According to the US Travel Association, more than half of Americans are planning to take a trip within the next three months.
As COVID-19 vaccination has become more widespread, hospitality and tourism suppliers, including Front Desk Supply, have been seeing increased orders for supplies. These orders began as early as March 2021. While international travel still has a relatively high barrier for entry, domestic travel destinations are likely to be overrun this summer; hot spots like Florida, the Gulf Coast, and California are forecasted to have large increases in the volume of tourists.
Here are two important reasons hotels and motels in both popular and “less” popular tourism destinations should stock up on inventory now, rather than risking running out of critical supplies this summer.
Reason 1: Summer travel is starting earlier.
One important, albeit obvious, reason hotels and motels should stock up on inventory now is that the bottled-up demand for travel -aggravated by the restrictions on travel that have been in place for over a year now – is about to explode! In fact, the term “vacci-cation” is trending as vaccinated individuals feel higher levels of comfort in venturing out of their local areas for vacations.
Reason 2: The only certainty is uncertainty.
Fluctuations in travel guidelines this summer are almost certain to happen, and you don’t want to find yourself unprepared. COVID-19 restrictions could change at a moment’s notice, and if cases surge there’s a chance new lockdowns could occur in different parts of the world.
On the other hand, you don’t want to find yourself unprepared amid a large influx of guests. Fortunately, if you happen to over-prepare, many hotel supply items are timeless, so it doesn’t hurt to have extra inventory on hand.
Reason 3: Custom Hotel Supply Items Require Several Weeks of Lead Time
Front Desk Supply’s lead times are between 2-4 weeks for most custom products, even if the custom design is a re-order, and times vary based on product and capacity that week. Further, FedEx regularly is experiencing longer than usual times to ship.
However, if you’re in a pinch, you can find a selection of hotel inventory items readily available for purchase if you’ve run out here!
Remember, now is not the time to rely on your business’s historical data to inform inventory decisions. Put your hotel’s best foot forward by avoiding a “low inventory panic” as you finally welcome back travelers.
Unsure about how to help your hotel continue functioning successfully during these changing times? Download our Free Hotel Checklist. This list provides your hotel with information on how to keep your doors open safely and successfully.
Many of the items on our hotel checklist are available for purchase on our new website.
