Skift Business Traveler: Best Western Rebrands to Prepare for Millennials

What to Know Now

Long considered a budget chain, Best Western revealed this week that it’s undergoing a brand overhaul and starting a new snake people Millennial-centric series of properties.

It’s a good move at this stage of their company: Design-centric and social young people are coming of age and they’re taking their business along with them. With Hilton launching its Canopy brand and Marriott building out AC Hotels, any good hotel chain can see the industry shifting.

Now, can we talk about the “Glō” name?

Social Quote of the Day

It’s Saturday afternoon. Hillary is halfway down Long Island, can’t find NPR on the dial. Her aides aren’t helping.

– @mviser | Matt Viser, Whitehouse and National Politics for the Boston Globe

Airlines

United Begins New Secret Upgrade Program for Its Best Customers: The Surprise and Delight campaign aims to upgrade some elite passengers on domestic flights from economy to the premium cabin and others on international flights from Business First to Global First. Read more at Skift

Virgin America Launches In-Flight Netflix Access on Select Routes: It was only a matter of time before Netflix officially took to the skies, and that moment has finally arrived on Virgin America. Read more at Skift

The Disruptive Airline Concept That Puts Passengers First: Disruption is booming in the travel industry, with one notable exception: Air travel. Read more at Skift

Records of United Airlines and Newark Meetings Redacted to Hide CEO’s Involvement: The Port Authority redacted records of meetings that New Jersey Governor Chris Christie’s former top deputy at the agency had with United Airlines’ chief executive officer and a lobbyist for the carrier, WNYC reported. Read more at Skift

Airports

German Lawmaker Says to ‘Admit Defeat’ Over Berlin’s Unopened Airport: A member of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s party has proposed a radical solution for Berlin’s troubled new airport: tearing it down and starting from scratch. Read more at Skift

Southwest Paid $120 Million for 2 Gates at Dallas Love Field: Southwest Airlines is so intent on strengthening its grip over Dallas Love Field that it is paying United Airlines $120 million to control two more gates at the airport near downtown. Read more at Skift

Heathrow CEO Calls for Reduced Emissions in Aviation: Heathrow Airport CEO John Holland-Kaye called for world leaders to accelerate greenhouse gas reductions and push for a mandatory carbon-offset program for the aviation industry to fight climate change. Read more at Skift

Tech

Coworking Spaces Create Opportunity for a New Kind of Guest: The coworking phenomenon is growing not just because there’s a rising population of freelancers, as often cited, but because many people are craving variety, flexibility, and a chance to focus without interruption during their work day. This growth is increasingly blurring the line between office space and hospitality. Read more at Skift

Luggage Review: Bluesmart Smart Carry-On: Bluesmart bills itself as the world’s first smart, connected luggage. It’s a compact, moderately durable four-wheeled bag with more technology than I ever thought I’d need in a carry-on — and it’s priced like a Rimowa, at $399. Here’s what you get for your (nearly) 400 bucks. Read more at The Points Guy

OpenTable Experiments With Surge Pricing for Restaurant Reservations: After months of careful user surveys and consultation with its restaurant clients, reservation app OpenTable is starting to test how desperately consumers want a desired seat at a hot dining spot at the last minute with a “premium pricing” option. Read more at Skift

Hotels

Hilton Taking Advantage of Brazil’s Weaker Economy to Expand: Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. plans to expand “quickly” in Brazil as the slumping real and lower costs present opportunities for the construction of new hotels and tie-ups with local operators, a company official said. Read more at Skift

Starwood Plans to Open 16 Hotels in Africa Over Next Five Years: Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. plans to increase the number of African hotels it operates by 50 percent over the next five years as positive growth prospects trump short-term security and economic concerns. Read more at Skift

Hilton Launches Internal Investigation Into Possible Credit Card Breach: Hilton is conducting an internal investigation following a report from an independent expert that it fell victim to a credit card breach at registers in gift shops and restaurants at several of its U.S.-based properties and franchises. Read more at Skift

Best Western Gives Itself a Complete Brand Refresh and Launches Boutique Brand: This week the Best Western brand is repositioning itself as Best Western Hotels & Resorts, introducing a new master brand logo, and announcing the launch of a new hotel brand in its portfolio. Read more at Skift

Your Turn

Andrew Evans, the former National Geographic Digital Nomad, has a new series out on CNET starting this week. Find it here.

Tips and Comments

Can be sent to gm[at]skift[dot]com or to @grantkmartin

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