Minor Hotels Creates New Hospitality Ecosystem as AI and Personalisation Transform Guest Experiences

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Minor Hotels targets brand expansion, digitisation and AI as it moves into next era of travel growth Minor Hotels is eyeing brand expansion, digitalisation and AI as it enters the next decade of global hospitality growth. During ATM 2026, Ian Di Tullio, chief commercial officer at Minor Hotels, said he’s making the company’s “business model more resilient with stronger brands, more data and personalised offers to be more targeted to guest needs”.

In the interview, Di Tullio said the hospitality industry is moving into an era where technology, loyalty, and customer experience are becoming more integrated. “Minor Hotels is working towards an ecosystem of our brands, data platforms and digital solutions supporting a more personalised travel experience,” he said.

ATM 2026 Provides Platform for Industry Reconnection and Deeper Partnerships

According to Ian Di Tullio, ATM 2026 has created an important opportunity for the travel industry to reconnect after a challenging period. He noted that while attendance levels may differ compared with previous years, the depth and purpose of meetings have become stronger.

He explained that travel interest in the region remains high, with both regional and international travel intentions continuing to attract industry attention.

For Minor Hotels, the event represents an opportunity to strengthen relationships with existing and future partners while showcasing the company’s evolving hospitality strategy.

Minor Hotels Focuses on Balanced Growth Through Ownership and Partnerships

Di Tullio told Alix: “Minor Hotels is a very different operator to many of our hospitality partners as we currently own 70% of our properties.”

“The long-term goal for the company is to transition to a more balanced structure where property ownership makes up about half of its overall portfolio while the other properties run via a franchise or management agreement,” he said.

The executive noted that future growth will come from growing the company’s brands into the markets where they are the right fit and engaging with the right partners.

He said three key pillars have contributed to this growth: powerful brands, increased distribution and optimised data to enable this company to offer customised experiences and foster loyalty among our guests.

Four New Brands Strengthen Minor Hotels Portfolio Expansion

During the discussion, Di Tullio revealed that Minor Hotels added four brands to its portfolio during the previous year. He explained that more than half of the company’s growth has come from these new brands.

He said this reflects the company’s focus on brand evolution and expansion while building a broader hospitality ecosystem under the Minor Hotels umbrella.

Previously, the company operated a collection of nine brands competing individually in the market. Di Tullio explained that Minor Hotels now acts as the unifying brand connecting these different properties.

The company’s focus is to increase movement between its brands and create greater opportunities across its portfolio.

Minor Hotels Integrates Loyalty, Digital Innovation and AI Into Guest Experience Strategy

Di Tullio explained that Minor Hotels does not view loyalty, digital platforms, artificial intelligence and customer experience as separate areas.

Instead, he described customer experience as the central element connecting these different capabilities.

He explained that loyalty programmes, brands, data, digital personalisation and AI all contribute to creating a complete guest journey.

A major part of this strategy involves redesigning the company’s data architecture. According to Di Tullio, Minor Hotels has consolidated guest data through Google Cloud, allowing information to be synchronised within one system.

He said this first-party data foundation provides opportunities to develop stronger personalisation capabilities, particularly as the company expands its use of AI technologies.

Minor Hotels Prepares for Conversational Travel Booking Through AI Platforms

The Chief Commercial Officer also discussed how the definition of digital engagement is changing within the travel industry.

He explained that direct customer interaction was traditionally associated with hotel websites and mobile applications. However, he said the future is moving towards conversational platforms, including large language models and AI-powered travel interactions.

Di Tullio revealed that Minor Hotels is investing in digital platforms designed to support future customer behaviour. He explained that the company is developing native interactions within platforms such as ChatGPT and Gemini while also creating similar digital relationships in markets including China.

He said the company wants to establish its presence as travellers increasingly use AI-powered tools to search, plan and make travel decisions.

Minor Hotels Wants Industry Partners to Recognise Its Owner-Focused Approach

Looking ahead, Di Tullio said one of Minor Hotels’ key goals is increasing awareness of the brand across the hospitality industry.

He explained that the company wants partners to understand its approach, which is based on an owner mindset rather than focusing only on distribution and loyalty.

According to Di Tullio, Minor Hotels believes that successful growth comes from building an ecosystem where partners benefit alongside the company.

He added that while distribution and loyalty remain important, the company’s focus is also on ensuring partners can benefit from the wider hospitality network it is developing.

Conclusion

Minor Hotels has adopted technology, brand development and individualised guest experiences as its core focuses for 2026. During the ATM 2026 session, Ian Di Tullio described how the company is leveraging new brands, Google Cloud data features and digital platforms with AI to adapt to evolving traveller trends.

“Redefining the future of Hospitality”, the company said, “represents a pioneering shift in the hospitality industry towards online content delivery, data-driven personalisation and conversational technology as being at the core of the modern guest experience”. Minor Hotels’ ecosystem, along with a growing base of distribution partners, will help its global hospitality expansion.