Using focus groups and consumer perceptions to generate important features of hotel shampoos and lotions

Hotel toiletries are standard complementary items found in hotel bathrooms. These commodities are important to consumers, yet minimum research has been conducted on consumers' perception of these hotel toiletries, nor the variables that can influence their preferences. Four focus group sessions were conducted with frequent hotel guests. These groups were separated based on the type of hotel toiletry (shampoo or lotion) and the category of hotel the consumers most regularly visited (i.e., luxury or economy). By the end of all four sessions, a list of 34 attributes for hotel shampoos and 29 attributes for hotel lotions was generated. Perceived differences were discovered such as economy guests testing the products before use, while luxury hotel guests had a “trust” factor in which testing was unnecessary. Additionally, relaxing “spa” like scents for shampoos and thick textures for lotions were important features. Follow-up research has been published to validate the information quantitatively.

Practical Applications

Articles publicly accessible on hotel toiletries are narrow. The investigation provides the groundwork for additional research to be conducted on the hotel toiletry category. The research resulted in various attributes to describe hotel shampoos and lotions, and how economy and luxury hotel guests use hotel toiletries. From the study, hotel owners and managers can explore the various opinions and perceptions of luxury and economy hotel guests regarding hotel shampoos and lotions.