Abstract

Despite encouraging predicted growth trends for hotels across Europe, independent mid-market hotels are set to face considerable competitive pressures in the early years of the new millennium. This is particularly evident in the UK, where competition from both corporately owned branded hotels and the burgeoning branded budget hotel product, as well as other independent hotels in the mid-market sector, is noticeably strong. To counter the competitive threat, this paper explores some of the marketing options available to operators of independent mid-market hotels in the UK in their attempt to preserve market share and enhance future success in an increasingly competitive and crowded marketplace. The paper concludes with some broad lessons for the wider hotel sector, in both Europe and the UK, and questions the extent to which much of the sector can remain truly independent.