Really, me? Foliage is now almost behind us; how well did you survive this season? Each step that I take, as I walk through our woods, the leaves rustle under my boots, they are brown and wet! Yes, for the last 3 weeks I have had to wear my boots on my trail; it is wet everywhere! The guy that cuts our lawn gets stuck on the far side of the lawn, in mud! Vermonters support their towns, in a remarkable effort to rebuild and Innkeeper’s with every cheer and strength left in them, welcomed those who came to see the leaves! Many stayed in their favorite Inns, ate those local peaches, blueberries and apples, anyway! Inns I spoke with had a great foliage…are exhausted and tired now, ready for a jaunt to the Bahamas or some other relaxing place.

But, as always I try to challenge you about your Inn’s milieu, your personal focus, your attention of what you are passionate about?  We said this 31 years ago in our seminars: “look in the mirror and that is your guest”. What, a German Immigrant?  I am still saying it, but my audience is younger and hip and at the cutting edge “techies”! Are they your guests? I bet they are! If you bought your Inn 10 years ago and you have not up-graded each room, you got a problem. Don’t tell me that your guests don’t want flat-screen TVs, or connection to the internet? And that they love all the trinkets that you so painstakingly collected and poised like trophies on each flat surface. They need the night table free for their stuff: their I-pod, their glasses, their snacks or glass of wine.

Who wants to free the bed of its 10 pillows? They used to make a statement; today they are considered an inconvenience!

Well, that is enough! What has not changed? It is your commitment to service, your warm and welcoming touch!

So look in that mirror and remember time has passed, material things have changed, décor is more simple, cleanliness, and fine linens are still part of the elegant experience the guests expects and that they gladly pay for. There is nothing that replaces your gracious hospitality: as the new inn-goer, that young couple enters your doorway and your warm welcome greets them and smells of freshly baked cookies wafts into their nostrils. Think about it, how has your Inn changed?

Have a great few weeks to unwind! Heide

As you know, it’s that Morning snow-shoe trek through our woods that makes me reflect on things!  I do that walk every Morning with my favorite dog, Chocolat! Guess what? Today we had snow to accompany us! That is Vermont for you!

Last week we attended the Mid-Atlantic Inn-keeper Conference in Lancaster, PA. We had a great time meeting old friends and meeting lots of new folks attending the Aspiring Inn-keepers one day seminar.

What I loved the most was the relaxed, easy going style of the conference and the cutting edge stuff that was really exciting. Sunday evening we were welcomed by a gala dinner presented by Toby Diltz, Please look at their website: www.eaglesmereinn.com The amazing thing was that he made for all of us (about 80-100 attendees) dinner that night. We feasted from soup to dessert and with 3 different entrees to choose from, everything locally grown and locally raised! It was truly a feast! Delicious and very well presented!  The sauces over the desserts he had personally made from fresh berries he gathered in summer. It is amazing how much we can serve our guests that is locally produced… even in winter!

There was lots of information for everyone, but I am truly touched by ideas of what we individually can do to help our guest to have a memorable experience in our beautifully appointed Inns!

Another thought was the B&B Recycling Program, or B&B Partnership Program that allows you to send them all your left over soaps and they will reprocess them and send them to Third World countries, which are badly in need of soap, especially for the care of small children! Here is their address to ship your soap to: 400 Pittman St. Orlando, Fl.32801. Both, serving the local foods and the soap program are great marketing ideas. Well, I wish for the snow to melt and for all of you to have a great Spring!  Bill and I have lots of travel plans coming up! Those innpartners.com enjoy life and your gracious hospitality! Heide

PAII really put on a terrific conference in Charleston, S.C. Did you miss it? I hope not! It was so much fun and so much new “stuff to grab hold”. So much is happening today, in our small segment of the hospitality business! If you have not joined PAII yet do it today, Your financial success depends on you staying on that cutting edge! Here is their website: www.paii.org. I have attended many PAII meetings but my spouse and partner, Bill Oates of: www.bill@innpatners.com has attended everyone one of these great gatherings since their inception!  And still each time we leave one of these conferences we are energized and re- vitalized. (Well that was probably all that dancing we did!)

If you contact PAII you can get some great tapes of all the presentations; there are many topics to choose from and all stimulating and challenging! And what a great turn out of vendors. Where else do you find the diversity, the quality of items that make our beds luxurious and our rooms statements of comfort and taste? But the great news at PAII was with its promotional campaign “A Better Way to Stay”,  we raised $ 100,000.00 and shaved Jay Karen’s beard! What excitement and fun was had by everyone!  Cheers, laughter and lots of applause!

But that’s not all the great news, PAII and my favorite Inn-keepers’ group “Select Registry” are committed to working together for the well-being of all of us in this great industry! Thank you, thank you, this is by far the best news that we can hope for:” united we are strong!” And less national meetings to attend to!

As the snowing is falling on the roofs in bucket loads here in Southern VT., I am thankful for all my winter gear, that I certainly did not bring to Charleston, S.C. and was that ever a mistake! The temperatures were 18 degrees and lower and the wind blew as if we where in Alaska! But I saw all my favorite new Inn-keepers, my most favorite old friends who are Inn-keepers, Inn-keeper’s emeriti’s and my friends among the vendors: Mark, hugs to you and Lewis!   I feel so lucky to have met so many of you in my 30 years working in this industry: first as a partner in Oates & Bredfeldt, but then as we are now known as today: Inn Partners: giving seminars, lectures at conferences doing evaluations consulting and trying to find the right buyer for your great Inn!  We have made many great matches. Watch out.  We are about to do some new ones! Happy New Year! Hugs, Heide

Why stay at Inns? I can’t believe when I stay at an Inn that I have never been to before, that there is yet one more way, that the Inn-keepers can be different, and running their Inn uniquely from any other place that I have been. Yes, it is partly the setting, it is always the charm and taste, that individual décor, the authenticity of the art work, the beautifully appointed public areas, an oriental rug, a painting, that just makes me breathe easy. I feel a sense of being in the right place, I feel my choice was more then I could have expected by visiting here; I feel at ease and I just can relax!

So where is this latest haven that we stumbled upon? Try the Guest House at Lost River.  It is in West Virginia among mountain tops. From my window I see well situated homes off in the distance on more mountain tops, its quiet here and the owners who built many of the fancy homes in the area, also created this rambling Inn. From our room we looked down on many rooftops and turrets, and there are decks for every accommodation and a pool to cool yourself among it all!

You can hike up roads, right off the property, bicycle and work out at the spa. Exercise and exhaust yourself and then opt for a massage… or sit in the hot tub. It is all so smoothly luxuriously easy. As the sun sets, twilight descends, fog lies on the mountain tops and the light of the homes twinkle like stars in the night. If you didn’t find a good book, or didn’t bring one either, it is really okay to absorb the serenity of this place. You might find a place to sit on a deck of the common room, might consider a cocktail, and sit by the beautifully crafted bar, and linger there until it is time to dine.

The Inn-keepers are relaxed, gracious and reserved and are always present to attend to your needs. The staff is cheerful and quietly going about doing their business: want to go away? Stay in well appointed rooms, get spoiled?  Well why not research their website: www.guesthouseatlostriver.com and speak with either Bob or David, the owners. I know that you will have a great stay there, and what amazing beauty lingers in those hills! Let’s go, see you there! Heide

Actually all of whom we come in contact with: our spouse, staff and our guests, benefit from our honest reflections. Some of you have found guidelines for reflection by attending churches of your choice, other seek private or group meetings to gain needed introspection. It matters not which form our contemplation takes, only by attending to our own spirituality that we can become aware that quality and values elude us by inner drives of scattered aims and inattention.

Attending to our values shines in every facet of our personal experience and in appointing our Inn.  Local art-work speaks of our passion for beauty, our well detailed rooms call attention to the great care we have taken to welcome our guests. Friendly polite staff, well trained, ooze the respect they have received by being empowered by the owners to do their best.

Inn-keeping is fraught with details, details and more details. It is a challenge to maintain all that we were seeking when we started out; it is a challenge to be true to our values today in this financially difficult time.

But you know your guests have a choice; they stay with you because of who you are, the quality of your service, the quality of your products, your connections with the locals: Joe, the egg-men, Nancy Miller’s apples in the apple tart. Your presence at the town zoning board might just save the State Park from a new condominium development. And those big eyed well fed cows on the hill-side, keep the meadows pastoral and local slaughtered beef on your menu.

I have stayed at great in-town Inns as well, where shirts and trousers were pressed before dawn, major newspapers kept the businessmen ahead of the news, the lawyer informed of the latest scoop on Wall Street! TV in each room, i-pod connections, hook ups for every imaginable contraption our latest tech is equipped with, and beds so comfy and snugly you cannot imagine you want to rise and face the day!

It’s a new decade!  Be the Inn that is the most generous in spirit, décor and service and make this your best year, ever. The “corporates” are starved for a great experience, arranged by you, and fed with the most delectable morsels from your local community. How are you going to do all that? By taking especially good care of yourself!    Heide

For many of my friends who are Inn-keepers, this is a very busy time of year. I know that the decorating is done, holly on the mantels, wreaths on windows and doors; that Christmas tree lit almost all day (and night). The Santa Claus collection dusted off and cleaned of candle wax, hand-crafted angels spreading joy and goodwill and the old favorite tunes “Santa Claus is coming to Town” variations playing in your Inn.   Holiday parties each night, dining room guests enjoy the table vases filled with balsam twigs and holly berries.

If you have been good at marketing, take on-line reservations, your website inviting your guests by showing your readiness to celebrate, let them know how they can enjoy themselves, that the ski slopes are open, I know that your telephones have been ringing and your rooms are fully booked. Congratulations!

Now, how are you personally? How is your spouse? How about the kids, your personal time for shopping, cooking a meal, putting up your feet, and getting a good nights’ rest?

For Innkeepers this can be a stressful time; it is a time that you give intensely of yourself to bring and create a festive and meaningful time for others and hopefully that brings you joy and gratefulness to be healthy and capable of the ability to do so. Remember your family in your planning for each day, do one special thing to let them know that you care; a little note under their pillow, a cookie set out for them when they get home from school.

Start your day by reviewing the important tasks: I know that the day will evolve, filled with unexpected demands.  Each night take a moment and think of one person that appreciated your service, your decorations, your food, your setting the stage for them to have a good time. Let it be enough… share it with your spouse and your staff the next day. They too need to feel good about all their extra efforts.  After all, teamwork makes your success.

Each evening, when the day is done, just for one moment, in the privacy of your home, light your candle and tell your significant other how important their contribution, their love, their caring was for you today. It will make a great difference! Happy Hanukah, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year. Heide

We do seminars here and have for about 28 years, off and on at various seasons.

Around 13 Inns existed in the late 1800’s and into the 1900’s, today there are two: the Eagles Mere Inn and the Crestmont and we have frequented both, love their differences in food, service and style.

The strange and peculiarity of Eagles Mere is that its original population is the summer community of 1500, but the under-pinning, the workers that maintain this enclave of gracious living, are about 250 people. They seem to harmoniously strive to co-exist, each appreciating equally their shared existence!

But what breed of Innkeepers can succeed here? In one Inn I have witnessed four sets of Innkeepers come and go, the other Inn had three. What is it: The mountain air, the bears that come into town and climb a telephone pole, attracted by its hum, dreaming of a meal of honey, with snowflakes just about to descend? It is lonely up here in winter, the darkness comes early, the urban sophistication is left as windows of the grand mansions are sealed and shuttered.

There is no bridge game, no titillating conversations; to shop is hours away, movies as far and the culture of strive and busyness, theater, concerts are what the new Innkeeper thought they had gladly left behind. They embrace their guest gladly giving them that tranquility so needed after the corporate stress. But looking at the Innkeepers introspectively, how deeply had they embraced and understood their yearnings. This is a beautiful place, but winters are long up here. You are not part of that that old summer clan, but neither are your staff your best buddies! I have seen some sad partings, destructive acting outs, as well as seen some Innkeepers that loved this community with all their heart and reinvented themselves, and furthered this town’s vitality. I respect that no matter where we succeed at that. Heide

It was a glorious car trip. It was breezy, sunny, and just beautiful to see those blue snippets of ocean around Portland, and up Route 1; blue-grey coves and jutting inland here and there and the trees blowing gracefully in the wind.  Always unexpected, curved inlets, sails floating far off on the horizon, and the towns, teeming with white buildings on both sides of the road, boats in the harbors and tourists beginning to cover the side-walks; we loved it all! Our eyes and noses taking it in, sights and smells: so different than Vermont.

Getting to the Inn late afternoon, we saw the ocean lapping against the rocks below the Inn’s lawn, a tranquil sight. Three sets of white wicker chairs poised to look into the ocean, and a wooded island framing this perfect setting. An older couple leaning toward each other, their hats firmly in place, seemed in harmony with all of the beauty and grace that surrounded them. Later we learned from our Innkeeper that this couple had been at the Inn for 10 days as a gift from the congregation where he is the Minister. Whoa, what a gift and it was deeply rewarding to see their appreciation.

But the greatest enjoyment came when we were greeted by our Innkeeper. She and her staff glowing in the roles they played to make everyone’s stay exceptional and the appreciation that existed among them. Her desk person said: “thank you for bringing Daina Hill to us; it is wonderful to work for her!”  How about that from a staff member? Daina attended our seminar and did an internship at the Arrowhead Inn, in Durham, N.C., but her professional life was as a successful lawyer!

Daina’s attention to details, in everything, her commitment to quality, her appreciation of individuals and their needs make her a terrific Innkeeper!

We spent one evening, and what a delightful, peaceful place it was for us! Bill, do you think that we can make it for another 29 years? Who knows? But I do know that if we have more evenings like that we can go on and on…. Heide

Last weekend, we had our yearly parade of the “Strolling of the Heifers” What a big “to do” for our little town of Brattleboro, Vermont.  A community of about 12,800 residents!  Do I like a parade?  Not really!  But the streets were lined hours before, with 40,000 others in Town who came enthusiastically, and sat and waited!  As the first marching band hit the pavement; blaring their tunes and the bands strutting in formation down between brick buildings on either side; it was a festive celebratory event and inclusive of all the things that this community supports.

There were the individual farmers, their children, and staff leading the bulls, cows, calves, and even a bison! The local independent schools and the high school band (that performed for Obama, at the inauguration parade in Washington D.C. with my grandson playing the drums!) And more local bands, and social groups, some voicing their concerns creatively and in-between lots more local organic farmers carrying their signs, homemade: with pride. They are hiring young adults to produce local grown fruit and vegetables and sell them at their farm stands or at the Saturday Farmers Market. Our granddaughter, home from her first year in college, paraded as a ripe, large, delicious strawberry; she as well as the farmers she works for, caring deeply about our environment! But I loved the group of black clad cow-poop scooper-uppers prancing along the street and the bicyclists and gymnasts performing delightful stunts.

But in all of that hoopla-la, with the B&Bs filled, where were the Innkeepers in the parade? Did they market this incredible event? What an opportunity, to market our town, our local commitment to quality, talent, food vendors, and merchants.  Innkeeping is a quality involvement on a very local level; guests love to know about exciting, different things to do, they want memorable experiences and we craft them by our own enthusiasm in what is happening in our area!  Let’s join the Parade!  Have a good week!  Heide

Seth writes that “in tough times marketers fret about price.  We think people care only about price”.  Actually, in tough times, he says that people are more concerned about value; in essence getting a return on the price they pay.

Seth introduces a simple but profound equation:  VALUE = Benefit/Price.  While most marketers try to increase value by lowering price, the winners increase market share by “increasing quality and quantity and the immeasurable things that bring confidence and joy to people”.

In the Inn business, the winners are those who create meaningful packages, who offer the personal recognition guests desire, who create a memorable experience.  The losers cut prices and then nibble away at the benefits (no cookies, no fresh squeezed orange juice, and chicken in lieu of veal in the piccata).  Eventually they share their resentment with the guests.

Increase value by increasing the benefits.  A little positive mental effort will elicit cost effective benefits to increase perceived value, guest satisfaction, and healthy bottom lines.

For more of my innkeeping thoughts and stories, I hope that you will join me on my new blog at www.billandheide.com.

Thank you – Bill Oates