EDMONTON -- As many Edmonton businesses cope with the challenges brought on by COVID-19, some are learning to pivot their strategies and adapt to a new normal.
The hospitality industry has been hit particularly hard by the pandemic, so CTV News Edmonton decided to take a look at two of that sectors’ businesses that have adjusted their former models.
Edmonton’s Fairmont Hotel Macdonald has been providing accommodations to guests in the city since 1915, but as COVID-19 shutdown much of the economy, Director of Sales and Marketing Danielle Lundy says they’ve been seeing new patterns from their guests.
“It’s definitely quieter for the hotel,” said Lundy. “We’re seeing people take advantage of the staycations, we saw a lot of guests over the weekends.”
In response to those changing patterns, the hotel has launched a new package aimed at getting locked-out office workers away from their homes by offering up rooms as temporary offices Mondays to Thursdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
“For some of us we’ve been working from home now for six months and we did definitely see that there was a need for that quiet space to start meeting again to have that professional workspace,” Lundy said.
For a flat fee of $159, on top of the room for the day, guests can access Hotel Macdonald’s amenities such as its swimming pool and gym.
“Business has changed. For everyone it has changed and we really need to find new ways to make sure we’re accommodating what the new needs are,” Lundy told CTV News Edmonton from inside one of the hotel’s deluxe rooms.
Corso Group, which operates three Edmonton restaurants, also had to think outside the box during the shutdown.
Before the pandemic Corso restaurants had never offered anything other than a dine-in experience, but Corso Group owner and manager Allen Andrlknew that would need to change.
“There was no choice,” Andrl told CTV News inside his Uccellino restaurant. “Economically we could not generate. We need revenue, we cannot stay closed.”
That’s why they came up with their Corso-at-home kits.
Corso Group Owner and Manager Allen Andrl shows off the Corso-at-Home kits (Jay Rosove/CTV News Edmonton)
The kits contain the ingredients and recipes so people can get the restaurant experience at home.
Andrl hired a web designer to completely revamp their site to allow for online ordering.
“We had to basically construct everything from scratch,” said Andrl.
With the lockdown now lifted, Uccellino is once again offering its customers a dine-in experience, albeit at just over half-capacity due to COVID-19 guidelines, but that doesn’t mean the at-home kits offer has ended.
“We are going to continue doing this,” Andrl said. “Even once the pandemic is finished and once things go back to normal.”
Over at the Fairmont hotel with its new package, a similar sentiment.
“As long as the need is there. So, I foresee us continuing to work from home for awhile in most cases and so we’ll continue to keep this package available to people who would like that quiet environment,” said Lundy.
Two out-of-the-box business models born from a pandemic, but maybe here to stay.
