What began as a promising start to 2020 was soon crushed by the global spread of COVID-19. Although it affected hundreds of sectors worldwide, few were as badly impacted as the travel and hospitality industries. Our immediate response to these drastic industry changes was to step up and offer assistance to our clients.
“RMS is a family-owned business, and we see our clients as an extension of that family”, said Peter Buttigieg, Managing Director of RMS. “We were pleased to be able to help those facing significant financial challenges by offering hardship relief when they needed it most.”
Profits aside, our number one focus was keeping our clients in business. Since rolling out the hardship relief, we’ve received a number of positive responses from clients, with many impressed with our forward-thinking, quick implementation and ongoing support throughout the pandemic.
As one client in the UK said, it wasn’t so much the discount that was offered; it was the fact that one of their most important partners was prepared to come to the table and offer support. If all their suppliers did this, it would have made the whole COVID-19 shutdown a lot easier on hospitality businesses.
Throughout the pandemic, we stayed ahead of the game and designed new functionality ready for when properties could reopen. We launched our health declaration and contact tracing form wizard which is now part of our pre-check-in process and can be completed by guests via their mobile device. This is a contactless way for guests to acknowledge and sign the declaration prior to arrival. The completed forms are stored under the guest’s reservation details, and properties are immediately notified if action is required. This functionality complies with government protocols and is free to all our clients.
With COVID restrictions starting to lift, it’s great to see UK hotels and holiday parks given the all-clear to reopen, just in time for the summer season. Following the announcement surrounding hospitality tax cuts, the UK tourism industry certainly looks set to thrive again. We’re looking forward to continuing to support our clients as we work together towards a brighter 2020.
