Just nice headlines for Hotel & Tourism? Why not honest?
One would like to read again positive things about the hotel industry, restaurants, cruises and the event industry, but the positive headlines that are fabricated these days are just miss leading journalism, information turned up side down and show a lack of respect towards all those who work in tourism and hospitality.
When asked if I couldn't write more positively, I didn't really came up with something because I prefer to write honestly. But then I asked a lot of colleagues and the answers were everything! From sarcastic to funny - just not positive. So I just searched for every positive headline I could find. That backfired.
"Hospitality sales doubled in the first half of the year" By Rolf Westermann
Friday 19 August 2022 aghz
That just sounds positive. But if you then read a little further, you have to realize that this is the comparison with the previous year, a Corona year where, as is well known, almost everything had to be closed. It is then also admitted that the revenues are of course also high due to the necessary enormous price increases but this article does not lose a word about the profits, which of course cannot be described so nicely. But nice positive headline
"In contrast, nominal sales reached the pre-crisis level (+0.1 percent) for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic, which can be attributed to the significant price increases."
08/19/2022 ahz
Plus 0.1% percent, despite the significant price increases, that means minus how much? Unfortunately, the question was not answered here.
There was another highlight written about the NABU (Nature Conservation Union Germany) and their assessment of cruise companies. I couldn't miss such a positive headline:
"Nabu sees climate progress in the cruise industry despite criticism"
The Nature Conservation Union attests three German shipping companies a good development in climate protection on large ships. Overall, the industry is still doing too little.
Updated on August 23, 2022 2:59 p.m. Zeit online
Progress? A good development? Finally I thought I might have found the positive thing I was looking for and made the mistake of reading further.
Here it was mentioned that 19 cruise lines were examined and a maximum of 17 points were awarded when it came to assessing sustainability, environmental protection and climate friendliness. And the result of this progress and the good development? Here's a look at the catastrophic results that I would never have been able to put in such a nice headline.
it's great that Hurtigruten is top of the list with 8.5 points is! But if you think about it a little, isn't that less than 50% percent? Any student who gets an exam back like this would break out in a sweat. But then there is also Carnival, who had to pay a fine of 50 million dollars for their environmental pollution with an incredible 4 points! Phönix Reisen and Costa (Costa also Carnival) got stuck with 2.5 points, and Marella managed 0 points out of 17! They probably didn't even have a coffee filter tied in front of the chimney .
Once again I was blinded by a nice headline and should slowly learn to honor the headline and better not read the rest. And stopping thinking would also help. Oh yes - think! Hadn't 19 companies been judged? Here I see only 14 - all looking bad. Were the others even worse? Minus points maybe even? I really can't think any further
I'll keep an eye out for positive headlines. There was still the waiter who paid 550 euros monthly for a 4 square meter apartment in Paris (I think my kitchen table is bigger) but that doesn't really count as positive either.
Stephan Busch has an invaluable and diverse experience in the hospitality industry ranging from senior management positions with the most renowned hotel and resort companies to the project development - launch of operations, business development- for hotel and cruise companies in Asia, Europe, Canada and Russia.
His expertise includes not only planning, opening and operating of hotels, international golf clubs, airports, resorts and cruise ships, but also successful restructuring and repositioning of businesses during the financial crisis in Asia.
Stephan Busch earned his Master Certificate in Hospitality Management from Cornell University, USA and served many years as Academic Director / Faculty of Hospitality & Tourism at the State University for Humanities RGGU Moscow as well as the Swiss International University St. Petersburg.