Fair Franchising Podcast: Recent Episodes
Patrick Mullinix
Profound and insightful look into the secret world of hotel franchising through the rebound and recovery as the COVID pandemic continues to ravage the travel industry. Patrick Mullinix, Advantage Hotels, Inc. CEO and outspoken critic and advocate for fair-franchising, exposes the naked truth of franchising practices and lends a voice for silent majority of hoteliers. Listeners will hear from all perspectives of the industry – the good, the bad, and the ugly. How can we bring true fair-franchising to the forefront and all benefit?
Patrick Mullinix is back with Frances Kiradjian, founder and CEO of Boutique Lifestyle Leaders Association (BLLA), for the third and final episode in the series. BLLA is seeing membership grow as owners reckon with the challenges of doing business in the COVID-19 era.
Patrick Mullinix and his guest, Frances Kiradjian of the Boutique Lifestyle Leaders Association (BLLA), highlight the differences between the boutique lifestyle segment and its soft-branded counterpart.
Travelers seem to prefer boutique hotels as the coronavirus pandemic enters its second year. Government restrictions are easing and the COVID-19 vaccine is becoming more widely distributed, which is good news for the lodging industry. This episode features Frances Kiradjian, founder and CEO of the Boutique Lifestyle Lodging Association, and Patrick Mullinix talking about why many people favor the boutique stay at this point.
Patrick Mullinix gives insight into the unparalleled solutions Advantage Hotels is launching to affect positive change and help hotel owners recover from the Covid-19 pandemic economic crisis. He also touches on GreenTree Hospitality Group’s franchise expansion in the USA and how it’s changing the upper mid-tier hotel sector with their own financial aid package.
Podcast Personality Glenn Haussman and Advantage Hotels’ Patrick Mullinix on What It Takes for Hoteliers to Survive Pandemic Recession
Patrick Mullinix, founder and CEO of Advantage Hotels Inc., and the co-founders of Reform Lodging, a franchisee association, talk about franchisors’ preferred vendor programs. The hoteliers say the programs are “kickback” schemes that have grown into a profit center for the brands, and they unfairly prohibit owners from seeking competitive pricing. Reform Lodging officers share their solution – a member marketplace where owners can review vendors and vendors can see a hotelier’s payment history and gauge the owner’s credit worthiness.
Drive-by and surf-by ADA lawsuits filed by serial plaintiffs and their litigious lawyers threaten the profitability of hotel businesses. Patrick Mullinix, founder and CEO of Advantage Hotels Inc., and the co-founders of Reform Lodging, a franchisee association, talk about the runaway train of frivolous lawsuits fueled by greed. The hoteliers say some franchisors offer owners little support in challenging the suits or helping them avoid litigation in first place by making sure brand standards are ADA compliant.
Patrick Mullinix, founder and CEO of Advantage Hotels Inc., and the co-founders of Reform Lodging, a franchisee association, talk about brands’ guest-loyalty programs. The cost of the frequent-guest schemes is one of the largest expenses for a branded property, say the hoteliers. Mullinix and his guests discuss whether there is a solution that boosts the brand recognition, keeps guests satisfied and increases owners’ bottom lines.
Patrick Mullinix, founder and CEO of Advantage Hotels Inc., and the co-founders of Reform Lodging, a franchisee association, talk about the growing costs of providing hot breakfasts for guests.
This week we wrap up our conversation with Reform Lodging co-founders Sagar Shah and Rich Gandhi and address the franchisees’ responsibility to fellow owners.
In our second episode with Reform Lodging co-founders Sagar Shah and Rich Gandhi, we talk about the fact that most franchise organizations today are beholden to stock owners, and how that focus affects franchise owners.
In this episode, we talk to Sagar Shah and Rich Gandhi, co-founders of Reform Lodging, a franchise owners advocacy organization that formed amidst the coronavirus pandemic to shine a bright light on the issues threatening the hotel franchising industry.
On this episode we wrap-up with Keith Miller, long-time franchisee, who’s advocacy combats toward franchisees to fight for themselves. Brands standards and practices, including COVID cleaning procedures, are in place to help and direct franchisees, while their “individually owned and operated” nature protects the franchisor from liability.
What is hidden in a disclosure? It may sound like an oxymoron, but has the length of the franchise disclosure and the length of the franchise agreement allowed for the growing one-sided relationship? Disclosed does not always equal transparency. Keith Miller, from the franchisee perspective, explains a side to the FDD that he’s fighting to fix.
The franchisor is forgetting who the actual investor is in a franchising relationship. The advertised “group purchasing power” benefit of joining a franchise is actually a revenue stream “powering” the franchisor. The franchisee holds majority of the risk, but stockholders dictate direction.
While travel is down, reservations scarce, its time to stand above. Rajiv Bhatia, on this week’s episode, reminisces to what this industry is all about; the service culture. Impeccable service and catering to the needs of our guests is what makes a truly successful lodging facility. Now that travel has slowed, rates coming down from their peaks, it is guest satisfaction that will make property’s stand out.
The truth in growing a franchise brand is to listen. Rajiv Bhatia on this weeks episode takes us back to a time of his days growing the Knights Inn brand. With so many hotel owners fed up with the typical franchise agreement, Bhatia took aim. Has the COVID pandemic brought back to light the unfairness experienced in hotel franchising?
Former Knights Inn Brand President, Rajiv Bhatia, joins Patrick Mullinix as they dive into the hospitality industry and its service culture. In our first segment with Bhatia, he shares the secret to his successful growing of the Knight Inn franchise brand – a culture of relationship. Franchisees want to trust that their brand partner has their best interest in mind.
On this episode, we close out this conversation with Patrick and Vimal, two opposing sides of the story have come full circle. Exposed some dark truths, commiserated with each other on the current climate and state of the industry, and finally a hope for the future.
Patrick asks his franchisor counterparts to reevaluate reexamine relationship and look at all financial aspects that effect the business survival of hotel owners.
Back with Patrick and Vimal where they close on the topic from last week – third-party relationships funding franchisors. Patrick gets into how he must reevaluate the typical model in order to support the future. Are loyalty club really sustainable like they say? Or are franchisees the ones to lose out? Today we hear how they address some tough questions.
We’re catching up with Patrick and Vimal from our segment last week regarding franchisees and franchisors. Today, Patrick exposes the naked truth how franchise companies enforce programs for properties that only drive revenue back to the top and franchisees are left in the cold with more mandates. Where are the rebates? Franchisor’s bottom-line and the race for ever growing profit margins.
Today we sit down with Patrick Mullinix, CEO and Founder of Advantage Hotels as he goes one on one with Vimal Patel of Q Hotels. They explore the near rebellion of relationships between franchisee/franchisor that are escalating as a result of COVID. Listen in to hear two perspectives – a franchise company and franchisee on what is broken, will things be mended, or is complete overall of the system a necessity for the hotel industry future survival.