UK Ferry Tickets

Every time a chief executive shoots himself in the foot, his or her actions are labelled ‘doing a Ratner’.

Gerald Ratner was, you may recall, particularly unflattering about his own jewellery range in a speech at the Albert Hall, which was picked up by the press. His customers quickly deserted him and his business collapsed.

I wondered if Supranational Hotels managing director Niels Pedersen had heard of Ratner when I read his comments in a trade newspaper.

Pedersen urged five-star hotels to maintain the highest possible prices this summer because discounts can attract the wrong type of person.

He said regular clients were bound to be “a touch snobbish towards cut-price customers who can be socially out of their depth and may be badly behaved.”

He went on to say clientele attracted via web portals can do harm to the image of the property. “The key test for the wealthy is whether their children will meet the right kind of people,” he added.

Interesting comments. It’s not exactly a ‘Ratner’, because Supranational represent hotels, not their customers, but it is a dangerous game criticising people who stay in those properties.

Firstly, it’s all very well Pedersen saying that five-star hotels should keep their prices up. Does he think they discount for a laugh? Of course, they’d like to keep prices up, but it’s a competitive world and they need to fill beds.

The web portals bring vital business to hotels. The thought that it’s a trouble-making underclass using these sites is outdated and offensive nonsense.

Honest, working people can now afford to fly and stay in high quality accommodation in a way that previous generations could only have dreamed about. Isn’t that a good thing? And as far as behaving badly is concerned, have you seen how some of these rich, spoilt kids and adults behave when they are away?

Guest Article by Jeremy Skidmore

Tuesday, May 30th, 2006