Hospitality Management
Globenewswire | August 25, 2023
Canary Technologies, the hospitality industry’s leading guest management system, is launching Canary AI, a fully enabled generative AI engine that will be embedded across Canary’s entire Guest Management System. The beta version product is the latest in Canary’s award-winning suite of guest management tools, driven by the latest technology. Generative AI refers to algorithms that are used to create new content using existing context.
The product will assimilate relevant general hotel information from existing resources about the property and surrounding area in order to generate auto-responses using contextual guest information like reservation details and guest profiles. The AI model is trained over time to craft the most relevant answers based on the most common guest responses.
Canary’s new feature will keep customer data safe while helping hoteliers increase staff efficiency, enabling them to save hours in responding to guest inquiries. It also saves guests time, providing answers to their top-of-mind questions directly and instantly. Canary’s AI capabilities will also drive a more personalized guest experience based on their specific customer criteria like loyalty status. Hotels can sign up to be part of the beta launch by contacting Canary.
“AI is reshaping the way we live, travel, and do business. With Canary AI, we’ll be able to help hoteliers transform the guest experience and enable staff to focus more on hospitality,” said Blake VanLandingham, Head of Engineering for Canary. “As AI reshapes the way we live, travel, and do business, we look forward to maintaining the safety of customer data and building this new technology into the guest journey as part of the Canary platform.”
Canary will continue to embed AI into their products to help hoteliers reduce fraud, streamline operations, elevate the guest experience and boost revenue.
About Canary Technologies
Canary Technologies is modernizing the hotel tech stack with its award-winning end-to-end Guest Management System. Digitizing everything from post-booking through checkout, Canary is trusted by more than 20,000 hoteliers in 75 countries, including leading global brands, such as Four Seasons, Choice Hotels, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, and Ace Hotel Group. Canary is the #1 rated solution on HotelTechReport and was the sole hotel technology company named to Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies in 2023. Canary’s solutions help hotels eliminate paper processes, boost revenue, increase staff efficiency, improve the guest experience, and reduce chargebacks and payment fraud. Canary’s guest platform includes Contactless Check-In/Checkout, Upsells, Guest Messaging, and Digital Tipping.
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Travel Technology
prnewswire | July 27, 2023
Craftable, the hospitality industry's leading SaaS platform, is proud to announce that it has partnered with Dallas, TX-based private equity firm Gauge Capital to provide growth funding and capitalize on industry opportunities. This strategic investment further enhances Craftable's position at the forefront of cutting-edge technology shaping the hospitality industry.
"We are excited to partner with Gauge for the next chapter of Craftable's growth. We look forward to leveraging the resources and support from an investment partner with significant enterprise software expertise while maintaining our relentless focus on the customer experience that has always been at the core of Craftable's success," said Samuel Zats, Co-Founder and CEO of Craftable. "Gauge's growth investment in the business and aligned focus on supporting our customers will help us to accelerate our product innovation, execute our sales strategy and further build our impact in the market."
Craftable's innovative technology solutions equip restaurant, bar, hotel and hospitality operators with intuitive and easy-to-use tools that can help them make strategic decisions based on real-time data to drive sales and reduce costs. Its leading hospitality management SaaS platform allows for seamless back-of-house automation and management. By providing operators with procurement, inventory tracking, recipe cost management, accounts payable automation, scheduling and analytics solutions, they can use this critical data to boost revenue while successfully lowering pour costs by 3-5% and food costs by 2-3%. Today, Craftable has over 50,000 monthly active users, with more onboarding every day. Craftable serves thousands of hospitality industry operators and partners with some of the most prominent names in hospitality.
"Craftable has a distinguished reputation in the hospitality sector, enterprise-grade capabilities, and a highly scalable technology platform," said Tom McKelvey, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Gauge Capital. "We couldn't be more excited to partner with the Craftable team to realize our shared vision for the future of hospitality innovation."
As part of the investment, Tom McKelvey, Garrett Fair, and Sam Yang from Gauge Capital have joined Craftable's Board of Directors. TI Partners served as financial advisor on the transaction.
For more information about Craftable, visit craftable.com. For more information about Gauge Capital, visit www.gaugecapital.com.
About Craftable
Craftable is a technology platform provider that seamlessly connects purchasing, recipes, inventory, sales, accounting, and analytics to create operator success in the hospitality, food, beverage, and entertainment industries. Craftable's best-in-class Foodager and Bevager management systems allow operators to access product supplies, invoices and purchasing procurement at their fingertips while integrating with 60+ POS and financial systems to provide real-time data on how product cost increases, variances, and labor affect their bottom line. Founded in 2015 and designed by Silicon Valley tech experts and hospitality veterans, Craftable seeks to equip businesses with the next-level technology needed to operate more efficiently, reduce inventory costs, and take control of revenue in ways they weren't able to before. Craftable partners with some of the most prominent operators in hospitality, such as José Andrés, Tao Group Hospitality, bartaco, Major Food Group, Front Burner Society Brands and Kimpton Hotels.
About Gauge Capital
Gauge Capital is a leading middle-market private equity firm based in Southlake, Texas. Gauge invests in five key sectors: business services, food & consumer, government & industrial services, healthcare, and technology. The Firm manages more than $2.0 billion in capital, and in 2020, 2021 and 2022, Inc. Magazine named Gauge one of the top private equity firms for founders. In 2021, 2022, and 2023 Gauge was also named to the Top 50 PE Firms in the Middle Market by Grady Campbell. In 2022, Gauge ranked in the top 5 out of 517 private equity firms in the HEC Paris – Dow Jones Small-Cap Buyout Performance Ranking.
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Destination and Tourism
Spirit Airlines | September 15, 2023
Spirit Airlines partners with Liberty University to launch the Spirit Wings Pilot Pathway program, focusing on nurturing the next generation of skilled pilots.
Liberty University aviation students can apply for the program after their sophomore year and a faculty recommendation, gaining conditional employment offers from Spirit Airlines, mentorship, and essential resources.
The program enhances the academic experience at Liberty University and aligns with Spirit Airlines' commitment to developing a proficient and motivated pilot workforce.
The company emphasizes its growth, new aircraft acquisitions, and improved pilot benefits, offering a promising future for Liberty Aeronautics graduates.
On September 14, 2023, Spirit Airlines, a leading customizable travel options provider, has announced a collaboration with Liberty University to cultivate the next generation of pilots. Spirit Airlines has unveiled the Spirit Wings Pilot Pathway program, a strategic initiative to expand its pool of skilled aviators. This innovative program, hosted at Liberty University's School of Aeronautics in Lynchburg, Virginia, marks a significant milestone in the airline's mission to bolster its ranks of professional pilots.
Liberty University students pursuing aviation degrees benefit from this partnership. Students may apply to the Spirit Wings Pilot Pathway program after completing their sophomore year and obtaining a faculty recommendation. Successful candidates will receive conditional employment offers from Spirit Airlines, essential resources like a Spirit Electronic Flight Bag (EFB) and invaluable mentorship opportunities. As they progress through their academic journey and accumulate flight hours, program participants will ultimately step into the role of a Spirit First Officer, contributing to the airline's commitment to excellence in aviation. This initiative enhances the educational experience at Liberty University and reinforces Spirit Airlines' dedication to cultivating a highly skilled and motivated pilot workforce.
Ryan Rodosta, Senior Director of Flight Operations and System Chief Pilot at Spirit Airlines, shared,
We put a lot of hard work into developing the Spirit Wings Pilot Pathway program and assembling a great group of partners making it incredibly rewarding to reach this key milestone. Liberty University offers a premier pilot training program designed to provide graduates with the skills to lead in the aviation field, and Spirit's growth creates opportunities for those graduates to achieve their dreams with us."
[Source – Cision PR Newswire]
Spirit's Pilots fly some of the industry's newest, most fuel-efficient aircraft to 90+ destinations across the United States, Latin America and the Caribbean. Eight brand-new Airbus A321neo aircraft are expected to be delivered in 2023, creating opportunities for First Officers to get promoted to Captain quickly. Recently, Spirit's pilots ratified a contract that includes a substantial pay raise and improved benefits. In addition to industry-leading training, Spirit provides its pilots with an exceptional quality of life.
The partnership would open exceptional prospects for their graduates, offering Liberty-trained aviation professionals a distinctive pathway to Spirit Airlines upon meeting the requisite training and experience standards. Rick Roof, Dean of the School of Aeronautics, emphasized that Spirit Airlines would gain access to pilots distinguished by their outstanding technical competencies and character, making them valuable contributors to the aerospace sector. He further noted that Liberty Aeronautics graduates could envision themselves as integral members of the Spirit team, enjoying the advantages of being associated with a renowned industry leader and operating some of the most advanced aircraft worldwide.
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