Behind the Scenes of a Hotel Opening: Bringing a New Address to Life ?
Opening an independent hotel does not begin on the day the first guests walk through the door. Several months beforehand, a series of key decisions must be made: defining the product, finding the right positioning, building a pricing strategy, identifying priority markets and starting to raise awareness of the property.
For a new independent hotel, this pre-opening period is crucial. The objective is to enter the market with a clear concept, a coherent strategy and the right commercial network.
Supporting these early stages is an aspect of our work that we particularly enjoy. Helping a new property emerge, working alongside its teams and turning a vision into a concrete project. This is part of what drives us and fuels our energy, from the openings we have already supported to the new projects currently in development.
Finding the Right Place in the Market
Before bringing a hotel to market, it is essential to understand its environment.
Market research and benchmarking help analyse the destination, competing hotels, their products, services and pricing. This work then helps define target audiences and build a coherent offering: room categories, services, experiences, pricing strategy and revenue objectives.
For an independent hotel, the goal is not to replicate existing standards, but to identify what will allow the new property to establish its own place in the market.
Starting to Sell Before Opening
Sales activity should begin well before the first guests arrive.
Priority markets and segments need to be identified, distribution channels selected and a network of partners gradually developed. Travel advisors, tour operators, concierge companies, corporate clients and MICE professionals can all play an essential role in launching a new property.
Sales calls, business trips, trade shows, events, webinars and Fam Trips provide opportunities to introduce the project and start building relationships with future partners and prescribers.
Depending on the hotel's positioning, this phase may also include exploring affiliation with hotel collections or joining international distribution networks and programmes.
Building Visibility at the Right Time
A successful opening is also about timing.
The website, social media, sales tools, digital campaigns, email marketing and materials designed for industry professionals should gradually support the project's development and growing visibility.
The objective is not simply to communicate about a new opening, but to build an identity that is clear enough for the hotel to be quickly understood and recognised by its different target audiences.
Marketing and sales must therefore move forward together: creating desirability around the property while preparing its launch to market.
Defining the Pricing Strategy
Revenue Management also plays a key role from the pre-opening stage.
Room revenue budgets, occupancy rates, average daily rates, room categories, segmentation, forecasting, competitive analysis and distribution strategy must all be developed in line with the hotel's positioning.
Choosing the right tools PMS, RMS, booking engine and reporting solutions is also part of this preparation. The objective is to be fully operational from opening day while retaining the flexibility to adjust the strategy quickly based on initial results.
Opening Is Only the Beginning
Once the doors open, the strategy continues to evolve. Initial results, market feedback and commercial performance help refine the actions already in place and adjust positioning, distribution and pricing strategies where necessary.
Bringing a new independent hotel to market therefore goes far beyond its launch. It means preparing its market entry, building visibility among the right audiences and partners, and supporting its development over time.
From pre-opening through the first years of operation, Sur-Mesure Hotels & Homes supports independent hotel owners and management teams with their strategic and operational challenges through three complementary areas of expertise: sales, marketing and revenue management.
October 2026 - Written by Clarisse Bernard