16 years
As the theory of large numbers show, people made the same decisions regarding same logical parameters. (Or maybe it belongs to the same flavour of beer? :D )
Well, large numbers do not apply here as we are only a few people who decide that sort of thing, we apply different logical parameters and to make matters worse, I am not a big beer drinker. I prefer wine. Cheers for yours, by the way, it was delicious.
The promotional prices were good, but that's because you have opened in February... Although that's the time when most Americans visit Berlin, as I've heard. :rolleyes:
Of course. We wouldn´t have started with only 9 Euros in July. Still, I was quite surprised how well that worked. We haven´t done that before. We should have done it in Munich (where we opened in September, which is possibly the worst month - apart from the two Oktoberfest weeks the first winter was really depressing) and we are going to stick to that strategy.
I didn´t notice a flood of Americans in Berlin. A surprising number of our guests were from Spain!
A good hostel bed can be sold at almost any price. You can always ask for more if you offer more than the others.
True, but only if the potential guests actually know it´s good. A well-known brand name helps a lot, but IMHO word of mouth even more. The idea for the Berlin opening was to attract as many guests as possible regardless of cost and get the word of mouth out there. And hundreds of reviews on Hostelworld.
This game is like the one I played several years ago: Risk.
You attack the neighbor countries especially where you can move more soldiers at a round. Each round you get bonus soldiers which you can use for expansion.
Ah, risk! Haven´t played that in a long time. One of the best board games of all times. "Diplomacy" is even better, because it eliminates the dice. No luck needed, just negotiation skills and a good strategy.
I suppose you move along towards Prague, as Berlin, Munich, Vienna is already neighbor cities. I don't even understand how come you haven't opened there already... If not the expectation of the Euro. :confused:
Prague is very high on our list, we just haven´t found a good property yet. Bad luck there.
There´s this triangle: time, quality, price. If you want to obtain something, you usually can´t get it quick, cheap and in good quality, but you can always get it with any two of these attributes. We rather trade off time.
As long as you are busy with your 2009 opening of the third, downtown hostel in Vienna, also as I can see there is One Klaus - One year - One hostel strategy
The opening will be in winter 2009/10, but that still means it´ll keep us very busy in the entire year 2009. Furtunately it´s not only "one Klaus". Opening a new place keeps four people busy here. Less busy in Vienna though, because we don´t have to start with an entirely new team like in Berlin and Munich.
I don´t care much about events like footy cups. Sure, it´s extra cash, but not that much. Have a look at our Vienna rates in June - compared to some other hostels, they are very moderate. I don´t want to piss off our bread-and-butter-clientele. Backpackers appreciate it if there´s a huge party in town, but they are not willing to pay doubled prices.
Some hostels in Berlin and Munich had to pay for their greed in 2006. Ocupancy rates were not even near of their expectations during the World Cup. I was right all along. It was a great pleasure for me to remind them of that after it was over. :cool:
I expect you guys not before than 2011-2013.
That´s a good shot.
And I guess you gonna wait until the office building bubble blows first...
There is a bubble in Budapest, we have already found that out! ;)
I´m waiting in awe for the burst of the London bubble though. The troups are ready and fired up for "Operation Overlord II"! :D
We will totally obliterate those Brits!!!
Not to mention the agencies at the train station, also the HI is on their pocket, and many more. At least they concentrate more on their hotels, also their hostel business is getting worse, regarding the more quality demand and the expansion of hostels. Maybe you need a good moment to buy their hostels out? ;)
Which one would you buy out?
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