The world’s first “hometel” is being launched in Southampton this week – and Lee Peck Media is in the thick of it.
The agency has been involved in gaining editorial coverage for the revolutionary new concept that is room2 Southampton and putting together a sequence of events to showcase what’s on offer. These included a hard hat tour, a bloggers’ evening and the launch itself, which takes place this Wednesday evening.
Combining the best bits of a traditional hotel and the comforts, convenience and routine of living at home, the hometel from new brand room2 is set to change the face of the hospitality industry.
room2 founder and managing director Robert Godwin explains: “We’re looking to fill a huge gap in the market where people want a much more flexible approach to staying away and not losing the good routines they enjoy at home.”
Guest comfort and convenience are a priority so guests can check-in online and then access their room from their smart phone with no keys needed. Keyless mobile access will be available to guests and this, combined with 24-hour check-in and self check-in kiosks, which will be available later this summer, enable guests much greater flexibility in their arrival.
Continuing the idea of convenience and routine, room2 provides long term locker spaces. This means that business guests working away from home for long spells can settle into their own space and leave their essential items over the weekend and return on Monday with the minimum of disruption.
Calling upon Lee Peck Media’s whole range of services
Chairman of Lee Peck Media, Lee Peck, said: “It’s been fascinating developing this revolutionary new idea and seeing it come to fruition. What’s being particularly satisfying is that the launch has brought into play a whole range of our services including media relations, event management and social media. We’ve also used our contacts to put together a VIP list of the great and the good around the city to attend the launch.”
Picking up the theme of the hometel being a game changer, Robert Godwin explains: “Speaking to business people we discovered they were finding it hard to live their life the way they do at home when they stay in hotels. One of their biggest concerns was losing their routines and staying healthy.
“To help them we’re providing a gym and work out space coupled with the facility for guests to cook their own meals or order in. Guests can also enjoy the informal experience of the Living Room for a continental or grab and go breakfast. In one fell swoop it also eliminates the universal awkwardness felt by us all of eating alone in restaurants.”
Bridging the gap between an Airbnb and a hotel
He went on: “In essence, room2 bridges the gap between an Airbnb and a hotel. Guests have a bigger room than they might ordinarily expect, a work desk complete with USB chargers and free Wi Fi together with kitchen space but they also have the peace of mind of hotel-level security and cleanliness.”
Other benefits offered by room2 include:
- Continental breakfast and coffee bar
- Pantry style shop selling ingredients and food that guests can cook in their rooms
- Bar selling a range of beers, wines and spirits
- Laundry facilities and dry-cleaning collection and delivery
- Flexible communal space for working, networking, business meetings and socialising known as the Living Room
- Self check-in kiosks will be operating by mid-summer
Robert says: “It’s elements like this that make our ‘hometels’ completely different to aparthotels or anything else out there. Our ambition is to be the brand that creates and leads the hometel category in the UK and we’re perfectly positioned to do that. We’re young, independent and dynamic, which means we can move fast to fill this void in the market.”
Find out more at www.room2.com.