How We Grew While the Market Shrank - Rob Smith, Stonebridge Companies
In this episode, Rob Smith, the President and CEO at Stonebridge Companies, shares an operator's read on why top-line growth — not cost-cutting — is a sustainable path through today's environment of profit pressure. He explains how Stonebridge grew same-store revenue by 7.8% in 2024 while the market grew by 1.8%, why their revenue-management-first approach drives 41% direct bookings at their independent hotels, and what a deliberate culture of accountability looks like when you're a 174-hotel...
In this episode, Rob Smith, the President and CEO at Stonebridge Companies, shares an operator's read on why top-line growth — not cost-cutting — is a sustainable path through today's environment of profit pressure. He explains how Stonebridge grew same-store revenue by 7.8% in 2024 while the market grew by 1.8%, why their revenue-management-first approach drives 41% direct bookings at their independent hotels, and what a deliberate culture of accountability looks like when you're a 174-hotel pure third-party manager.
A few more resources:
- If you're new to Hospitality Daily, start here.
- You can send me a message here with questions, comments, or guest suggestions
- If you want to get my summary and actionable insights from each episode delivered to your inbox each day, subscribe here for free.
- Follow Hospitality Daily and join the conversation on YouTube, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
- If you want to advertise on Hospitality Daily, here are the ways we can work together.
If you found this episode interesting or helpful, send it to someone on your team so you can turn the ideas into action and benefit your business and the people you serve!
Music for this show is produced by Clay Bassford of Bespoke Sound: Music Identity Design for Hospitality Brands



