Budget hotels upgrade services for the future

Business transformation and product upgrades are key to the survival and future growth of budget hotels that are in decline - and BTG Homeinns Hotels Group, whose first-quarter profit surged over 116 percent year-on-year to 75.39 million yuan ($11.8 million), is a good example, experts said.

Sun Jian, general manager of BTG Homeinns, said the budget hotel operator renovated or refurbished 100 hotels since 2017 with new chairs, lamps, sofas and walls. It also set up areas for tea breaks and buffets, and introduced more fashionable design, to make customers feel at home, the company said. "Budget hotels cannot sell (their products and services) for 10 years without any change," Sun said.

Budget hotels in China saw a rapid growth from 2005 to 2010. By Jan 1, there were 32,444 such hotels operating in China. Back in 2005, there were only 522, according to the China Hospitality Association.