Located at the foot of the slopes of the largest ski area in the world (Les 3 Vallées in Savoie), Hotel Lodji is a unique address that combines the authenticity of the mountains with the comfort of luxury services.
In this video interview (infectious good humour alert!), Pierre Baudinet, the hotel manager, talks about his partnership with 1Check and Bowo and the solutions that were introduced to facilitate both the work of his staff and communication with the guests.
“I am totally convinced by the system, it’s obviously a time-saver. I’m sure the housekeeper does half the walking she used to. And the guests are super happy.”
Pierre Baudinet, Director of Hotel Lodji
New owners, bringing a fresh look at existing processes
It was in 2004 that Pierre Baudinet's family, armed only with their love of the region and an entrepreneurial spirit, took over the hotel and decided to run it themselves.
In 2020, sons Pierre and Laurent, who do not have a hotel industry background, teamed up with their father to give the hotel a new identity. The family set to work to extend and refurbish the hotel to give it a more high-end profile, while maintaining its festive, family oriented and Liégeois character. The hotel moved up from 3 to 4 stars.
Like all good entrepreneurs, Pierre and Laurent also addressed the many different issues the hotel presented. Their perspective and expertise meant they could take a fresh look at the processes in place.
They quickly identified a major sticking point: the flow of information and communication between staff and with customers was inefficient and generated more friction than solutions.
Information was all over the place, from little paper notes to walkie-talkies, not to mention the kilometres of walking the housekeeper did each day to pass on her instructions. Also, reception was overwhelmed by customers contacting them every time there was an incident.
Very quickly, and with the staff's agreement, the hotel introduced the 1check solution to improve the flow of information, maintenance work and, by extension, quality of service.
“I reckoned an app was the most efficient solution, avoiding a bunch of phone calls and a paper chain”
Pierre Baudinet, Director of Hotel Lodji
The 1check solution improves communication between staff and their productivity
Our partner 1check provides software solutions to manage and optimise accommodation-related operations. Among the features that the Lodji hotel uses on a daily basis, Pierre Baudinet lists:
- real-time overview of room cleaning status
- notification of problems in the rooms
- monitoring of incidents and maintenance activities
- management of product stocks
- incident reporting by customers
For Pierre, the benefits of the 1check solution are clear.
It enables better communication between reception, housekeeping, and maintenance, by centralising all the information of the different players in the same place (bye-bye post-its).
In addition, the time saving for the housekeeper is significant. Especially at the beginning of the day, organising the chambermaids' tasks and the room plan.
Finally, 1check enables remote incident monitoring (the owners are not always on site). And statistical monitoring of performance indicators also helps them to continuously improve processes.
The result is more fluid communication between the staff and less time walking! All of which means staff can concentrate on their real job.
1check was certain, however, that Hotel Lodji could go even further towards enriching the guest experience and talked to the Baudinet family about Bowo.
The Bowo interface complements 1check and serves as a bridge between customers and staff
Quite simply, the Bowo guest app slots into the 1check app, acting as a customer interface: a more user-friendly interface, providing a link between the guest and maintenance and housekeeping services.
Using this interface, guests can mention / report incidents and, at the same time, access a digital room directory that highlights all the services and offers the hotel provides: wellness, massage options, restaurant menu, etc.
Bowo therefore makes direct communication between the customer and maintenance easier and avoids having to go through reception. In addition, automatic language management means there is less of a language barrier for international customers, and therefore more qualitative customer service. Finally, the digital room directory engages customers more fully, meaning they are more likely to spend.
“The Bowo team is young, dynamic and friendly. You can feel a positive dynamic that's typical of a start-up: they are happy doing what they do and that really comes through.”
Pierre Baudinet, Director of Hotel Lodji
1 check X Bowo in 3 words
When we ask Pierre Baudinet to sum the partnership between 1check and Bowo up in 3 words, here are the terms he uses: « Efficiency, visibility, innovation ».
“Efficiency because working time is reduced. Visibility because it lets me keep an eye on what is happening at the hotel remotely, from home. And innovation, because although it's something that is bound to take off because it's so useful, few hotels provide it at the moment.”
Pierre Baudinet, Director of Hotel Lodji
Want to know how 1check and Bowo can help you gain productivity and improve the customer experience? Ask us for a demo.
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