"In the forest, in Concord, Massachusetts, on the shore of Walden Lake, in the wooden house I built with my own hands, and a mile away from any neighbor, I only rely on my own hands to support myself."
In China, many homestay operators and American writer Thoreau have similar ideals: relying on charming scenery or heavy sites to achieve self-sufficiency in time and finance in their own renovated or even self-built homestays, but their ways of making a living are different-Thoreau's farming and homestay reception.
A big "epidemic" made the ideal of "poetry and distance" disappear, and some even said that "the hotel industry is the first industry to completely return to zero under the epidemic". Within three months, contrary to the peace of chopping wood to feed horses and living in seclusion in the city, a large number of hotel operators had to "make a living", or change hands or jump ship. Of course, some people are waiting in the empty valley. Under the epidemic, the reality of business is obviously greater than the initial feeling.
In May, during the small holiday, homestays in some areas are slowly recovering. Big data reports of several OTA platforms show that the number of domestic B&B bookings can increase by 2 to 3 times compared with last month, but there are still B&B operators who are affected by "natural and man-made disasters" and cannot open their business, and even become an inevitable choice for finding another way out.
The three homestays of Baige are located in Lugu Lake and "Little Kenting" along the coast of Fujian, Feifei's inn is located in the beautiful ravine of Yangshuo, and the homestay brand operated by Lin shopkeeper is located in the downtown old lane of Quanzhou, the ancient city. They have similar original intentions, but they have to face bad times together, so they choose to temporarily turn to the track, linger for a while, and have a dream of ten years.
A collapsed building "dragged down" the province's homestay
After two weeks of continuous spring rain, 1 more than a month, we stayed indoors again, and the weeds in the courtyard of Quanzhou Slow Life Carambola Mansion grew rapidly. In early April, it took shopkeeper Lin two afternoons to tidy up the yard. "It used to be that guests planted grass in this yard, but now the yard grows grass by itself. It's ridiculous."
Even if the rooms in the yard were neat, it was impossible for the mansion to be open to the public "aboveboard" at that time-on March 7, Quanzhou Xinjia Hotel collapsed as an isolated hotel, killing 29 people. Since March 10, Fujian province has carried out a comprehensive investigation and rectification of safety production and potential safety hazards, with Quanzhou bearing the brunt. Not only did it slow down its three B&Bs, "In Fujian, except for B&Bs that meet hotel standards and have special industry licenses, almost all other B&Bs were unable to open due to bankruptcy, and they were abandoned in March and April".
So far, the holiday has arrived, and the slow residence has not officially reopened. From the end of 1 to now, the slow residence has been closed for nearly 3 months. "From the New Year's Eve to the second day of the first month, there are still two or three guests whose trips have not been cancelled. After the reception, they will close the door until now. "
Manager Lin revealed that before the outbreak, the average annual occupancy rate of three B&Bs and 30 rooms owned by Slow Stay was over 70%, while the data of the third-party B&B management system showed that the average annual occupancy rate of B&Bs nationwide in 20 19 years was 39. 1%.
More than 700 years ago, Quanzhou was the "largest port in the East" written by Kyle Polo. There are poems in the Tang Dynasty, and ancient Quanzhou is the "city of ten continents". History has left a number of historical sites in Quanzhou, and it has also brought opportunities to every survivor in the tourism ecology. For example, the three B&Bs owned by Wanshou Dew are located near the old city of Quanzhou and West Street, the core scenic spot, less than 2 kilometers away from Kaiyuan Temple and other historical sites. The location is golden, with Minnan customs and B&B services. In addition, it is located in the eastern coastal cities, and tourists mainly come from Fujian Province and economically developed areas such as Zhejiang and Guangdong. The annual occupancy is relatively balanced, and there is no obvious difference between off-season and off-season.
Photos were provided by respondents living in slow dormitories.
Since the establishment of 20 17, Wanshou dew has rapidly developed from a single hotel to a rare chain brand in the region. The three hotels are divided into high-end and mid-end hotels, and the daily room rates are usually above 200 yuan. Lin shopkeeper said that slow living mainly relies on OTA to cultivate customers and accumulate word of mouth, rather than online celebrity-style creation in marketing, with a return rate of 30%.
However, the COVID-19 epidemic, which is enough to go down in history, has dealt a heavy blow to the hotel industry. Manager Lin roughly estimated that the direct and indirect loss of the slow residence exceeded 500,000 yuan in the three months after the sale was stopped-the rent cost was about 90,000 yuan, not to mention the profit. The initial investment of the two homestays opened on 20 18 and 20 19 is10.2 million yuan, and the investment return period is 2 to 2.5 years. The carambola mansion, which was opened on 20 17 and rebuilt on the old building, is not more than one million yuan, but the repair and maintenance cost is high and it takes three years. In order to save costs, the slow-moving club will "quit the cleaning elder sister first", and the brand team of seven or eight people will get 60% of the basic salary.
However, the new gap in the hotel's survival has also been pried open outside the "epidemic". In mid-March, in order to subsidize daily expenses, the unsalable team that closed for the second time and was "too idle" at home decided to "jump ship" and sell tea. "First, it meets the customer base, and tea is also our future development direction." Soon, the team found a cooperative tea factory in Anxi and Wuyishan, and launched Tieguanyin and black tea, with simple packaging and brand logo, and the price ranged from 300 yuan to 500 yuan per catty. Lin shopkeeper, who was originally "a little embarrassed" to advertise in a circle of friends, also began to sell tea in a fancy way.
The income from selling tea is very limited, and it can only cover half of the three-month rent of three homestays. "Anyway, it's better to have something now than nothing." For this window test, Lin shopkeeper and the team did not have high expectations for income. "This is a warm-up match for our upcoming teahouse."
Comparatively speaking, the main investors who live slowly have other industries and incomes, and the owner Lin is even more worried about the homestay owners who once had beautiful illusions: "Most people feel very profitable when they enter this industry, but when the money really comes in, they don't know how to operate. Some people who open homestays because of their feelings can't grasp the profit point. They may be romantic in the early stage and can't go on in the later stage. In the B&B circle, there are often various transfers. "
There is no doubt that the epidemic stage "just happens to be a big bowl of washing dishes." In the view of Lin shopkeeper, "bad homestays may be washed away." For slow residence, branding will persist, diversification will continue to try, and slow residence teahouse is being renovated. As for when we can officially welcome guests, it is still unknown in the shadow of the epidemic and collapse. If you want to resume the reception before the epidemic, "it will be around the National Day".
By then, the carambola tree, which has lived in the courtyard of Carambola Mansion for more than 50 years, will experience the growth cycle of three seasons before it can usher in a fruitful moment.
Repaying the loan of 40,000 yuan per month requires a working capital of 200,000 yuan.
"At this stage, most people are very sad because the main source of income is the income of hotels." As shopkeeper Lin said, unlike chain brands and hotel groups, single hotel operators were under unprecedented pressure at the moment of the outbreak, and Feifei, the owner of Feilai Inn in Yangshuo, Guangxi, was one of them.
In late April, Feifei specially drove to downtown Guilin and ran to three banks to submit loan applications. Whether it can be approved is still unknown. "I basically have to pay more than 40,000 a month now, and I have to' eat soil'." In 20 18, Feifei took out the savings saved from her work 10 years, borrowed money from banks and online lending platforms, and devoted herself to the management of Feilai Inn. She has to pay back the loan three months ago, predicting that the worst will happen. If the National Day can restore passenger flow, she needs at least 200,000 yuan to survive.
Also from the first month, Feifei fell into despair. There is reception on the first day of the New Year, and all orders are returned on the second day of the New Year. On the third day of the New Year's Eve, Yangshuo was restricted, and the cultural tourism department informed that it would no longer receive it. Some small hotels are still secretly taking orders, "because Chinese New Year is the peak season". For example, the average annual occupancy rate of Feilai Inn is about 50%, and there is income from selling routes. The income of Spring Festival and National Day can account for 80% of the whole year, but Feifei has no adventure. Soon, there were suspected cases in the small hostel that picked up tourists privately. "The staff of the whole inn were all isolated, including staff and tourists." After that, all the hotels in the county were close to closing down except those designated by the government.
By mid-April, the relevant departments officially notified that they could start business. After more than two months, the inn has basically zero income. In Yangshuo, similar to Feifei, many homestay owners are in the dilemma of "breaking food" and repaying loans. "I'm still in the entrepreneurial stage. About my age. I basically use bank loans to open homestays and repay loans every month. " Feifei said.
The pressure of capital turnover is high, which is not rare in the homestay industry. According to the survey of Maidian Research Institute, more than 78% of the hotel and B&B operators surveyed have cash flow and capital turnover problems, ranking first.
After a quick calculation, the operation and maintenance cost of a single residential accommodation seems to be low, mainly in labor and rent, but the investment in early renovation and decoration is a "huge sum". For example, the renovation of Feilai Inn cost about 900,000 yuan, and 50,000 yuan is needed for the early promotion. "Unless B&B has been operating for more than 5 years, it has already recovered all the previous investment, and there is no pressure."
As an old-fashioned scenic spot, the rent of local homestays in Yangshuo is actually not low. "Guilin's landscape is the best in the world, and Yangshuo's landscape is the best in the world." In 20 18, the annual tourist reception of Yangshuo was about17.52 million, which was 2.5 times that of Licheng District, Quanzhou City, where chronic residents stayed. Feilai Inn is located in Yangshuo County, about 800 meters away from the most lively West Street scenic spot, with five-story civil buildings 1 and four rooms1,with an annual rent of 654.38+10,000 yuan. "This is still rented from my boudoir." Feifei said that just last year, she and her friends opened a "Feilai No.2 Store", a fancy building with an annual rent of more than 200,000 and 20 rooms.
Xinmin Hostel's 50,000 yuan rent deposit has been paid to the landlord, with an estimated investment of 3 million yuan, and even some furniture has been added. The epidemic has completely disrupted Feifei's plan, and the schedule of returning to the hotel within two years was forced to be postponed. Feifei said that during the gap of more than two months, she didn't count how much income she lost. "I dare not count, I am dying every day. Isn't it more sad to forget it? "
In order to open up new sources, a new platform of "helping each other out of poverty" has emerged in Yangshuo. "Poor farmers. They look forward to a bumper harvest and sell money all year round, and the epidemic is unsalable. " Feifei said that seeing the difficulties of farmers, local operators in Yangshuo set up an online platform to help the "poor" in the hotel connect with farmers and agricultural and sideline products manufacturers. The owner of the hotel brings goods online for unsalable agricultural products. Although the commission is low, they also help fruit farmers and sell at least hundreds of thousands of tons of fruit.
Feifei also helped sell it, but Wechat promoted Vogan, selling it for more than 40 yuan for 3 kg, "only earning 3 yuan". Pre-sale housing is "useless", and the most important thing is to sell epidemic prevention supplies. She sells masks, thermometers and goggles by using the products and customers accumulated in the past 65,438+00 years of marketing work. At the height of the epidemic in February, she earned 1 10,000 in half a month. The tuyere is fleeting. Feifei plans to make an independent e-commerce brand of snail powder with a few friends. During the epidemic, the popularity of snail powder rose again, and she wanted to seize the business opportunities outside the epidemic.
The hotel operators who can still "toss" are still "fancy conversion". If they can't persist, they will sell directly and transfer to the store. "And it is a low-cost transfer, even the rent deposit is not taken, and all kinds of equipment are removed and sold at low prices." In Yangshuo, "at least half of the homestays have to change hands". After all, if we have to wait until the National Day to recover, high rent and low income will make the loss more serious, so it is better to stop the loss in time. But in Feifei's view, "the crisis is also a turning point", and some operators are disheartened. On the contrary, she "wants to make another big one" and really lost all her money. "It's a big deal to go back to work".
Give up the career life with small achievements and join the hotel in an all-round way. Feifei has no regrets. This is an idea that she came up with after graduating from college. Running a hotel also gave her the freedom she wanted. Except for three and a half months in the peak season, the rest of the time is relatively free. She spent a lot of time decorating and taking guests to play. Prior to this, the business and reputation of the inn were good. The price of a single room is above 200 yuan every day, and Ctrip's evaluation is close to full mark.
Photo courtesy of respondents at Feilai Inn in Yangshuo
In Feifei's view, the impact of the epidemic can just help the highly saturated Yangshuo B&B market to purify itself. In 20 18, there were more than 2,000 hotels and 800 homestays in Yangshuo, with an average of less than 1 km2. Even an alley is crowded with hotels and homestays, and the number of Guilin homestays below the daily price 150 yuan accounts for 63.47%. Feifei also witnessed a lot of plagiarism and vicious competition.
2065438+August 2009 The author was taken in Yangshuo County.
Feifei finally passed the most difficult stage, but the business recovery was not ideal. After opening for a week, "only more than 20 people were received, and May Day was just some regular customers", but it was not full, far less than the same period last year. She is still "carrying the scalp", looking forward to making the brand "Feilai" stronger and creating new themes. "The heart is very important, I am not afraid of death!"
Without the epidemic, the hotel business is "unhappy"
Compared with Feifei's complacency, the pigeons in B&B circle 1 1 year are already tired. He is one of many operators who intend to change hands, but the transfer information was released before the outbreak.
The epidemic situation made the pigeons "very nervous". After all, he invested and operated three homestays alone. 1 is located in Sichuan area of Lugu Lake, named "Darwin House"; Two other scenic spots among network celebrities, Zhenhai Reef, were newly built in Zhangzhou, Fujian Province. They were named "Desert Island B&B" and "Baiyu B&B".
Photo courtesy of respondents from Baiyu B&B in Zhenhai Corner
Running a host family is also the main source of income for pigeons. From the end of 1 to the present, he can hardly "enter the grain". The reception volume on May Day is not optimistic. "Everyone's desire to travel is not strong, and the local government also uses various measures to prevent tourists from coming."
The homestay industry, shattered by the epidemic, mushroomed in the spring 1 1 years ago. As long as the soil and water are suitable, spores can bloom everywhere. The white dove was an early broadcaster. With only 1 ten thousand yuan, he started his homestay career for 1 1 year.
In 2009, the white dove, whose hometown was Shangrao, Jiangxi, was still teaching in a middle school. As a geography teacher, he wants to measure the world with his own footprints. Winter and summer vacations are far from satisfying his travel wishes. When I came to Zeng Cuo An Village Village, Xiamen, I saw an old courtyard house with four rooms and one living room in Minnan stone, and I "liked it". He also hoped to achieve the goal of more freedom in time and finance by running a homestay, so he took out all his savings of 654.38 million yuan and rented out the old house for renovation.
"Made a bathroom and bathroom, a small kitchen, a big washstand, then painted it and wired it", then bought bedding and furniture, and made three old rooms into brand-new rooms. 1 0,000 yuan's savings have already been spent, so the white dove has to use a credit card to buy air conditioners, and the decoration cost of the whole inn adds up to no more than 20,000 yuan. He also ridiculed himself as "the boss with the least investment in the hotel industry".
However, 1 1 years ago, Zeng Cuo An Village Village was a quiet fishing village, far from being the punching place for network celebrities in Xiamen. With a simple "fishing village flavor", it has attracted some tourists, literary lovers and operators, and there are only a dozen inns and homestays, and the competition is far less intense than today. At that time, OTA was still in its infancy, there was no Weibo WeChat, and the bidding ranking was not popular. Pigeons use douban groups and posts to attract guests, and tourists are in an endless stream. Every day the room was full, so he hurried home. In 2009, the Dragon Boat Festival began to collect. In August, he became a "naked resignation", and in September, he traveled for more than three months with the money earned by the hotel. After that, he relied on the income of the inn to open a homestay with private rooms. These conditions were very rare in Zeng Cuo An Village village at that time, which soon brought rich tourism funds for white pigeons.
The calm was soon broken. The white dove recalled that by 20 10, the number of homestays in Zeng Cuo An Village Village had increased to thirty or fifty. Restaurants and restaurants have also proliferated, and small villages have begun to carry unattractive crowds. By 20 13, Zeng Cuo An Village village began to undergo drastic changes. After 1 year, it became the "most literary fishing village". The white dove witnessed the rise of Zeng Cuo An Village Village from a minor celebrity to a famous one, and also witnessed the rise of rent and price. He once opened a coffee shop in Zeng Cuo An Village Village, and the location was "very good". Other businesses directly "pry away" the house, and the landlord has to pay liquidated damages, but the compensation is quick. "Because when I rented it, it was 65,438+700 yuan for 0 months, and the landlord directly subletted it to the next home, which increased by 20 times, and the monthly rent was 1.4 million yuan!" Said the white dove.
More and more businessmen are pouring into Zeng Cuo An Village Village to open homestays, and capital is rolling in. The white dove said that around 20 12, investing 300,000 yuan to decorate other homestays is already a "huge sum", while around 20 14, it usually costs 500,000-600,000 yuan. After 20 15, millions of yuan will be spent. "In the end, what we are pursuing is the construction of network celebrities and the overall demolition and construction", and the promotion cost is also rising.
Pigeons who opened four or five homestays in Zeng Cuo An Village Village finally chose to leave, and a large number of private capital entered. "Our market is even smaller", "The property is not your own. If you can't earn the rent, you will be fired". Until 20 19, statistics showed that there were more than 400 homestays in Zeng Cuo An Village village with a square kilometer of 1.25.
However, the white dove always insists on cost control and does not pursue explosions. He has been to more than 30 countries. He is convinced of his taste and the way of "making friends with guests". He also likes to be the first pioneer in discovering new markets and new attractions, such as Cape Town. 1 1 years later, the first guest who stayed in his homestay still followed him to explore new attractions and new residences. The three homestays owned by the white dove were designed by him personally, even the decoration and furniture were made by him, and the modification cost did not exceed one million yuan. "I spent 500,000 yuan on renovation, which can be put into the effect of 1 10,000." He said: "I installed the Nordic style and IKEA style popular in recent years years years ago in Xiamen 1 1." In the market, the starting price of hotel design is 50,000 yuan. In these years, "my design fee has saved 654.38 million to 300,000".
The white dove also saw the bubble: "I invest alone, and I have tens of thousands of yuan a month, so I am financially free." They invest in at least two or three million homestays, with a monthly performance of 50,000 to 60,000 yuan or even 100,000 yuan, but in fact, several shareholders don't have much points. I don't know when I can come back here. " He doesn't like the trend that hotels are becoming more and more homogeneous. In his view, the existence value of small and beautiful homestays lies in that the owners of homestays provide personalized services and enrich regional culture and ecology, while excessive capitalization makes it difficult for single homestays to survive, or be annexed or forced to fall.
But what makes the white dove feel more tired is that B&B has been difficult to get legal recognition, and the living environment under the beating of many parties makes the operation of B&B more difficult. So far, many homestays in China are still unable to obtain the most critical special industry licenses. The way to obtain this special permission is mostly based on large-scale accommodation industries such as hotels and hotels, such as fire protection requirements. According to the Basic Requirements and Evaluation of Tourism B&Bs issued by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, B&Bs are often small in scale, that is, "the business rooms have no more than four floors and the construction area does not exceed 800㎡. The host participates in the reception and provides small accommodation facilities for tourists, so that tourists can experience the local nature, culture, production and lifestyle".
The white dove said that because the legal status of most local homestays is still under study, it has not yet landed. "Your business is very embarrassing in law. Many homestays in Xiamen are called' unfinished homestays'."
Since the 1990s, inns similar to farmhouses have gradually appeared in Chinese mainland, which is regarded as an early version of homestay in the industry. After that, with the rise of tourism and the reference of Japanese and other places, the number of homestays in China increased year by year. According to the report jointly issued by beijing international studies university and China Institute of Culture and Tourism Big Data, there were about 66,405 homestays in Chinese mainland in 2065,438+09, while in 2065,438+04, there were only 3,0231home. The rapidly developing hotel industry has been seeking "legal status". 20 17 the former national tourism administration also published the basic requirements and evaluation of tourist hotels, but so far only some provinces such as Zhejiang have issued the prescribed procedures for hotel certification.
"Without this special industry license and' legal status', your business will be very passive." Baige said that even in areas with fierce competition in the same industry, unlicensed homestays can easily become victims of vicious reports. On 20 16, the white dove began to stay with the villagers in Luguhu Township, a newly opened town in Zhenhai. He also faces the trouble of dealing with various departments. "It may be because some governance activities today were told not to open", and it may also face various charges from village committees and other units, but it is difficult to figure out what the standards and regulations are.
10 years, a total of 8 homestays have been opened, and they have frequently fallen into embarrassing situations. It is often necessary to negotiate with many parties and even pay inexplicable fees. All kinds of tossing, so that the "unrestrained, unrestrained" pigeons are exhausted in running the homestay. In addition, the passenger flow of Lugu Lake in Sichuan is not more obvious than that of villagers in Hejiang, Yunnan in the off-season. The average occupancy rate of the three homestays 1 year is about 30%. Although 1 year can maintain an income of more than 200,000 yuan, he found himself an outdoor leader, taking guests out for a walk to see if he was "happier", so he began to focus on customized tours of Yunnan-Tibet line from 20 19. Although the income of customized tours is not as stable as that of homestays, "/kloc-0 has 70,000 to 80,000 a year, mainly because I am happy."
However, the epidemic has disrupted the plan of the white dove. 65438+ From the end of 10, the three-month rent and other costs of the three homestays are all around 60,000. Fortunately, the annual rent has been paid years ago, and the B&B will not be transferred for a while. Similar to slow living, when to officially reopen is still uncertain.
The white dove didn't keep herself idle. He picked up the tools again, polished a table, and was redecorating the homestay ready to leave the business, recruiting peers in the circle of friends. He intends to set foot on the Yunnan-Tibet line again after May Day, and explore a brand-new journey on the road, between the snow-capped mountains and Yuan Ye.