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Wahlburgers cleans up the messy parts of growth so quality stays non-negotiable.  I'm in Las Vegas with Randy Sharpe, CEO, President, and board member of Wahlburgers. He breaks down what he changed, what he cut, and how he plans growth without letting the brand drift. 🍔 Randy talks about meeting Mark Wahlberg through a luncheon tied to a tequila investment—and how that turned into the CEO role 🧑‍🍳 He ties the brand back to Chef Paul Wahlberg, Alma Nove, and the burger-first obsession behind the concept (15-year anniversary later this year) ✅ He explains the reset: new ops leadership, tighter standards, and cutting franchise operators who didn't meet the bar 📋 He describes the cleanup that mattered: 17 different menus down to a clearer core 🏪 He connects restaurants to retail (I first tried the burgers at Stop & Shop) and why he refuses frozen 🧭 He lays out the four models: full-service bar & grill, counter service, captive markets (casinos), and airports 🛫 He talks airports specifically: Logan, Detroit Metro, Sarasota-Bradenton next, and more in the pipeline 📦 He explains pricing by market—but keeps quality consistent everywhere, including a single standardized burger patty supply nationwide 🧰 He shares how retail follows expansion (including a Florida partnership with Home Depot locations driving grocery interest) Actabl gives you the power to profit. Visit Actabl.com.

This week I attended CoralTree Hospitality's Leadership Forum at Black Desert Resort and spent time with Andre' Fournier, Chief Commercial Officer, about what this event should accomplish once people go back to their hotels on hashtag#NoVacancyNews. Andre explains why CoralTree brings its leaders together, how the company onboarded more than 100 new leaders this year, and how Affinity Teams share real-world ideas across properties. We also talk about why CoralTree puts owners and operators in the same room and what that changes at the property level. We cover: 👥: Why CoralTree uses the forum to align a fast-growing leadership team 🧪: How Affinity Teams work as hands-on learning groups 🏨: What changes when owners and operators sit in the same room 🧭: How "Serving from the Heart" shows up in daily work 🏆: Why recognition still matters 📈: How operational execution connects to financial reality

At CoralTree Hospitality's Annual Leadership Forum, I talked with Tom Luersen, President of CoralTree Hospitality, for hashtag#NoVacancyNews about what the company expects leaders to do once everyone leaves and goes back to their properties. We get into why they bring people together in the first place, how they use Affinity Clubs to keep projects moving, and how they track progress without turning it into theater. We also talk about how they set direction early in the year and where AI, the hashtag#guestjourney, and talent development fit into day-to-day operations. We cover: 🗂️: What leaders are expected to take back to their teams 🔁: How projects keep moving after the event 📊: How CoralTree tracks progress without dressing it up 🤖: Where hashtag#AI and guest experience show up in real work 👥: How leadership development plays out in practice 🏆: Why recognition still has a place

Friday Night Audit: the minisode where karma finally collects… with teeth. #NoVacancyNews   Craig Sullivan and Dr. Producer Suzanne Bagnera, PhD, CHA, CED join me for happy hour storytelling starting with "four time zones in one day" and ends with me getting bitten by something, I never even saw. After 200+ episodes of me slinging insults, I consider this a performance review from the universe.   🕒 I tell the story of bouncing through four time zones in one day and losing track of reality ✈️ I recap the $100-ish Vegas room directly under the takeoff path (my ceiling tiles know aviation) 📶 I admit I tried uploading a video and LinkedIn said "no" with zero compassion 🏨 I talk off-Strip value vs Strip pricing because I still like math 🧴 I ask the only question that matters at 1 a.m.: why does bottled water expire 🥤 I give Black Desert Resort credit for aluminum bottles + water/ice access 🛫 Craig unloads on LAX and names the airports he actually likes 🩹 And then we hit the ending: the mystery bite — sudden, unseen, and absolutely karma-powered   Friday Night Audit: cocktails, complaints, and one horror-movie ending I didn't order.

A $70M reinvestment only matters if guests feel it. I'm in Puerto Rico at the Wyndham Grand Rio Mar with Andro Nodarse-Leon, CEO of property owner Lion Grove, for #NoVacancyNews. Andro walks through how the team rethought this 30-year-old resort around how people actually spend time on property—what they do, where they go, and why they stay. Andro explains how the rainforest, beach, and golf course influence design and programming, and how the rebuild touches sustainability, wellness, and operations—not as buzzwords, but as decisions that change guest flow. We also talk F&B strategy: variety, authenticity, local sourcing, and how you build experiences that keep guests engaged from morning through night. We cover: 🌿: Using the rainforest, beach, and golf as part of the experience 🏗️: Translating $70M into changes guests actually notice 🍽️: Building F&B around variety, authenticity, and local sourcing 🎭: Creating day-to-night options that keep guests on property 🧘: Adding wellness in a way that fits the resort, not a trend 🚢: Managing logistics and supply realities on an island Special thanks to Actabl — Actabl gives you the power to profit. Visit Actabl.com.

Luxury doesn't mean more steps. It means fewer problems before guests even notice them. Suzanne "Dr. Producer" Bagnera, PhD, and I spoke with Mourad Essafi, General Manager of Impression Isla Mujeres (a Hyatt all-inclusive), on #NoVacancyNews about what ultra-luxury actually looks like when you stop adding layers and start removing friction. Mourad talks about how his background in sales and operations shapes the way he runs the resort, why the arrival experience starts before guests ever reach the island, and how small operational decisions change how people actually feel about a stay. We also get into what "endless privileges" really means in practice, why convenience often beats opulence, and how guest feedback turns into real changes on property. We cover: 🚤: Why check-in now starts before guests board the catamaran ☕: How one simple coffee change improved guest flow 🛎️: Why luxury often means saving time, not adding steps 🍽️: How experiential dining and hands-on moments build loyalty 🌱: How sustainability and local partnerships shape the guest experience 👥: Why GMs with sales backgrounds see operations differently Special thanks to Actabl — Actabl gives you the power to profit. Visit Actabl.com.

Most hotels want F&B to drive more revenue. A lot of them still make it harder than it needs to be for guests to actually order. Narda Malakzad and Andrea Laderman, co-founders of Goldi, joined me on #NoVacancyNews to talk about something most hotels underestimate: how dietary needs, allergies, and food preferences quietly kill both guest experience and check size. We talk about what actually happens when guests don't know what they can eat, why people avoid asking questions, and how that friction shows up in lower spend and fewer repeat visits. We also get into how a simple, personalized menu experience changes behavior in the dining room and simplifies things for servers and kitchens at the same time. We cover: 🍽️: Why guests with dietary needs often order less than they want to 📱: How a personalized menu changes what people feel comfortable ordering 👩‍🍳: Why this makes life easier for servers and kitchens, not harder 💳: How clarity leads to higher check sizes and repeat visits 🏨: Why locals and hotel guests both matter to F&B success No sponsorship here. I just like smart ideas that help hotels make more money and make guests feel more comfortable doing it.

This episode of #NoVacancyNews looks at how a hotel management merger came together — the conversations, timing, and decisions that led up to it. I spoke with Len Wolman, Chairman & CEO of Waterford Hotel Group, and Bob Habeeb, Founder & CEO of Maverick Hotels and Restaurants, about how their relationship developed, how long the process took, and what needed to line up before they moved forward. They explain what they focused on early, why they chose not to rush, and how owner needs and operational realities shaped their decision. They walk through the steps as they happened, without wrapping the story in theory or hindsight. We cover: 🤝: How the initial conversations started ⏱️: Why timing mattered 🏨: What they needed to see at the property level 📊: How owner considerations influenced decisions 🔄: What surprised them during the process 📈: Why this structure made sense when it did Special thanks to Actabl — Actabl gives you the power to profit. Visit Actabl.com.

The gap between luxury hotels and everyone else keeps getting wider — and ignoring it won't make it shrink. Suraj Bhakta, CEO & Chief Legal Officer of NewGen Advisory, and I spoke on #NoVacancyNews about what's driving that divide. More important, we talked through actionable insights owners outside the luxury segment can actually implement. Suraj and I get into why upper upscale and #luxury continue to separate from the pack, how price sensitivity hits other segments harder, and why relying on rate alone only goes so far. We also talk through practical ways owners are looking beyond RevPAR and starting to think about total revenue without taking on massive capital projects. We cover: 🏨: Why luxury continues to outperform other segments 💸: How price sensitivity affects margins outside luxury 📊: Why owners look beyond RevPAR to total revenue 🚲: Experiential #hotel revenue ideas that actually move the needle 🧳: Why extended stay keeps attracting owners and capital 📈: How transaction activity could shape the second half of the year Special thanks to Actabl — Actabl gives you the power to profit. Visit Actabl.com.

Food and beverage does more than fill seats — it creates memories, reasons to return, and stories guests take home. That's the focus of this episode of #NoVacancyNews, filmed across Resorts World Las Vegas. I'm joined by Josef Wagner, Senior Vice President of Food & Beverage at Resorts World Las Vegas, for a walk-and-talk look at how a modern integrated resort uses F&B to drive engagement beyond gaming. Josef shares how Resorts World approaches pop-ups, immersive lounges, celebrity chef partnerships, and venue flexibility — all with the goal of giving guests something new to experience every visit. From rooftop mixology activations to food hall experimentation and live entertainment integration, this conversation shows how F&B becomes a strategic growth engine, not just an amenity. What stood out to me is how intentionally the team tests ideas before locking them in. Pop-ups act as real-time focus groups, allowing the guest — not a spreadsheet — to decide what stays. We cover: 🍸: Why immersive lounges matter more than ever 🍽️: How pop-ups reduce risk while encouraging innovation 🎶: Using entertainment and dining together to extend guest stays 🏨: Designing F&B for locals, repeat guests, and first-time visitors 📊: Letting guest behavior guide long-term concepts For operators, this episode shows how food and beverage drives differentiation, loyalty, and revenue when experience leads the strategy. Special thanks to Actabl — Actabl gives you the power to profit. Visit Actabl.com.

Most hotels look good. That's not the problem. The harder part is giving people a reason to stay longer, spend more, and remember why they were there in the first place. In this episode of #NoVacancyNews, I talk with Alexis Readinger, Founder of Preen, about food-and-beverage design and how often hotels get it almost right — and why "almost" usually isn't enough. Alexis and I get into why so many hotel restaurants and bars start to feel interchangeable, how that happens, and what gets lost when design decisions don't start with a clear point of view. We talk about experiential dining, design trends, capital choices, and why solid food alone doesn't save a space that doesn't quite work. This interview was supposed to happen in person at ALIS Design. We ended up doing it remotely, which is pretty on-brand for how plans tend to go.

What hotel owners and investors are doing matters more than what gets said on stage. In this episode of No Vacancy, Glenn Haussman connects with Bruce Ford, SVP at Lodging Econometrics, as he reports from ALIS in Los Angeles. Bruce shares what he's seeing in the data and hearing in off-the-record conversations. The discussion focuses on how owners weigh new development versus conversions, how capital continues to move, and what influences decision-making as the industry looks toward 2026. Topics include: • How owners compare new development, conversions, and recapitalization • Where cost pressure continues to affect returns • How AI conversations sound more practical than speculative • Why certain asset types keep attracting investment • How labor and operating costs affect large hotels • Why portfolio reshaping and consolidation remain on the table Sponsored by Unifocus — technology that drives value. Learn more at Unifocus.com.

This Day 3 ALIS update focuses on what the data shows — not predictions, not sentiment. In this episode of No Vacancy, Glenn Haussman connects remotely with Bruce Ford, SVP at Lodging Econometrics, who is on the ground at ALIS in Los Angeles. Bruce walks through current pipeline data and how it lines up with conversations happening at the conference. The discussion stays focused on pipeline mix, renovation volume, brand activity, and where capital continues to move across markets. Topics include: • How conversions and renovations show up across the pipeline • Where midscale brands appear most frequently in current data • What renovation volume looks like compared to prior cycles • How brand consistency factors into development discussions • How financing conditions shape development decisions • Which markets continue to show momentum Sponsored by Unifocus — technology that drives value. Learn more at Unifocus.com.

Regional casino resorts don't win anymore by adding square footage — they win by designing experiences that keep guests longer and spending more. That's the focus of this episode of #NoVacancyNews. I'm joined by Kelly Devine, Principal and Partner, and Emily Marshall, Principal and Interior Design Leader at HBG Design, and guest host Dr. Suzanne Bagnera to talk about the evolution of regional gaming resorts and what operators should be paying attention to right now. We use Gun Lake Casino Resort in Michigan as the case study, breaking down how design decisions directly affect length of stay, guest behavior, operational efficiency, and profitability. This isn't about pretty spaces for Instagram — it's about building resorts that actually perform. What stood out to me is how intentionally HBG starts with operations first. They design the engine before the body, which explains why these projects drive measurable business results instead of just visual impact. We cover: 🎰: Why regional casinos now compete with Vegas-style destination resorts 🏨: How hotel design influences gaming behavior and length of stay 🧠: Designing rooms guests enjoy — without keeping them away from the casino 🧹: Why housekeeping flow, durability, and turnover time matter more than finishes 🎤: Programming spaces to keep locals and repeat guests coming back 📈: How smart design directly ties to revenue growth For hotels and casino operators, this conversation shows how design becomes a business tool, not a vanity project. Special thanks to Actabl — Actabl gives you the power to profit. Visit Actabl.com.

Hotel loyalty gets talked about a lot. This conversation focuses on how it actually works. For this #NoVacancyNews, I spoke with Chris Hartley, CEO of Global Hotel Alliance, about what loyalty looks like when you stop chasing vanity metrics and start paying attention to repeat behavior, engagement, and direct bookings. Chris explains how GHA approaches loyalty across a global portfolio of independent brands — where cooperation matters more than competing for attention and where repeat stays tell you far more than raw membership numbers. We recorded this conversation during ALIS in Los Angeles. Chris made the trip in from Dubai. I got snowed in on Long Island, where I'm still slightly bitter days later, watching conference badges from afar and missing hanging with everyone. We cover: 🔁: Why repeat stays matter more than total member counts 📊: How GHA defines "active" loyalty members 🌍: Why international, multi-brand stays outperform single-brand loyalty 💻: Shifting business away from expensive third-party channels 🏨: How independent hotels compete globally without inventing new brands 📈: Why direct bookings and engagement keep accelerating Special thanks to Unifocus — technology that drives value. Check them out at Unifocus.com.