ACCOR Plus Innovates Again as a Leading Lifestyle Subscription (#716)

Emilie: We are in a subscription economy.

Emilie: This economy has grown tremendously for the past decade.

Emilie: Actually, it’s more than 400%, which is, I think, three times more than the SP500.

Emilie: And it’s estimated to reach 2 trillion US dollar business by 2034.

Mehdi: Experiences are at the heart of all ACCOR.

Mehdi: We’ve seen that not only in studies, but also in the way that all of our hospitality suites, be it in tennis tournaments, the French Tennis Open, Paris Saint-Germain, the French Football Club, or at the ACCOR Stadium in Sydney, all of these suites have got the best members, the most highly engaged members.

Mehdi: And once again, it’s both advocacy and repeat business.

Mehdi: Thank you, Paula, for also bringing loyalty marketing to the front of the stage.

Mehdi: We participated in different conferences talking about loyalty, because loyalty is a very complex marketing sphere.

Mehdi: And I do believe that we learn from each other.

Paula: Hello and welcome to Let’s Talk Loyalty and Loyalty TV, a show for loyalty marketing professionals.

Paula: I’m Paula Thomas, the founder and CEO of Let’s Talk Loyalty and Loyalty TV, where we feature insightful conversations with loyalty professionals from the world’s leading brands.

Paula: If you work in loyalty marketing, join us every week to hear the latest ideas and insights for loyalty marketing specialists around the world.

Paula: Hello and welcome to Let’s Talk Loyalty and Loyalty TV.

Paula: Today is one of my final ever episodes as a host of our show.

Paula: As many of you know, I’ve announced that I’m hanging up my microphone after six years of conducting interviews.

Paula: This is going to allow our global panel of hosts to continue creating remarkable content for you and allow me time to focus on growing our business.

Paula: But now I’ll be doing that from behind the scenes.

Paula: Given this decision, I’m delighted to be back today interviewing the ACCOR Group, which is joining us today for their fifth interview on the show.

Paula: And in fact, ACCOR is the most frequent brand that we’ve interviewed on Let’s Talk Loyalty.

Paula: Given the incredibly generous insight we’ve had over the years directly from Mehdi Hemici, the chief loyalty and e-commerce officer of ACCOR.

Paula: Mehdi joins me again today along with Emilie Couton, the CEO of ACCOR Plus, the subscription product from the ACCOR Group, which as you’ll hear today is going from strength to strength.

Paula: I hope you enjoy my interview today with Mehdi Hemici and Emilie Couton from the ACCOR Group.

Paula: So Mehdi and Emilie, welcome to Let’s Talk Loyalty and Loyalty TV.

Mehdi: Pleasure meeting you again.

Mehdi: Great to be on the show.

Paula: Amazing.

Paula: Thank you, Paula.

Paula: Great.

Paula: And Emilie, it’s your first time.

Paula: So welcome to you.

Paula: I know you’re a member of our audience.

Paula: So that always makes me super happy.

Paula: And Mehdi, you and I know each other very well.

Paula: And you have been on the show before.

Paula: So welcome back.

Paula: But I think first time on video for you, Mehdi, if I’m not mistaken.

Paula: We only did audio together before.

Mehdi: I think the voice is better than the looks.

Mehdi: But anyway, we’ll get through it.

Paula: You know, it’s a lot easier.

Paula: I can tell you, I totally underestimated the pressure of adding video into our content production schedule.

Paula: But here we are and the audience love it.

Paula: And that’s the most important thing.

Paula: And even before I ask our first question, which I think our audience know is going to be about your favorite books.

Paula: And I also just realized in preparing for today that ACCOR is the most featured brand on Let’s Talk Loyalty.

Paula: So it is absolutely monumental from my perspective.

Paula: It’s your fifth appearance on the show, four of which I either have hosted or am hosting, of course, today.

Paula: So a big milestone and I suppose a great celebration of our friendship together.

Paula: So let’s get into our conversation.

Paula: I’m going to ask, first of all, our standard opening question, which, as you know, is all about understanding books that have inspired you, either in your life, in your leadership style, or of course, in terms of developing your loyalty strategy.

Paula: So Mehdi, I know you have one that I am familiar with.

Paula: So in terms of your favorite book, I’m going to come to you first.

Paula: Tell our global loyalty audience, what have you been reading over the summer?

Paula: Yeah.

Mehdi: So my favorite book changes regularly, of course.

Mehdi: And this is one that I read very recently.

Mehdi: I shared this with you over the summer.

Mehdi: It’s called Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Ghidara.

Mehdi: It’s one that I would advise anybody that wants to work in the hotel business or in hospitality business more widely.

Mehdi: People don’t really know the power of basically human connections.

Mehdi: And this book talks about the incredible power of giving people more than what they expect.

Mehdi: The book shows how human connections purpose can enable excellence in the service culture.

Mehdi: And it’s quite astounding because it talks about how 11 Madison Park was voted best restaurant in the world.

Mehdi: But how both inspirational and practical tips can enable everybody working together to reach that excellence.

Mehdi: I really found it incredibly inspiring.

Mehdi: And it’s actually not only for the hospitality industry, it’s for anybody that has managerial responsibilities.

Mehdi: It’s a fantastic book.

Paula: Amazing, amazing.

Paula: And I did see the TED Talk for that one as well Mehdi.

Paula: So I’ll make sure that we put that in the show notes for anyone who might want a quick snippet and introduction.

Paula: But even the title is amazing.

Paula: That idea of being unreasonable, because life is hard and business is hard.

Paula: And to go the extra mile in terms of doing something unreasonable, I think it’s incredibly inspiring.

Paula: So thrilled to hear that you’ve been inspired by that.

Paula: So, Emilie, over to you, Em, what do you enjoy reading?

Emilie: Well, I really enjoyed reading that book too.

Emilie: So, but I can’t pick twice the same.

Emilie: So I came back to a very small book that is very useful when you want to analyze the health of the relationship, for instance, which is called The Thin Book of Trust from Sharpe-Feltman.

Emilie: It’s an old book, like 20 years old.

Emilie: But what I like, it gives language and a framework to analyze trust in a relationship, whether it’s personal or professional.

Emilie: And so trust has four dimensions, care, sincerity, reliability, and competence.

Emilie: So whether you analyze that for a personal relationship or for a brand, for example, and again, looking at loyalty and membership, care is the most important, is how do you make decision with other interests in mind?

Emilie: Sincerity is, do you communicate in an authentic and transparent way?

Emilie: Reliability is, do you do what you are saying, what you want to do?

Emilie: Do you deliver on your promise?

Emilie: And finally, competence.

Emilie: Are you able to deliver what you are promising?

Emilie: And do you have the tech, do you have the training and so on?

Emilie: And I think it’s always very good to reassess a business with that lens.

Paula: You know, that is also incredibly inspiring, Emilie, because yes, we all have relationships, whether they’re personal or professional, that sometimes we need to take a step back and look at if it’s working properly.

Paula: And that goes up and down, you know, in terms of companies indeed.

Paula: But I really thought, as you said that, that really applies to a loyalty program, you know?

Emilie: Absolutely.

Emilie: And instead of having a blanket statement, why I don’t trust that person or I don’t trust that brand, what is the dimension that is actually failing to achieve that trust?

Paula: Absolutely.

Paula: Isolating and identifying exactly, you know, where’s the loyalty coming from.

Paula: And, you know, I suppose for us, actually, as you can imagine, you know, the human voice brings sincerity through.

Paula: So that’s something that’s very close to my heart, but an incredible recommendation.

Paula: So we are off to an amazing start.

Paula: We will, of course, link your book as well in the show notes.

Paula: And we have a new page on our website, actually, as well, for all these books, because my reading list is too long now.

Paula: I can’t keep up, but I know a lot of people listen to this show, perhaps when they’re driving, might want to look back and see what the specific book you’ve recommended might be.

Paula: So thank you for all of that.

Paula: Now, Emilie, I’m going to ask you to introduce yourself properly.

Paula: You haven’t been on our show before.

Paula: I can hear the values coming through.

Paula: You’re in an incredible role and on a very busy day.

Paula: So first of all, thank you for your time today, but give us a sense of your professional background.

Emilie: Well, thanks first for the privilege, Paula.

Emilie: I’ve been with ACCOR for more than two decades already, of which the last 20 years in the fantastic region of Asia-Pacific.

Emilie: I live in Singapore, was living in Thailand before, and I’ve been into loyalty gradually.

Emilie: Years, years ago, I was the head of guest experience for ACCOR Asia-Pacific at a time where reviews were just at the beginning.

Emilie: So that’s how old it was.

Emilie: And then I supported actually Mehdi in launching all ACCOR Live Limitless from a digital marketing perspective in Asia-Pacific that was in 2018 or 2019.

Emilie: And then I went into B2B subscription.

Emilie: So I was selling SaaS hotel distribution software to independent hotel and regional chains, which is really delivering value on a monthly basis and showing usage and value to the hotel.

Emilie: So very, very competitive environment.

Emilie: And then for the past three months, I have now the privilege to lead ACCOR Plus.

Emilie: So moving into B2B subscription, still delivering value, but also creating a membership and a community of like-minded travelers.

Paula: Amazing.

Paula: Yes.

Paula: And I know you have a big product launch tomorrow, Emilie, so we’ll be dying to hear all the details about that.

Paula: So Mehdi, let’s, I suppose, recap, given that you have been on the show before, give us a sense then properly of your background.

Paula: I always see France coming through, obviously predominantly in your profile on LinkedIn, but you have a very British accent.

Paula: So tell us about your, I suppose, a little bit of your history and your professional background.

Mehdi: I try to hide the fact that I’m French.

Mehdi: I literally lived in my father’s suitcase when I was a teenager.

Mehdi: And we ended up living in the UK for 10 years where I spent my teen years.

Mehdi: And I guess the accent stuck.

Mehdi: So I can’t really get rid of it.

Mehdi: But I really consider my father being Algerian, my mother French, having lived in England.

Mehdi: It was only natural that I worked in a global company and had the opportunity to basically work in a very human centric environment, such as hospitality.

Mehdi: So I joined ACCOR in September 2018 for the launch of All and its partnership ecosystem.

Mehdi: Prior to that, I worked 10 years at American Express designing international consumer strategies for premium credit cards.

Mehdi: I also worked on the travel and lifestyle services for affluent clients as well at American Express.

Mehdi: And before that, over 10 years of commercial roles in hospitality, where I started including Raffles Hotels and Resorts, Swiss Hotel and Barrières Hotel and Resorts, the biggest casino group in France.

Mehdi: And today, I hold the equivalent of a chief customer officer role, really in charge of loyalty and e-commerce for the ACCOR Group, in charge of the booking platform, the loyalty program, CRM, e-commerce, partnership, sponsorship, every element that is a consumer facing value proposition at ACCOR, where we have strong ambitions.

Paula: Indeed.

Paula: And we’re going to hear a lot about that ambition, certainly today, Mehdi.

Paula: And for me, actually, even your title is inspiring because we don’t have enough chief loyalty officers, I think, in the world.

Paula: So the fact that ACCOR Group has seen to make that visibility in terms of what you’re doing so clear is super fun.

Paula: And the connection to the commercial side of the business as well.

Paula: I remember you commenting to me at one stage as well that, you know, really, you know, you had to prove at one stage to the business that loyalty could be a commercial driver.

Paula: And I think you’re doing that extremely successfully with the link to e-commerce as well.

Paula: So very clear, coherent strategy, of course.

Paula: And for people who just haven’t been familiar, perhaps, with our previous episodes together, Mehdi, I’d love if you wouldn’t mind just introduce the overall program, hard to say those together.

Paula: But given that the last milestone certainly I saw was more than a hundred million members worldwide, so an extraordinary membership base.

Paula: We’re obviously here to talk today mainly about subscription, but that has to fit into a coherent loyalty strategy.

Paula: So would you mind just introducing the overall, I suppose, loyalty strategy within ACCOR Group?

Mehdi: Well, we’re very fortunate at ACCOR to be in a buoyant company, a company that’s grown tremendously across the last seven years, because the backbone of loyalty is the quality of our network, our hotels and our brands with over 45 brands, 110 countries, 5,700 hotels.

Mehdi: Now we’re in the top five hospitality players, and we really cater from economy to luxury and all travel needs.

Mehdi: So that is really the backbone of loyalty, and we’re very fortunate in that respect.

Mehdi: And we’ve grown tremendously in the last couple of years.

Mehdi: Our All Accor loyalty program and booking platform now has recruited, as you said, 100 million members.

Mehdi: You know, we’ve broken this barrier, but we want to go way beyond.

Mehdi: We’re actually recruiting at a pace that is twice the pace that we had last year, same time and even twice the pace of the previous year.

Mehdi: So our bosses are asking us, you know, when is this going to stop?

Mehdi: And I say, well, it’s just about to flatten out.

Mehdi: But so far, we haven’t seen that curve flatter, flatten.

Mehdi: So it’s really interesting because you can really see the power of a network.

Mehdi: And when a loyalty is understood, that members or guests naturally sign up and enjoy it.

Mehdi: And it takes a while for a value proposition to be understood and for the brands that are basically encompassed in a value proposition to be fully integrated by our guests.

Mehdi: And now we’re seeing that more brands are being used by our members as well, which means that that ecosystem, that cross fertilization is coming to life.

Mehdi: And so Loyalty is established.

Mehdi: That’s the great news.

Mehdi: The next step, the next frontier is subscription.

Mehdi: And we’re not new to subscription.

Mehdi: I’ll let Emilie, and I’m very fortunate to have Emilie with me working on subscription.

Mehdi: But we announced recently that we’re bringing all of our subscription program under an umbrella name, All ACCOR Plus, which really provides clarity for travelers and enhanced choice with a different product line strategy, where we have three designated products.

Mehdi: One for the budget savvy traveler called All ACCOR Plus Ibis, one for all year round savings and rational value called All ACCOR Plus Voyager and The Pinnacle, which is under Emilie’s responsibility.

Mehdi: And she’s leading that relaunch, is All ACCOR Plus Explorer, which is our most rich and high value added product.

Mehdi: So with that in mind, I’ll turn it across perhaps to Emilie, so she can tell you a little bit more about what we have under this fantastic product that we’re launching.

Paula: Amazing, Mehdi.

Paula: Thank you for that.

Paula: And just to, I suppose, congratulate you in person.

Paula: We haven’t spoke since you announced the 100 million members.

Paula: And I think I said to you all fair, I’m actually writing an ebook now, which I’m hoping our audience will love once we publish, which is the world’s largest loyalty program.

Paula: So of course, ACCOR is in there.

Paula: 100 million members is just unbelievable.

Paula: So that’s incredible news.

Paula: And subscription is definitely not new as you touched on, but there is a lot of extraordinary new learnings.

Paula: And as a result, new products, of course, that you guys are announcing tomorrow.

Paula: So, Emilie, would you mind just taking us back before we talk about what you’re announcing?

Paula: There is an extraordinary history of subscription within the ACCOR Group overall.

Paula: So would you mind just give us a quick recap in terms of where you’ve been, and then tell us about what’s being announced, and then I’d love to just chat through, you know, exactly why you’ve developed the product the way you have.

Emilie: Sure.

Emilie: Well, it’s quite incredible that ACCOR Plus started 30 years ago in Australia.

Emilie: And it started with the FNB program that was meant to help fill the restaurant of the hotel.

Emilie: And with the development of ACCOR in Asia-Pacific, in different hotels, in different cities, in different countries, ACCOR Plus developed at the same time to become, 30 years later, a program with 450,000 members all across Asia-Pacific that are the most engaged, the one who come the most frequently, five times more than the non-members, the one who spend the most, 2.3 times more, the one that are the most engaged.

Emilie: So really ACCOR Plus and the subscription of ACCOR is what we say supercharged loyalty.

Emilie: And what’s interesting in that 30 years ago, that was really pioneering subscription because there was not much many other program that were subscription based.

Emilie: Now, fast forward, if you look at your daily life, I guess, Paula, or if I look at mine, I’m sure I can list 10 different subscription program that I’m using on the daily basis, whether it’s for your music, for your streaming, for your cloud, for your fitness.

Emilie: So we are in a subscription economy.

Emilie: This economy has grown tremendously for the past decade.

Emilie: Actually, it’s more than 400%, which is, I think, three times more than the SP 500.

Emilie: And it’s estimated to reach 2 trillion US dollar business by 2034.

Emilie: So keeping in mind that we have 30 years of history and foundation, we are in a very good position to lead forward.

Emilie: Having said that, curiously, the travel subscription is underrepresented.

Emilie: However, there was a research issued recently by Travelport saying that 35% of frequent travelers are actually keen to buy travel membership because they want certainty of value, they want recognition and they want exclusivity.

Emilie: And what’s interesting is that that’s what we’ve seen with our members when we did our 18-month research.

Paula: Amazing.

Paula: Yeah.

Paula: I mean, nobody’s going to dispute that, Emilie.

Paula: And again, kudos to ACCOR for the 30 years of, as you said, like first mover, total innovation and completely agree that travel is underrepresented in subscriptions.

Paula: So when I think about my own behavior, as you said, in terms of what I’m subscribing to, travel is really not there.

Paula: I already said to you, having looked at your new product, I can easily justify your subscription price.

Paula: So I’m excited about that, which we’re going to talk about now.

Paula: But you used a lovely term, which is supercharged.

Paula: I think our audience are going to love that.

Paula: I’ve always called it extreme loyalty, because again, if somebody is actually paying to be a member of a program, like your 450,000 existing subscribers, then I think the first thing is the value proposition has to be so robust and so clear, because it’s easy to join a free program, with all respect to all.

Paula: But actually, if I’m going to pay upfront, then there has to be something that I can absolutely justify.

Paula: So, let’s get into the new proposition, Emilie.

Paula: I think that’s the perfect lead in, given the history that you’ve shared with us.

Paula: So, tell us about what’s changing tomorrow.

Emilie: Sure.

Emilie: And you said something very important.

Emilie: You said it has to be very clear, right?

Emilie: And that’s really the purpose of the relaunch.

Emilie: It’s simplicity, transparency, flexibility, and we are going beyond the points and perks.

Emilie: So, if I summarize, as an explorer, you’re getting two free nights on an annual basis.

Emilie: You’re getting guaranteed saving on dining and on accommodation.

Emilie: You’re getting status, so recognition at elite level.

Emilie: So, you’re becoming a gold member, which gives you access to upgrade, early check-in, late check-out.

Emilie: And you are having access to exclusive experiences.

Emilie: And this is really something that our members have requested most, is to get access to a community of like-minded travelers or local diners, for example, to get access to something very special.

Paula: Absolutely.

Paula: And just in case anyone hasn’t seen the press release, again, we’ll link to it in the show notes.

Paula: But for me, the pricing, again, is super powerful.

Paula: €215 again for that product.

Paula: And as soon as you say two free nights in an ACCOR property, instantly, I’ve got that payback mentality.

Paula: And I think that’s what Mehdi’s been teaching us as well on our last food calls as well, is about that psychology of loyalty subscriptions that you’ve been paying a lot of attention to.

Paula: So Mehdi, I’d love to come to you to, I suppose, get your insights on exactly what did you hear from members that stood out for you to make sure that this product evolved the way it has.

Mehdi: So when you change a value proposition, like Emilie described, a product that’s been in the market for 30 years and you have over half a million customers that already have demonstrated trust, you need to make sure that you do your customer research.

Mehdi: We spent a good 18 months looking at robust fact-based research across 11 markets, combining qualitative and quantitative insights.

Mehdi: We interviewed members and we even had behavioral scientists helping us to understand, not just what members say, but what they expect and how they behave, their preferences, their motivations, their pain points.

Mehdi: And we tested pricing elasticity, but also what each generation of customers we’re looking for.

Mehdi: And because members don’t want just discounts, they also want to belong to a community of like-minded individuals.

Mehdi: And for experiences, for example, in India, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, there was a huge generational difference on experiences.

Mehdi: You know, I think it was 50% of the Gen Z and millennials value exclusive experiences as much as discounts, where for the boomers, quote unquote, it was only 27% who really fought for experiences and the rest really remained discount focused.

Mehdi: So once again, you got to make sure that when you convey marketing, you actually bring to life different aspects of the products based on generational needs.

Mehdi: And also market specifics.

Mehdi: Another aspect that was really important is that we looked at dining, and dining drives probably two-thirds of the renewal of this product that we’re launching.

Mehdi: Yet we’re seeing that it drives in the region over a third of our loyalty stays for all members alike.

Mehdi: So you have a halo product, which is dining.

Mehdi: At the end of the day, you also have actually hotel stays that are really driving the behavior.

Mehdi: So, but at the end of the day, when you’re paying for a product, you want to have payback, and you want to be able to calculate it very easily.

Mehdi: You need to be in a position to say, well, if I’ve saved across my dining experiences that were non-hotel related in my local hotel, or when I saved my 15% of the best rate, when I traveled with regards to any brand at ACCOR, I definitely got my payback.

Mehdi: And then you can start being an advocate.

Mehdi: And then you can start word of mouth.

Mehdi: And then you can start actually bringing people along.

Mehdi: And what does that mean?

Mehdi: Well, that means when you actually pay for a dining bill or a drinks or you travel as a small group, as a family, you’re able to share the benefits across your friends, family and network.

Mehdi: And that psychologically is super strong.

Mehdi: That’s the best part of loyalty.

Mehdi: It’s the advocacy of the product.

Mehdi: And we’re seeing that subscription advocacy is so strong, it’s second to none, because people need to justify that they’ve paid for a product.

Mehdi: And when they’ve paid for a product that they’ve seen the value, they’re the strongest advocates in their personal network to say, well, you should join.

Mehdi: And why don’t I help you understand the value of this product?

Mehdi: And then they participate in the experiences that are only linked to all ACCOR Plus members.

Mehdi: And then they talk among themselves, and they bring yet new members on board.

Mehdi: So it’s incredible that that snowball advocacy effect, based on different parts of the value proposition, be it dining, be it travel, be it experiences, is incredibly strong.

Mehdi: And it’s stronger because you’ve paid for the product, and you need to have that payback.

Mehdi: So word of mouth and payback are absolutely key.

Mehdi: And our research demonstrated that this is the way we should go.

Paula: I think we’ve just had a master class in subscription loyalty, Mehdi.

Paula: Thank you for that.

Paula: Honestly, again, it’s crystal clear, anyone listening to this who hasn’t already, figured out the key psychological drivers.

Paula: And as you said, behavioral insights that you guys have learned, I’m pretty sure now are going off to rethink exactly what subscription concepts they could develop.

Paula: For me, I think the payback is brilliant.

Paula: As you said, for me, I tend to think about it on the stay.

Paula: But the dining piece is something I certainly do in year two because I’ve experienced it.

Paula: The trust is built.

Paula: So I’m guessing you’ve lots of people, again, coming at it from different propositions.

Paula: And the word mouthpiece, I always think of being the hero.

Paula: So when I am a member of a program like this, you know, that advocacy piece, which of course is our kind of marketing terminology, but like as a person, like if my family’s around the table or my friends are there and I’m saying, guys, I just got us 15% off the bill.

Paula: I mean, what an extraordinary, like bragging rights, like totally.

Paula: So again, that automatically leads to the advocacy piece.

Paula: So, so much in there.

Paula: And again, I do think there’s a lot of research around, once people pay, yes, expectations are higher, but the loyalty is multiplied.

Paula: So you guys are proving that through and through.

Paula: And Emilie, I know we talked about it in, I suppose, you know, other marketing terminology around, you know, comparisons to Amazon Prime, for example, as a global program, some dispute, whether they want to call it a loyalty program, I do, because it changes my behavior in a way that’s profitable for the business.

Paula: But how do you feel about comparisons to brands like Amazon when you think about what you’re launching tomorrow?

Emilie: Well, it is a compliment first, Paula.

Emilie: So we think about all ACCOR Plus to all is what Amazon Prime is to Amazon.

Emilie: Again, the most engaged members.

Emilie: But we are not stopping here.

Emilie: All ACCOR Plus is the product line of different subscription products, where all ACCOR Plus Explorer is a premium global offering.

Emilie: And then as Mehdi was saying at the beginning, we’ve got other types of products that are targeting different pain points and different needs of different segments of clients.

Paula: Amazing.

Paula: Yeah, it makes perfect sense.

Paula: And I think you told me as well off air, Emilie, that there is a lot of ambition globally in terms of different markets.

Paula: We’ve talked a lot about Asia Pacific today.

Paula: But what can you share?

Paula: If anything, it might be too soon.

Paula: But given that you are growing the product, do you have other regions that you think?

Paula: I think Brazil is also a core part of this proposition, if I understand correctly.

Emilie: So Brazil has their own subscription program, which is called Signature.

Emilie: As ACCOR Plus Explorer, we’ve got global ambition, obviously.

Emilie: And the program has been grown in Asia Pacific, and that’s where we’ve got most of the membership.

Emilie: Although we’ve got also members that are part of other regions and travel to Asia Pacific very often, and therefore they’ve got a membership.

Emilie: But when it comes to honoring the benefit and expanding, probably where you see Paula in the Middle East is one of the obvious next step, when it comes to the number of all ACCOR members and also the density of the network and the quality of the offering and dining, and also in terms of behavior of customers, their traveling behavior and the dining behavior.

Emilie: So you will probably know more next year.

Paula: Amazing, yeah.

Paula: I think it’s no surprise to anyone that Dubai wants to be involved, and of course the best of everything, particularly when it’s a premium product.

Paula: We’re very greedy here, dare I say it.

Paula: We definitely want the best.

Paula: So really looking forward to hearing future news.

Paula: So Mehdi, I’ll come back to you, I suppose, just as we come towards the close.

Paula: There’s so much done, so much more to do.

Paula: Growth and ambition are something I hear from you every single time, which I always get super excited about.

Paula: What are you thinking about now that you’ve got this major milestone, everything’s going to be delivered, literally by the end of this week?

Paula: What are you thinking about in terms of the future growth, both for Allacor Plus and I guess all as well?

Mehdi: So it’s another ending cycle, loyalty, because you systematically have to raise the bar.

Mehdi: And that’s the beauty of loyalty marketing.

Mehdi: Today, I still think that scale and simplicity are absolutely key to ensuring that our customers worldwide understand the value that we can unlock for them.

Mehdi: So we are, for example, our branding has evolved before, it was Allacor Live Limitless.

Mehdi: Now we call the program Allacor.

Mehdi: Live Limitless did not necessarily resonate with certain parts of the geographies and was seen as contradictory to our CSR engagement, for example.

Mehdi: So simplicity here is even in the naming.

Mehdi: Simplicity also in the fact that our value proposition and our delivery need to make sure that it’s scaled and it’s optimal throughout the guest experiences.

Mehdi: So here, I think we can constantly raise the bar and being unreasonable about this ambition.

Mehdi: We talked about unreasonable hospitality.

Mehdi: And I think we need to constantly challenge ourselves to being excellent at what we do because the moment of truth is when you’re in a hotel.

Mehdi: And when you ask members what they think about the loyalty program, they start with their hotel experience and then they talk about the program, the benefits and the great experiences that have been facilitated by being a member and membership comes into play.

Mehdi: But it’s really in that sequence.

Mehdi: So I’m still a stickler for ensuring that members get the best experience wherever they travel to and here we need to constantly raise the bar.

Mehdi: But as a program, once again, I think we are even more data driven than we’ve ever been through CRM and AI capabilities right now.

Mehdi: We’re working on real time recommendations.

Mehdi: We’re working on a travel concierge that will enable you to identify the right travel experience based on not only information that we know about you, that you’ve allowed us to access, that we can recommend the best hotel choices, but also real time when you’re in a hotel, having prompts within the app to ensure that you can discover parts of the hotel that we think you’d be interested in, rather than actually reading a welcome book in your room or asking the concierge.

Mehdi: That guest experience facilitation for members in particular is something that we’re working on, and obviously, it’s AI enabled.

Mehdi: And the last part, but there are many, and we will be launching in 2026 a brand new experience platform.

Mehdi: Experiences are at the heart of all ACCOR.

Mehdi: We’ve seen it not only in studies, but also in the way that all of our hospitality suites, be it at tennis tournaments such as the French Tennis Open, at Paris Saint-Germain, the French Football Club, or at the ACCOR Stadium in Sydney.

Mehdi: All of these suites have got the best members, the most highly engaged members.

Mehdi: And once again, it’s both advocacy and repeat business.

Mehdi: So experiences is really, really important.

Mehdi: And the only way you can actually go big with experiences is if you have a fully digitalized experience.

Mehdi: And an experience space in loyalty has been very traditional.

Mehdi: It’s hospitality driven, but it’s not often digitally enabled.

Mehdi: And so mid 2026, we’ll be launching a fully integrated digitally enabled experience platform.

Mehdi: So hopefully I’ll have an opportunity to share some news later.

Paula: Indeed, indeed, absolutely.

Paula: And of course, we’ll make sure that one of our other global guest hosts of the show will definitely be getting in touch to make sure that we get that story again straight from the horse’s mouth.

Paula: But I hadn’t realized you dropped the live limitless Mehdi.

Paula: I didn’t want to pass that.

Paula: You know, I’m glad you didn’t tell me that before.

Paula: But only as you said it, I realized it always felt a little complex to me, like and I like to think I’m smart.

Paula: I like to think I’m cool and I can keep up with all the branding.

Paula: But it always felt a little bit more complicated.

Paula: All is so much easier.

Paula: So I’m delighted you’ve made that decision.

Paula: So that’s incredible.

Mehdi: Yes.

Mehdi: Once again, it’s research based.

Mehdi: We found that people that did not necessarily know ACCOR live limitless, did not necessarily give them any other clue on what we were about, which industry we were in.

Mehdi: So it over-complexified the messaging.

Mehdi: Then which really, really guided us is our CSR commitments.

Mehdi: You cannot live limitless.

Mehdi: The planet has limits.

Mehdi: We need to be responsible.

Mehdi: Hospitality has to play a part and it’s just not completely contradictory.

Mehdi: So now it’s all ACCOR.

Mehdi: We provide all of ACCOR.

Mehdi: We unlock all of ACCOR.

Mehdi: All is a very powerful, unifying name.

Mehdi: So we’ve kept that.

Mehdi: The brand is strong and the brand advocacy is really good.

Mehdi: And then we just cut out what really was not necessary.

Mehdi: Just to simplify once again, our marketing.

Paula: Amazing.

Paula: Well, I said to my team Mehdi as well, that’s my key goal right now.

Paula: As I go forward, is simplify and add more value, but in ways that are super clear and simple.

Paula: So again, totally aligned.

Paula: Emilie, I have one final question.

Paula: I think we talked off air a bit about the, I suppose, opportunities for our audience, which is global loyalty program leaders around the world, all running their own propositions.

Paula: I know you were thinking about partnerships.

Paula: It’s early days.

Paula: I don’t think you’ve announced anything as yet, but just for us to understand, you know, what type of partnerships do you think will fit in with the All ACOR Plus brand?

Paula: I have a good idea of what I’m assuming you’re going to be looking for, but just to plan to see to anybody who’s listening, who might want to reach out to you and just discuss maybe potentially mutually beneficial opportunities.

Paula: What would you say you might be interested in talking about?

Emilie: Sure.

Emilie: So first, we have two types of partnership.

Emilie: I’ll start with the partnership that are the backbone of experiences that Mehdi was referring to just earlier.

Emilie: So we’ve privileged that hotels locally have very strong partnership with local retail, lifestyle brand, F&B supplier or any type of provider that help bring those experiences to life, whether it’s an access to backstage of a show and Q&A with the cast, for example, or it’s an Antarctica flight with an expert of Antarctica just getting you into the new year, or it’s a week of chef from all over the world coming and cook different type of cuisine to a hotel or to a city.

Emilie: So we are always on the lookout for those partnership that give access to our member and that makes those experiences very exclusive.

Emilie: On the other end as well, when it comes to recruiting members, we’ve got an omni-channel strategy.

Emilie: And one of the channel and one of the major channel is partnership and especially financial partnership where all ACCOR Plus Explorer come as a complement and value add to the offering of the financial partner, for instance.

Emilie: So let’s say you have an elite credit card and you will get an explorer that will add value to that credit card and your members will be able to enjoy the ACCOR ecosystem.

Paula: Amazing.

Paula: Yes, I’ve seen that work in other sectors, Emilie.

Paula: So I’m not surprised to hear you go in that direction.

Paula: I think financial services are going to love what you’re doing.

Paula: That is an absolutely extraordinary opportunity for them because we all know the value in that sector, if they can partner with you guys.

Paula: So listen, guys, I think that’s all of the questions I have for you today.

Paula: I want to give you, I suppose, an opportunity for any closing words, any closing thoughts, as I said, throughout the conversation.

Paula: I love talking with you guys.

Paula: It’s always so inspirational.

Paula: Everything referred to will be in the show notes for people who do want to check out a lot more.

Paula: I know tomorrow is the big launch day.

Paula: So first of October, obviously, this will be broadcast after that.

Paula: So there’ll already be lots of hype and excitement out there.

Paula: But Mehdi, final words from you, anything you want to share with our global audience before we wrap up?

Mehdi: Well, I want to thank you, Paula, for also bringing loyalty marketing to the front of the stage.

Mehdi: You know that we participated in different conferences talking about loyalty, because loyalty is a very complex marketing sphere, and I do believe that we learn from each other.

Mehdi: Being as well in the hospitality business, we have to, where human connections are so important.

Mehdi: Exchanging ideas just makes our disciplines so much more enriching and unique.

Mehdi: So again, thank you for Let’s Talk Loyalty.

Mehdi: I definitely picked up a lot along the way, and hopefully I contributed a little bit modestly.

Mehdi: But on the ACCOR side, we will continue to grow loyalty in new ways, and digitally enabled loyalty, which is really our focus right now.

Mehdi: We’re hoping that the listeners will also take up this new subscription value proposition and enjoy it.

Mehdi: We’re ready to also take on board any comments, any advice from any marketer out there that wants to actually either join ACCOR or enrich our product.

Mehdi: There you go.

Paula: Okay.

Paula: Be careful what you wish for Mehdi.

Paula: Our audience can be very engaged.

Paula: Perfect.

Paula: And Emilie, back to you.

Paula: Any final closing words from your side?

Emilie: Well, thanks Paula for being our last recording.

Emilie: So that’s an honor for us.

Emilie: Obviously, very, very thrilled for tomorrow launch of ACCOR Plus Explorer.

Emilie: Really, it’s all about going beyond the transactional of loyalty.

Emilie: It’s how we make people feel, how we’re going to personalize, give some more meaning to travel, and build emotional connection with those experiences.

Emilie: So I hope from tomorrow, everyone will be able to experience Explorer and to discover more.

Paula: Thank you.

Paula: Indeed.

Paula: I look forward to subscribing.

Paula: So on that note, thank you so much, Emilie Couton and Mehdi Hemici.

Paula: Thank you from Let’s Talk Loyalty and Loyalty TV.

Paula: Thank you so much for listening to this episode of Let’s Talk Loyalty.

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