Commodore Hotel - Resort Rescue Update - Open or Closed?

In this Resort Rescue episode, Shane Green visits the Commodore Hotel in Linden, Tennessee.

Commodore Hotel is owned by Mike and Kathy Dumont.

The owners fell in love with a neglected resort but are now married to a floundering business.

The staff can’t handle the heat in the kitchen.

The guests that find the service cold.

Shane will need all his expertise to get things back on track and the Commodore Hotel.

They are in real estate and they had a hobby of restoring classic, old buildings.

They found a building that had been abandoned for 20 years.

They put a lot of time and money to getting the old building back to where it should be.

Unfortunately, the investment hasn’t gone as well as they might have thought.

They’ve asked Shane to come in and make sure that this great little hotel and café is in great hands.

The Commodore is a historic hotel.

It was built in 1939 and originally had 14 hotel rooms.

Located between Nashville and Memphis, the hotel accommodates visitors looking for a slice of small-town America.

Kathy says that they’re both in the real-estate business in Rhode Island.

They needed a getaway spot.

As a developer and historian, Mike likes to take these buildings and bring it back to what it used to be.

Renovating the Commodore was challenging but they found that making it successful was even more difficult.

When they started construction, they had found a local hotel operator.

About three days before they were ready to open it, he took another job in South Carolina.

They had their first hotel guests scheduled to arrive.

The online reviews sing the praises of the Commodore’s restoration.

The service from the 10-person staff, however, has hit a sour note with guests.

As business continues to decline, the Dumonts fear their dream and investment is slipping away.

They’ve seen a decrease in business in the last six months.

Shane meets with Kathy and Mike.

Kathy says the hotel is not making a profit and is barely breaking even.

Shane says the only way to fix the problems is to find the problems.

Shane and his crew spring into action, installing surveillance cameras.

Kathy says that Hayley is a little shy but she does not come off as comforting and welcoming.

Mikey says that his final summary of the hotel room is that hospitality, cleanliness-wise, and mechanical is a five out of ten.

The first issue of the Commodore Inn is a weak guest first impression.

Shane can see another big problem at the hotel after watching Paisley’s first day.

There is no training system in place.

Michael and Kathy desperately need to implement a single training program.

They also need to have it run by one person.

This will minimize any confusion and maximize new members of staff potential.

A customer walks into the hotel wanting to check in.

There is nobody at the front desk because Hayley is busy training Paisley upstairs.

Kathy says that the food and consistency is excellent.

There is some tension in the kitchen.

The chef Andrei is disrespectful to the team.

This is why lunch business is down.

Kathy and Mike will have to do something about him.

They need to show leadership.

Kathy tells Andrei to head home for the day.

He asks why and says it’s hard for him to do his work.

Kathy fires him on the spot.

Shane has identified three issues: a bad first impression, no set training program and the mean chef.

All these issues can hold the hotel back from becoming a profitable business.

Shane meets with the staff and tells them what is going on.

Michael and Kathy tell the staff that the chef is fired.

The staff say they are glad that it has finally happened.

Mike says they probably weren’t as responsive as they should have been.

They invested a lot of time bringing him into the resort.

Mike asks his staff to step up a little bit right now and help them get through this transition.

With a small team like this, you’ve actually got to be a good fit for the team.

Shane is going to make sure that the next person they bring in is a truly great fit.

He asks the staff what they look for in a chef.

Hayley wants someone who knows how to communicate with everybody without yelling.

Paisley wants someone who is fun and energetic.

Eager to coach the staff, Shane and his team get to work on the Commodore.

Shane says that when you’re trying to train someone, it’s important to have a process.

He shows the staff how to train new members of staff.

Shane is interviewing people for the chef role.

Michael and Kathy want to show Shane their favorite part of Tennessee, their farm.

Shane says he thinks they have something special here.

What Happened Next at Commodore Hotel?

30 days later, Shane returns to the hotel.

New employees are trained with a system and have one person to focus on.

Guests are treated to a warm welcome at the front desk by the staff.

The rooms have benefited from some regular deep cleaning and some easy to reach outlets for the modern traveler.

Their new chef Mickey fits in perfectly with the rest of the team.

Everybody both inside and outside of the kitchen are happy.

His farm fresh dishes are turning into a huge draw for everyone visiting the resort.

Shane sits down with Michael and Kathy.

Shane says he loves the fact that their vision is coming to life.

Commodore Hotel is open.

Reviews are very positive after the show.

Hayley is now the General Manager.

The reviews prior to the visit weren't terrible.

There are some negative comments on service but overall not awful.

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