Zenith City Consulting specializes in Hospitality Coaching & Concierge & Revenue Management Services, and we are dedicated to assisting and guiding Innkeepers. Our services are designed to get to know you as an Innkeeper and understand your property’s brand. We then help you increase revenue by customizing our approach to your property needs, utilizing the current tools available with the Think Reservations Property Management system. Our experience and expertise in Innkeeping are personalized for your property, and our goals go beyond the Think Reservation system.
As an Innkeeper, you face unique challenges, and we believe our experiences can be a welcome ear for many Innkeepers. We have worn the many hats of Innkeeping, and we can guide you not only with our coaching, revenue management, and utilizing the many features of Think Reservations, but we are also adept at accommodating and developing diets to meet the needs of guests such as plant-based, gluten-free, etc. We can increase revenue by creating and upselling unique enhancements to set you apart from your competitors, capitalizing on your social media opportunities, and so much more!
We understand the unique challenges and issues that come with being an Innkeeper. If you just need someone to talk to about the unique issues and concerns you face on a daily basis, we are here to support you. You can share your ideas with us, and we can help you put them into action. We are committed to supporting you every step of the way!
Consultation ServicesPackages include an initial 30-minute consultation providing an opportunity to become familiar with one another, discuss the property and services needed, and assess the best strategies for moving forward. These strategies may vary to include coaching, revenue management, and other areas of your hospitality needs including upselling your brand, developing unique menus for allergies and plant-based diets, and any other specific or unique issues that arise in operating a B&B and Inn.
If you find that your needs are more extensive than what our Ala Carte Service offers, and you would prefer a longer-term solution to ensure that all your needs are met, Zenith City Consulting will consult with the Innkeeper to set up a cost-effective, comprehensive package on a bi-monthly or quarterly basis
A little background on my past experiences gives you an opportunity to know a little more about me personally and professionally.
My husband, Tim and I are originally from Wisconsin. Yes, Cheeseheads – a requirement from birth. After getting married in October of 1983, my husband enlisted in the US Air Force. We spent our first assignment and 7 years in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan at the now former AF base near Marquette where our only daughter was born. After getting his commission, we moved around and ultimately were sent to Duluth Minnesota for our last assignment.
Falling in love with the city and people of Duluth and Lake Superior we put our roots down! We are now true and official Duluthians living here since 2005 and owning a Subaru – a Duluthian right-of-passage!
My dream has always been to operate a Bed and Breakfast. The idea was planted when Tim and I stayed at a B&B in Door County over 40 years ago. I told Tim at breakfast that “I am going to do this someday,” and that someday came in August of 2007 when we bought the AG Thomson House Bed and Breakfast! It had been in operation for 7 years and was the worst-rated B&B in town at the time. We are extremely proud of our 14 years and successfully bringing it back to life. We were twice named the #1 Bed and Breakfast in the United States: #10 and #11 in the world, on Trip Advisor.
Due to our life as a military family, I had many jobs over our 24+ years in the military. Each move meant a new job from Bank Teller, Office Manager, Floral Designer, Bookkeeper to Executive Assistant. I worked for Credit Unions and small businesses with owners who started and grew their business. I look at those years as the best possible knowledge I could have acquired. Firsthand and watching a business grow from the inside. And this lifestyle forces one to be able to adapt quickly and forge relationships and friendships.
This is what we applied to running our Bed and Breakfast. We took advantage of the many, many experiences and the knowledge of other Innkeepers, as well as attending conferences and participating in continuing education.
And listening to our guests played crucial in our ongoing growth, improvement, and commitment to providing the highest quality of service possible.
I served on the board of the Minnesota Bed and Breakfast Association. During that time, we implemented Think Reservation on the Association website. Forging relationships with Innkeepers, Vendors, our local business community, and our guests.
Hard work, dedication, patience, kindness, and more is not lost on me and what makes owning and operating an Inn or Bed and Breakfast one of the hardest, and often least understood, by anyone other than an Innkeeper! I am delighted and excited for the opportunity and humbled to offer any knowledge and experience I have and forge those new relationships.
Owner, Zenith City Consulting – Hospitality Concierge & Revenue Management Services
(former Innkeeper – AG Thomson House Bed and Breakfast – Duluth, Minnesota)
