As those of us in the commercial real estate industry continue to discover and adapt to new technology, the basics of business—research, due diligence, networking, relationships and transactions—remain as important as ever. Cushman & Wakefield | PICOR exec Barbi Reuter (snapped here at a recent CREW convention in Seattle) reminds us of our goal when it comes to technology: don't replace these core competencies; enhance them. How: through data and analytics tools, as well as social media. Barbi adds that, while data certainly contributes to decisionmaking, it represents only one piece of the puzzle. While more accessible and accurate data make all the difference when it comes to expanding potential for profit growth and delivering results, success in the digital age lies not in the efficiency of technology itself, but with the people who wield it. Technology doesn't equal change; it gives us great capabilities. For more information on our Bisnow partner, RealMassive, click here. Read the full report, including compelling perspectives from industry influencers at RealMassive.com, here. 

When Sir Richard Branson opened his first Virgin Hotel in January 2015, the 26-story, 250-room property in Chicago's CBD, he told reporters he designed it to be “female friendly” to suit the needs of “female business travelers.”

“They were not particularly catered for by any hotel,” Sir Richard tells Bisnow.

His wife, Joan, initially tipped him off to the problem—complaining that there was never enough light in hotels to put her makeup on; most hotel rooms were poorly lit. “This was one of the first things we paid attention to,” he says. “The rooms have been well-thought-out for this. Even when they take a shower, we have a bench in there where they can sit, take their time and do whatever.”

In fact, in the past 10 years, the number of female business travelers has doubled, according to Virgin Hotels CEO Raul Leal, jumping from 25% of the traveling population to almost 50%. “So as we were designing the guest rooms, we decided to design those rooms from the point of view of the female business traveler,” Raul tells us. “We started to have a variety of focus groups, and we started speaking directly to many female business travelers. We wanted to create a better guest room through the eyes of the female business traveler because we just thought they were more discriminating in terms of details.” 

Co-designed by the Rockwell Group Europe and Virgin Hotel's in-house design team, Raul adds what makes a Virgin Hotels guest room different is this: when Virgin is designing something, it already has a point of view about the product before it even overlays the colors, the fabrics, etc. So it's designed to make the room work better. 

“When you walk into a guest room at a Virgin Hotel, it feels like you're walking into a luxurious dressing room,” Leal says, “where you're able to drop off your luggage, your keys, plug in your phone.”

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