What impressed you?
Peter Gebhardt: Awareness and reach are the two attributes that I can rely on as a hotelier at Best Western. By joining an internationally successful hotel brand, we have gained access to new national and international customer groups.
What have you achieved?
Peter Gebhardt: In the first two years, we were able to achieve double-digit percentage increases in occupancy and average rates. This does not only include business travellers. Best Western accommodates many sports groups and the Best Western Plus Hotel Stadtquartier Haan also has groups from handball, football, ice hockey and basketball in this segment.
What do you benefit from the most?
Peter Gebhardt: Best Western is versatile and offers hoteliers a wide range of services. In addition to the loyalty programme, human resources and revenue management, the sales power in relation to international business travellers is particularly important to me. The hotel reaches local customers independently.
Why would you recommend us?
Peter Gebhardt: The Best Western brand logo on the hotel gable is much more than just a (notice) sign. It is a door and opportunity opener for private and institutional hoteliers who want to market their hotel in Germany and worldwide. In my opinion, awareness and reach are the main focus of the partnership.
What is it about the strategic partnership with BWH Hotels that is so appealing to you?
Tamara Staudinger: What particularly impresses me about the partnership with BWH Hotels, in addition to the booking success thanks to the international brand presence, is a crucial point: The personal, fast and competent communication. We can always rely on direct, helpful and proactive support for a wide range of topics such as GDPR, recruitment, purchasing issues, sales, MICE and generational change. One specific example is this year's fraud scam on the booking portal Booking.com. BWH Hotels provided us with both preventative measures and specific recommendations for action at an early stage.
Another example of proactive support: The change in GDPR regulations. A youtube video was embedded on our website that was no longer permitted in this form following a change to the GDPR. Even before we could take action ourselves, we received a call with the relevant information and detailed instructions on how we could implement it in compliance with the regulations.
What successes have you been able to achieve through the connection?
Tamara Staudinger: The cooperation with the aviation sector and other industries that attach great importance to compliance with regulations and standards is particularly remarkable. In these sectors, an independent hotel is perceived much differently than a hotel that is part of the BWH Hotels network, which gives us clear advantages.
We also benefit from significant competitive advantages through affordable and professional services, for example via platforms such as AMEX, Expedia or CWT, which would be difficult for us to access without the brand connection. The distribution channels provided by BWH Hotels are also of a quality and reach that we, as an independent hotel, would not be able to afford.
In addition, the Best Western brand name has a positive influence on guests' purchasing decisions - also in the leisure segment. Trust in the brand gives potential guests the assurance that they will receive a consistent high level of quality from us.
Looking to the future, which services will you benefit from the most?
Tamara Staudinger: We particularly benefit from services that reduce our workload and increase our efficiency at the same time. By outsourcing sales and marketing activities, e.g. in the context of trade fairs, we can focus on our core business. BWH Hotels represents our interests in a professional manner.
Another significant advantage: The global processing of travel agency commission settlements. Not only does it save time and resources, it also ensures an efficient and smooth process. This is what makes us relevant for international sales partners in the first place.
We also utilize the purchasing benefits that are available to us through Progros and Aktivbank. These include optimised price negotiations and simplified invoicing processes, which reduce the pressure on our business.
Why would you recommend a partnership with BWH Hotels?
Tamara Staudinger: BWH Hotels offers a number of advantages that are noticeable in our everyday lives. The BWH Hotels head office provides us with quick and competent advice on a wide range of issues. Thanks to their expertise and practical solutions, many issues can be dealt with efficiently. In particular, personal and telephone availability ensures that problems are solved quickly and efficiently.
Another benefit is the proactive information about legal changes or similar that are relevant to the hotel business. This means we are always up to date and can avoid many risks at an early stage. Those who actively participate also benefit from the strong community, which promotes professional dialogue between hoteliers and offers valuable insights and support.
Last but not least, BWH Hotels represents its members comprehensively in order to strengthen their visibility and market position long-term. This combination of expertise, network and services makes BWH Hotels a strong partner.
What convinced you to join the Best Western Plus brand for your hotels in Cologne and Papenburg, and from 2025 also in Dresden?
Sascha Brezovac: BWH Hotels offers a comprehensive and high-quality range of services covering all relevant areas of the hotel industry. These include: Buying, sales, group and conference reservations, marketing, customer loyalty programmes, social media, training and the targeted promotion of young talents.
What successes have you been able to achieve through the partnership?
Sascha Brezovac: I would particularly like to emphasize the many advantages that a change of brand brings: Even before the actual change, BWH Hotels has already made an impression with careful preparation and precise planning, which guarantee a smooth integration process. Regular communication between the specialist departments of both parties ensures a harmonized approach to customers from various industries and market segments. This not only leads to a positive response, but also to the acquisition of new business and conference customers for the hotels. Group and conference enquiries are processed professionally and efficiently via the MICE Desk. This is complemented by a modern online presence: Hotels receive additional visibility and advertising opportunities via their own websites and targeted social media campaigns. The support of strategic partners also contributes significantly to reach and awareness. All these factors not only promote the profitability of the hotel, but also the enthusiasm and dynamics within the hotel team.
Looking to the future, which services will benefit you the most?
Sascha Brezovac: BWH Hotels scores highly with its strong focus on business customers. Attractive purchasing conditions and the customer-oriented loyalty programme ‘Best Western Rewards’ ensure long-term customer loyalty.
Why would you recommend a partnership with BWH Hotels?
Sascha Brezovac: For me, personal contact and regular professional dialogue in all important areas complete the offer. The BWH Hotels Service Centre in Eschborn offers hotels and partners expert advice and practical support at all times.
What was your starting point or challenge?
Karim Martin: As a very individual, large company in a region that is rather poorly developed in terms of tourism, we were looking for a partner who could give us an international profile. As a private company, we were very limited here. We are a very diverse hotel in terms of guest segments: From conference guests to business travellers and tourists. It was a great challenge to cater for all these segments and to successfully cater for all of them, from acquisition to retaining regular customers.
What convinced you to join the BW Signature Collection by Best Western?
Karim Martin: We expected the partnership to support us in operations, sales and raising our profile. We are now positioned on all relevant booking channels via one of the largest hotel groups in the world. As a hotel team, we will also gain expertise in the specialist areas of digitalisation, online marketing and sales.
What makes the difference to you?
Karim Martin: BWH Hotels unites a very broad spectrum of hotel portfolios from budget to top level hotels, so I was able to find myself here. The most important thing was to maintain the individuality and regionality of our hotel and at the same time to benefit from international standards and structures in the operational process of one of the largest hotel groups in the world. The BW Signature Collection emphasises this necessity. I also had good experience and trust in the group when working in a Best Western Premier Hotel.
What successes have you been able to achieve through the partnership?
Karim Martin: The partnership is still very young, but we are already seeing a significant boost in business in all segments in the first year of cooperation. The Rewards loyalty programme has brought us many new guests and the volume of enquiries for events and group bookings has also increased.
What convinced you to connect two of your b'mine hotels to the WorldHotels Crafted Collection and thus enter into a strategic partnership with BWH Hotels?
Matthias Beinlich: With the b'mine hotels and the unique selling point ‘CarLift’, we already had a high level of local and national recognition. What we lacked, however, was additional international reach. We were looking for a partner who understood our unique brand. And give us the opportunity to become part of an international hotel collection without having to give up our own identity.
What successes have you been able to achieve through this collaboration?
Matthias Beinlich: The partnership has enabled us to increase our visibility and bookings. On the one hand, because we can also be booked via other channels that we did not previously serve. Secondly, because BWH's sales strength, such as international RFPs or on-site customer appointments, also allows us to connect with new customers.
Which services will benefit you the most in the future?
Matthias Beinlich: We certainly benefit from the extensive marketing and sales resources that BWH Hotels makes available to us. Even if we are not yet able to fully utilise them. Another powerful tool that we could not have implemented ourselves as a hotel group is participation in the rewards programme. Not only do we benefit from this in terms of customer loyalty, but our guests also benefit from the many Frequent Flyer programmes associated with it.
Why would you recommend a hotelier to partner with BWH Hotels?
Matthias Beinlich: The partnership with BWH Hotels, in particular the WorldHotels Crafted Collection, offers numerous advantages that are extremely attractive for hoteliers. The most important ones for me: High international reach and global awareness, the comprehensive regional and international marketing and distribution offering tailored to different target groups. The international media presence and the WorldHotels Rewards programme, the competitiveness of the hotel through access to extensive resources and training programmes. And last but not least, entrepreneurial independence: With the full benefits of a WorldHotels membership, the hotel also retains control of all its decisions.
What convinced you to add two of your hotels to the BW Signature Collection by Best Western?
Oliver Schreiber: Joining the Palmenwald Schwarzwaldhof in Freudenstadt and, from 2025, the Wellness & National Park Hotel Schliffkopf to the BW Signature Collection by Best Western has several reasons: 1) The international reputation and extensive network of BWH Hotels, 2) Greater visibility and expanded market opportunities. We can optimise the guest experience through access to global resources and standards without compromising regional charm. We also benefit from a strengthened marketing and sales structure and improved booking through modern technology platforms.
What successes have you been able to achieve through the connection?
Oliver Schreiber: One significant advantage is the increasing internationalisation of our guest base at the Hotel Das Palmenwald Schwarzwaldhof in Freudenstadt, which is reflected in increased demand from various countries. The development of new guest groups - both in the tourism and business customer segments - is clearly due to the rewards programme. The qualitative change in customers is reflected both in the increased demand for bookings and in the average rate, which has risen by around 7%. These developments confirm that the partnership has a positive impact on our hotel profile and therefore also on income and profit.
Looking to the future, which services will benefit you the most?
Oliver Schreiber: The global sales platform and the associated extended bookability via various channels are particularly valuable and contribute to a continuous increase in visibility. In addition, training and further education programmes that contribute to improving service quality and employee development are of great importance in order to remain attractive in the area of recruitment.
Why would you recommend a hotelier to partner with BWH Hotels?
Oliver Schreiber: I would recommend it because it offers the perfect balance between independence and comprehensive support. Hotels keep their individual identity but benefit from a strong global brand and an extended network, which increases visibility and guest base. BWH Hotels supports with marketing, sales resources and revenue management, which increases occupancy and opens up new markets. The Best Western Rewards loyalty programme is a further benefit, as it strengthens guest loyalty and increases the return rate, leading to more stable occupancy and more direct bookings in the long term. This type of programme would never be feasible for a single hotel.