Connections prove valuable for My Place Hotel

My Place Hotel values the connections and the ongoing guidance and assistance the Quad Cities Chamber provides. “We joined the Chamber in July 2018 to build relationships. People like to do business with people they know, and the connections we make can lead to referrals. We attend the events and want to be present in the community,” said Sarah Litwiller, Area Director of Sales, Golder Hospitality.

“We try and meet with Deb Mueller (the Chamber’s Manager of Business Growth) once a quarter to touch base on what is going on, new things and services that are available. To have that open communication and dialogue with Deb has helped. I feel like I message and email her all the time, and no question is a stupid question. She is always willing to entertain my ideas and is always willing to help,” Litwiller said.

“I’ve helped them connect with hospitals and different businesses,” Mueller said, “and I know they really enjoy attending the events. While the ownership and management group are based outside the region, they are in the Quad Cities as often as possible. You have, or will, meet them at Chamber events, at the hotel and working with businesses across the region,” she said.

My Place, a 64-room extended-stay hotel, opened in 2018 at 4363 Progress Drive, Davenport. Roughly 60% of its guests are short-term travelers and 40% are extended-stay clients. “Our long-term guests develop relationships with the hotel and staff here, and when they come back time after time, they are excited to see the same faces and make connections with a place they can call home,” said General Manager Andrea Haley.

When Litwiller first joined the Management Company in 2019, occupancy was less than 20 percent. She hit the ground running, connecting with the Chamber and meeting with regional businesses for feedback. “We did a lot of groundwork in the past two years just to redevelop and redefine our marketing strategy and build back our reputation,” she said.

Getting the right people in place made a difference and a majority of the staff hired that year continue to work at My Place, Haley said. “We’ve made some really great connections across the region. We’ve been able to serve the hospital and co-op communities around us well and we’ve seen that same response and care and affection back from them. Definitely, those relationships will continue to grow and we know the community is supporting us through the positive things we are hearing,” she said.

In turn, My Place does what it can to support other businesses and its clients, too. It has created partnerships with companies and restaurants willing to offer short- and extended-stay guests special offers. “We have guests who stay with us for six months to a year. We would love to partner with more businesses to make the QC truly feel like home for our guests while they are here. The more resources we can provide them while they are in the region, the more they will enjoy their stay and be more likely to return,” Haley said, adding she looks forward to the future.

“We will continue to build on the foundation we have now, continue to add team members and continue to make this the best place to stay in the Quad Cities,” she said.