In-room amenities

By Colleen Isherwood
Editor

Labour savings, energy savings and environmentally conscious customers are driving innovation when it comes to guest amenities both in the bathroom and the bedroom. From a race to supply the most organic, natural and biodegradable lotions, soaps and shampoos, to common sense ideas like dispensers instead of personal-size soaps, necessity is driving change.  How about a mini-bar that automatically takes inventory and charges customers accordingly? Or treeless paper products made from sugar cane?  Or an iPod clock radio? Here’s what’s making news in the world of in-room amenities.

IN THE BATHROOM—Lotions and potions

Purely Saltspring is a small BC company offering pure, luxury bathroom and spa amenities for hotels, hotel spas and hotel gift shops. Products include shampoo, conditioner, hand and body wash, hand and body lotion, bath salts and a completely natural soap bar.

“Guests these days are more concerned with being environmentally sensitive and are becoming more ‘in the know’ about environmental initiatives,” says Purely Saltspring owner Carol Sanders. “They want to contribute to the overall effort to leave as small a ‘footprint’ as possible.”

There are many factors that contribute to success in the hotel and spa amenities industry. Quality products, together with responsible customer service are critical, adds Sanders. “There is also a growing consideration to be environmentally sensitive. The hotels we communicate with understand this.

“Hotel guests, owners and managers all tell us, that with other criteria being equal, they prefer to buy locally and want to support our regional Canadian economy. I would definitely say there is a marked trend towards environmentally-friendly, local products and the hotels that use them show their respect for the environment by using them.”

Temple Garden Mineral Spa Resort in Moose Jaw, SK uses elements and minerals derived from the local geothermal mineral waters to help formulate its bath products, says Sherri-Lyn Brown, spokesperson for Atlific Hotels, which manages the property. The mineral salts, hand & body lotion and bath & shower gel found in each suite are all natural products that have been created especially for Temple Gardens by “By the Sea”.  The mineral waters come from an ancient sea bed about 1,350 metres (4,500 ft) below ground.

The scent of these products is also specific to Temple Gardens and is generated from essential oils such as almond and jojoba.  

Dispensers are both stylish and economical

“Dispensers are a very environmentally sensitive way to offer products,” says Purely Saltspring’s Sanders.
 
“Our landfills are saved from all those small bottles and it is less expensive for the hotel to offer them in this way.

“We are seeing that hotels in the luxury category are becoming more comfortable using dispensers. As long as the dispensers are attractive and add to the room décor,  hotel customers are happy to use quality products from a dispenser. They appreciate the affordability that dispensers offer and they make using a high quality, more natural product more affordable.

“These days the public, including hotel guests, is increasingly concerned about what they are putting into their bodies and the environment.  At the same time they are desirous of high quality products that feel good to use.

“Hotel guests really do notice when this extra effort is made and it does reflect positively on the hotel.

“Of course, hotel/resorts always have to take price into account.  When you put bottled products into small bottles what the customer pays for is the bottle, the label, and the labour.  Dispensers can be both stylish and very economical. This makes it possible to offer hotel customers top quality products, yet pay less than it would cost for a lesser quality product in a small bottle.  Customers definitely recognize the value in this equation and so they continue to tell us that.

Swisssol Press + Wash

Swisssol Amenities and Products calls its Press+Wash dispensing system a win-win situation—users can help save the environment while saving 30-35 per cent per year on soap costs.

Press+Wash is a long lasting and tamper-proof system: patented drip free with no leaks, according to Swisssol president Paul Weber. “The manufacturer takes full responsibility for the product liability, which is not possible with other products, such as small soaps and open systems.”

Press+Wash is designed and produced in Germany by ADA Cosmetic International in compliance with FDA’s Good Manufacturing Practice rules (GPM) which are also guidelines for the EU Cosmetics decrees.

The product was the subject of lengthy trials with several customers which showed that a savings of 30 — 35 per cent per year can be achieved.

With an occupancy level of 80 per cent a 300ml (10.1 fl. oz.) Press+Wash bottle will last four weeks being used in the sink (liquid soap/body lotion), and two weeks being used in the shower/bath (shampoo/hair/body-wash), according to company literature.

Press+Wash also offers an attractive high image design, availability in different designs and fragrances, complete hygiene with its patented drip-free design and easy and convenient use for guests.

It comes in 100 per cent biodegradable PET bottles. “Small packaged products lead to a great deal of waste, whereas with Press+Wash the soap, body lotion, or shampoo/body wash is consumed in its entirety,” says Weber.

SolTerre bathroom amenities

The custom SolTerre shower program designed exclusively for Days Inn allows the hotels to offer new bathroom features and amenities, says Melissa Stober, marketing/communications officer for Realstar Hospitality, master franchisor for both Days Inns and Motel 6.

“All Days Inns offer the SolTerre shower experience featuring increased light and elbowroom through an innovative window pane shower curtain and curved shower rod. The multi-action, pulsating six-function Waterpik showerhead lets you choose the water flow you prefer.”

Upgraded SolTerre bath amenities are made with citrus and sunflower enriched formulations.

“We’ve received spectacular feedback on this program from guests and hotel staff alike,” says Stober. “Starting your day off right with a great shower makes for a happy guest!”

Seasonal lotions

Delta Hotels is the only national Canadian hotel company providing customers with bathroom amenities that reflect the season, says company public relations co-ordinator Margaux Lee. “From September/October to March, we feature the June Jacobs Green Tea and Cucumber line. From March to October, we offer the June Jacobs Citrus collection.”

The June Jacobs spa collection uses high concentrations of carefully selected botanical and plant extracts that are nourishing, soothing and relaxing, says Lee. June Jacobs uses aromatic healing botanicals and protective antioxidants and is committed to a paraben and preservative free treatment of ingredients, she adds.

Recyclable soaps and bathroom tissues

Howard Johnson Canada has recently made the move to mandating that all of their guest bathroom amenities be environmentally friendly with all soaps being recyclable and in recyclable packaging. This program was introduced May 1 of this year.

“We are also in the process of instating a program that ensures all bathroom tissues are environmentally friendly,” spokesperson Emily Kinread adds. “The key to improving the sustainability position for all paper products is to increase the amount of recycled fiber and post consumer waste and meet the requirements of the Environmental Protection Agency. Our program will meet or exceed these requirements without losing the quality feel of the existing tissues program.”

Paper products go treeless and recyclable

All Ho Jo guestroom stationery is recyclable and produced by Marcam Printers Inc, the approved printer for Howard Johnson Canadian stationery.

And now in another paper-related innovation, the Sugar Cane Paper Company has come up with “treeless” hospitality products made from sugar cane. Its dinner napkins, toilet paper, tissue and paper towels are made from bagasse, the recycled waste of sugar cane. ‘Bagasse-made’ goods use less of the earth’s natural resources than any other product currently on the market, the company claims.

The company also has ‘bagasse-made’ bowls, plates, boxes, and cups instead of paper or Styrofoam versions. One hundred per cent of The Sugar Cane Paper Company’s paper products are from recycled materials—85 per cent is recycled waste (bagasse) and the remaining 15 per cent recycled paper.  Sugar Cane Paper Company products use only ECF chlorine-free bleaching and are 100 per cent biodegradable. They are also recyclable and can be composted.

Lower earth impact

Marietta Corporation, makers of hotel personal care amenities, has gone back to basics, by building green thinking into its production processes.  The company’s lines include FACE Stockholm, ProTerra, ProTerra Marine, Lord and Mayfair, Aromae, Via Nature with Soy extracts, Herbal Essences and Le Classique. They also make products for many national chains like Crowne Plaza, Four Points, Holiday Inn and Residence Inn, to name a few.

“Over the past 18 months, businesses have been bombarded with countless options as they make decisions regarding their efforts to appeal to their environmentally conscious customers, and the lodging industry is no different,” says Neha Bajaj, Marietta’s regional manager for Canada.

The green challenge is particularly difficult for environmentally conscious distributors like True North, which distributes Marietta products in Canada. “How can you manage environmental concerns beyond the product itself?” Bajaj asks. One possible answer is by selecting environmentally sound manufacturers and suppliers.

Marietta is taking steps to minimize their ecological footprint.  Some of these methods include:

o    Using methods that produce less residual waste, consume less material, and use less energy, like CO2-free warehouse material handling or using starch-based packing peanuts.
o    Using, in part, non-polluting wind power generated energy.
o    Using 100 per cent post-consumer paper for printed materials, and post-consumer plastics, paper, and corrugated card board whenever possible.
o    Using soy/vegetable-based printing inks, whenever possible.
o    Developing environmentally friendly packaging solutions ranging from using recycled materials and bio-resins (including PSM, glucose, corn-based resins)
o    Recycling programs of all scrap materials including plastics, paper, and corrugate to eliminate waste discharge through closed loops and solidification processes.

“As the consumer continues to demand green products from the travel industry, we must all remember that selecting the most environmentally-sound partner is not just based on the greenest product, but the manufacturing systems that go into producing these goods,” concludes Bajaj.

Homme Improvement

“Homme” Improvement is the name of just one of the new signature room amenities Sheraton Hotels & Resorts properties throughout North America rolled out earlier this year, through an exclusive partnership with Bliss. The guest room refresh is one component of a larger effort to revitalize the guest experience at Sheraton’s 408 hotels across 75 countries.

“Shine by Bliss,” a bath amenities line created exclusively for Sheraton, features fresh Mandarin and mint-scented shampoo, conditioner, soap and body lotion and is offered in Sheraton’s standard guest rooms. A refreshing shower gel and an exclusive body sponge will also be offered in upgraded rooms for Starwood Preferred Guests, in Sheraton Club rooms, at Sheraton Resorts and to VIP/Suite guests. Bliss thermal shaving cream from Bliss’ new ‘Homme’ Improvement line will also be provided to Club and VIP/Suite guests.

ELEMENT: art mounted on recycled tires

The first Canadian ELEMENT hotel will open in the Bathurst/King St. area of Toronto, in the third or fourth quarter of 2009.

ELEMENT Hotels is pioneering a new, smart approach to sustainable hoteling when it opens its doors in 2008. Instead of dictating responsibilities to guests, ELEMENT properties will be designed to make environmentally friendly choices intuitive. ELEMENT will join other chains in using dispensers for shampoos and conditioners, plus low-flow sink faucets and dual-flush and/or low gallonage toilets. These small changes conserve an estimated 4,358.6 gallons of water per room each year.

The ELEMENT design incorporates eco-friendly materials wherever possible, from the floor, which will feature carpets with up to 100 per cent recycled content and recycled carpet cushions, to the walls, where art will be mounted on a base made from recycled tires and where low VOC paints will improve indoor air quality for guests and staff. Biophilic design, which maximizes natural light and sightlines to the outdoors, will help guests connect with their surroundings.

“These small changes are motivated by the ELEMENT brand’s commitment to creating an environment where guests can thrive and be at their best, from their room to their world. In the end, it is about creating a balance. “No one wants a lecture on the environment when they travel,” points out Sue Brush, senior vice president at Starwood. “The idea behind ELEMENT is to make smart choices intuitive and to support our guests’ sustainable lifestyle, so we can simultaneously accommodate our guests and the environment.”  

IN THE BEDROOM -- Seasonal renewal

Seasonal renewal serves as the foundation of the design concept for Hotel Indigo, incorporating thoughtful changes to offer even the most frequent guest a unique experience with every stay. The Ottawa boutique hotel’s guestrooms feature hardwood floors and plush duvets to create a relaxed and inviting environment, says Atlific’s Brown. In guestrooms, signature full-wall murals, area rugs and furniture slip covers are changed periodically for a consistently fresh design.

Guestrooms also feature over-sized beds with throw pillows, plush duvets and overstuffed club chairs and ottomans for ideal comfort.

For business travellers

In order to win the hearts of travellers and build customer loyalty, like anything, in-room amenities must evolve and change with the times. New technologies are becoming more common in order to meet the needs of consumers, says Stober of Realstar Hospitality.

“At Days Inn we are reintroducing rooms designed with the business traveller in mind, she adds.

Beginning with a handful of properties, Days Business Place Rooms offer a laptop safe, a snack basket with items such as water and granola bar, a microwave and mini-fridge, spacious work desk with comfortable chair and a high-intensity work light.

Fans up to 10oF cooler

Many of today’s in-room products are designed to save energy.

Deco Breeze, based in Grand Rapids, WI, offers an innovative collection of designer portable fans that provide decorative options in a broad range of styles from taller floor standing models to tabletop and desktop sizes.
 
Available in indoor and outdoor options, the company’s designs range from coloured metallic and rattan weaves to resin and wood sculpted bases that incorporate traditional to tropical themes and more.

In addition to its decorative appeal, the designer fans also offer an eco-friendly appeal.  
The Deco Breeze designer portable fans are rated at 45 watts per hour at maximum speed (using less energy than a light bulb) and create enough air movement in a room to make it feel up to 10oF (5.6oC) cooler.  With its use, comfort can be maintained for up to a three per cent reduction in energy consumption for every one-degree Fahrenheit increase in thermostat settings.

The sleep experience

“As hotel brands reinvent themselves by adding new amenities, it becomes important to develop programs that will help define our brands in Canada. The common amenity in all hotel guestrooms is the bed,” says Stober of Realstar Hospitality.

“By year-end 2013, all Days Inn hotels will feature the DayDreamer bedding program. Implementation will begin in 2009, she adds.

With the design expertise of Treiguts & Associates and the fabric collections of Robert Allen, the new Days Inn bedding program has been created with the guest and hotel staff in mind, says Stober.

The DayDreamer bedding program consists of drapery, bed skirt and luxurious duvet in complementary colours, as well as comfortable pillows.

The drapery base cloth features a detailed pattern and texture that matches the bed skirt. The duvet cover and insert both include ties at every corner for easy daily maintenance.

A more enjoyable hotel electronics experience

Creating an improved guestroom experience can be achieved by offering guests a similar product to what they might have at home.

“The standard size for in-room TVs at Days Inn is 27 inches,” says Stober. “Upon replacement, Days Inn hotels must go with a flat screen TV and we’re recommending they go with a 32”-inch TV.

“With Motel 6, we’ve implemented a 26-inch flat screen TV standard for all new hotels—our location in Niagara Falls has received great feedback on their TVs,” Stober adds.

LG Electronics’ LC5 series flat-panel HDTV LCDs are a brand standard among all Delta Hotel properties and can be found in all Delta guestrooms, public spaces, restaurants and lounges, says Margaux Lee, public relations co-ordinator for Delta Hotels.

This particular series features LG’s exclusive XD Engine, which brings low-resolution analog signals to near HD levels. With improved brightness, contrast, detail, enhanced colour and reduced signal noise, these TVs produce a cinema-like high-resolution image on-screen.

They also incorporate next-generation digital video compression technology, MPEG-4. This kind of technology is the standard for compatibility with more than 150 national HD channels and 1,500 local broadcast HD and digital channels. Since this technology is built in to these TVs, it does not need an external box to be used with HD content providers.

HiH66 Audio System is a standard for Deluxe, Signature Club and suite-type rooms. This audio system allows guests to relax on their Delta Sanctuary bed and listen to their own selection of music by bringing their own iPods and MP3 players, which are easily placed into the docking station.

Both of these amenities are provided by Delta’s specified vendor, HotelSolutions.
Ottawa’s Hotel Indigo also features MP3/CD alarm clocks in each bedroom.

Rethinking minibars

Minibars have come a long way—Dometic’s Hi-Promatic wireless refreshment centres are fully automatic, with e-sensing technology that determines which products are removed and charges them directly to the room.

“Sensing trays notice a change in weight, send a signal to the back of the bar, which is transmitted wirelessly all the way down to the guest folio,” says Peter Kuzyk, national sales manager for the company. “It has big benefits for the hotel, because they don’t have to worry about cabling in the guest room—transmission is based on a WiFi system with routers.”

The first Hi-Promatic installation, in a Toronto hotel, is almost complete, and other systems are being installed in the U.S.

“The cost of running co-axial cabling is up to $150 per room.  Our product doesn’t have these costs  because there is no cable or router on the floor,” says Kuzyk.

The system has its energy-saving features as well. “The bars have fuzzy logic built into them to prevent over-and under-cooling—so there is steady cooling, and no wasted energy,” Kuzyk explains.

Dometic hasn’t used ozone-depleting substances for 10 years, and they also have a program to environmentally dispose of the cooling unit after its life cycle.

Fluorescent disposal available in U.S.

Marriott Hotels in the U.S. have also entered the recycling business, making sure all their fluorescent lamps are properly recycled. More than 500 Marriott Hotels  are implementing a program with Air Cycle Corporation to provide an environmentally safe process for disposing of fluorescent lamps.

Several Marriott hotels are equipped with the OSHA and EPA-compliant Bulb Eater. The device crushes over 1,000 fluorescent lamps (amount depends on size of lamps) and packs them into a 55-gallon drum. The process is fully enclosed and filtered so that the glass, aluminum, and harmful mercury vapours are contained.  When full, the drums are picked up and transported to an EPA-approved lamp recycling facility – all arranged by Air Cycle.
 
The future may include enlisting Air Cycle to help with recycling of electronic hardware, such as computers and calculators. Marriott may also consider using the Illinois firm for its international operations, starting with Canada.  This, however, would mean resolving how to transport recyclables across international borders.

LED mirrors
Just Steph Sales is launching two new lighted mirrors this fall, an LED lighted table top vanity and a wall mount, says owner Gary Day.
 
“These mirrors have LED lighting as opposed to the traditional incandescent light bulbs. The power consumption savings is considerable. They will use a total of 2.5 watts; however provide equivalent light of 40 watts.”

LED also provides a white, bright, non-glare light. Bulbs never need to be changed during the  life of the mirror. And there is no heat build up inside the mirror frame, adds Day.

A single cup of Joe

Howard Johnson Canada is also in the process of replacing all in-room, four-cup coffee makers with less wasteful single cup coffee makers.  The single cup coffee makers are also more sanitary, and with them an eco-friendly recyclable beverage cup will be introduced across the system.

Sheraton hotels are now serving up Starbucks products, both coffee and Tazo teas. The hotelier also offers its guests one cup brewers that enable users to prepare a single serving tailored to their current craving.

Save Your World

Save Your World L.L.C., makers of a personal care product line infused with organic yerba maté and organic aloe vera, has announced a hotel partnership program that makes it easy for hotels and their guests to do something for the environment every day. By offering guests Save Your World personal care products in hotel rooms, the hotel and hotel guest will be helping to preserve one of the most precious resources on the planet - our rainforests.
 
“Every guest that stays in a hotel room for just one night, and uses the Save Your World premium environmentally friendly products, will be saving one acre of rainforest for one year,” explains Scott Cecil, president of Save Your World.

Through an innovative leasing program that is the first of its kind globally, Save Your World is helping to preserve 200,000 acres of pristine Guyana rainforest from logging and other destructive development—a conservation concession that the company says is the first of its kind in the world.

Through contributions and product sales, Save Your World helps pay the annual lease fees required to maintain the agreement with the Guyana Forestry Commission.  This South American rainforest project is on one of the oldest geological shields in the world, and is one of the richest areas of plant and animal biodiversity in the world.

Lexington: advanced water conservation

The Lexington Collection of Fine Hotels, Plaza Hotels, and Resorts Worldwide has announced that their new construction Ogden, Kansas and Vernal, Utah hotels will showcase the next generation in environmental design.

While there are no Lexington hotels in Canada yet, America’s Best Value Inns is looking for Canadian franchisees for the brand.

The Lexington properties are on-target to drive revenue up and cost down through environmentally responsible design plans that call for a significant reduction in energy and water usage at the properties. Areas of advanced energy and water conservation for the Lexington hotels include:

o    CFIs (high efficiency light bulbs) throughout the building and outdoor lighting;
o    Solar light tubes on the third floor and common spaces;
o    Daylight light dimmers;
o    Low flow faucets and showers for reduced water consumption;
o    Room key power activators to turn power and HVAC on and off as guests enter and leave their room.

One of the Lexington Group’s stated goals for environmental design is to reduce building water use by 20 per cent through use of water efficient and low-flow fixtures for all water closets, urinals, lavatory faucets, showers and sinks.

“The Lexington brand is taking its forward-thinking environmental initiatives seriously,” said Steve Belmonte, CEO, president and partner of The Lexington Collection.