This week, Southwest Airlines killed its free-checked-bags policy. Early next year, the popular lower-cost airline will end its open seating policy in favor of assigned seats and fees for premium seating. Will the flight attendants still tell jokes though? Probably.
Meanwhile over at Starbucks, employees now must follow a dress code and kick people out who don't buy something. But they're bringing the fun back by handwriting customer names on drink cups.
What do these two brands have in common? They've long been lauded as the aspirational examples for other mass-market, accessible brands who want to retain a little bit of personality. They're the historic leaders of the "hey, we may be a huge brand, but we're still a little spontaneous and a little different" business segment.
I can't tell you how many hotel brand conferences I've attended in the last 20 years that have cited Southwest and Starbucks as the Big Two fantastic examples of branded hospitality, of surprise and delight, of connecting with customers while still making money and growing the brand.
But time goes on, and Southwest and Starbucks have aged out of that business segment. We can't blame them for changing: They're companies that need to grow in tough economic times. They'll still hold on to some genuine hospitality for sure — the jokes! The handwritten names! — but it's a little more prescribed now and a little less authentic.
In a way, these two brands are like people who hit their 30s and realize they need to start building retirement money and going to bed early. They're still fun and have good personalities, but they have to get up early tomorrow for a big presentation so can we just get a night out on the calendar for next month instead of doing it right now?
This isn't bad, it's just evolution. And it underscores how important those moments of truly spontaneous, face-to-face interaction between people is. Those moments can happen in a coffee shop, on a plane.
And in a hotel.
Frankly, no airline ever stood a long-term chance of hanging on to a "we're quirky and fun and authentic!" personality anyway. Coffee shops have better odds, but that ship has sailed on Starbucks. Now we go to Southwest for a costly yet safe flight experience and to Starbucks for an oddly too-strong-yet-also-mediocre standard coffee experience. That's all those brands need to be now.
So what brands will fill the gap that Southwest and Starbucks leave behind? That goal to have a relatively accessible brand name that places real value on personality but can still grow at a scale expected of a brand?
I think hotels have this opportunity, and they're doing it. In particular, I think many of the outdoor lifestyle brands are nailing this, as are many of the regional brand chains. But what larger chain will go down in hotel industry lore as the second coming of the W Hotels magic?
You tell me: Email me or find me on Twitter or LinkedIn.
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