Indigo and definitely think this is an attractive segment of the market as it seems that in today’s society an increasing number of families have a pet and this is a trend that is only increasing. Most people with pets grow an attachment to these members of their family and many accomodate for their pets the same way they would for a child. As for non-pet owners, I am sure this will not be as appealing of a feature, however since they are not the primary target market this is not a huge concern. I do believe the segment is large enough and that it is increasingly growing. Catering for canines would definitely cost more in terms of cleaning services, however I do believe that the potential for success in this market outweighs the additional costs.
With this being said I do agree that Indigo may be taking on a bit of a risk in losing some of its current customer base. Ultimately, this is a risk that should be evaluated, but the potential for this market is very lucrative and although Indigo may lose some of its business market, they also will see growth in the number of families that stay at their hotels.
I think that there is a risk of discouraging customers who are not keen about having animals at a hotel. Most consumers usually want to relax at a hotel hence having pets may defeat the purpose of having a quiet and relax atmosphere. Personally, I think the segment is attractive and growing, as people who do enjoy bringing their pets along with them on vacation will find this option more convenient as oppose to finding a sitter for their pets. It would probably be a good idea to implement some rules in regards to having their pets such as having them on leashes or having designated floors for pets only. The additional cost would be with cleaning in additional to including food and beds for the animals.
As I pet owner I think this as a great idea! My family always struggles to find a pet sitter for my dog when we go away, so it would definitely be beneficial for us to book in a hotel that accommodates for pets. But I do agree that it is a risky move. I can’t imagine that someone would chose to book there without a pet. So I think that it would put off a lot of people who don’t have pets / do not like animals. It will be interesting to see if there is a big enough demand!
I think that a “pet friendly hotel” is a unique idea that will attract a significant number of consumers. I definitely think that this segment is large enough to make this an attractive feature because there are minimal, if any, hotels that allow/encourage pets–even though there are a vast amount of households that have pets. Speaking from my own experience, my family would have definitely benefited from a “pet friendly hotel”. I can remember my family taking our dog on trips with us and having to sneak her into the hotel with us. People who have pets usually consider them to be a part of the family, and therefore, treating them as such would really attract this segment.
This is not to say that there are not risk associated with this type of hotel. It would be more costly in terms of cleaning. It would also repel those who did not have pets. However, I think that Indigo Hotels has thought of a new way to appeal to quite a large market.