Since the early-1960s, guests in most upscale and luxury hotels have had snacks and beverages at the palms of their hands inside the guestroom minibar. While offering convenience to the guest, minibars have also provided a revenue stream for the property, and some items within them could actually cost more than the room.
Surprisingly, while the pandemic forced hotels to limit housekeeping and room service, requests for minibars rose, according to global minibar manufacturer Dometic.
One of the HiPro Evolution models
“We saw an increasing market and demand in our minibar solutions [during the pandemic],” said Fatiha Babou, head of business development, hospitality, Dometic. “In fact, it looks like and comeback of minibars. Before COVID-19, we saw minibars disappearing from some hotel rooms. With new thinking about hygiene, people are demanding a personal and reliable place to store and keep food or drinks cold and fresh. Right in time with this changing market, we introduced our HiPro minibars.”
According to the company, the HiPro Minibar series provide rapid chlliing without over-chilling and also saves the hotel money by using less power than other minibars.
“Dometic integrated its advanced engineering technology in the HiPro Minibars to achieve up to 40% lower power consumption,” said Babou. “The technology from Dometic, at the same time, improves the cooling performance of the series.”
Dometic has also included a chromate-free absorption inhibitor within the HiPro series, a first for the industry, according to Babou.
“This allows the HiPro Minibars to comply with the strictest environmental regulations in Europe,” she said. “The development of the chromate-free absorption inhibitor took more than a decade of research and development. Absorption minibars are favored by hospitality developers due to their long-lasting and maintenance-free lifespan, in addition to being noiseless. We are pleased to provide a series of solutions that offer this new technology.”
Available in two ranges—Evolution and Alpha—with four minibars with different features (size, type of door, etc.), the HiPro series is available in the 30-l. and 40-l. class.
“A unique feature of our HiPro minibar is the capability to store 1.5-l. bottles of champagne in their glass door racks,” said Babou, adding, “We will also be launching additional capacities to the HiPro Minibar series soon.”
Another sought-after feature of all HiPro models is the interior lighting. “The subtle ambient illumination within the minibars are inviting and non-obtrusive for a heightened guest experience,” she said.
Babou pointed out that the minibars have to be stocked manually as there is “no active detection or alert given by our minibar. Hotel staff must check the minibar for use/removal and restock accordingly.”
Dometic has also recently launched its MoBar series of mobile beverage centers. “These supplementary products are ideal for indoor and outdoor public and private guest spaces across hospitality venues,” she said. “Mobar gives hoteliers and restaurants the possibility to entertain guests with cold beverages and cocktails anywhere, at any time. From rooftops to guest patios to poolside, MoBar is poised and ready for service.”
Each of the three models in the MoBar series has different features—50 S has an insulated presentation bin where ice and drinks are stored on the go; 300 S comes with the bin, as well as a single-zone refrigerator that holds up to 19 wine bottles or 70 cans; and 550 S also has the bin, and contains a dry storage drawer and a two-zone refrigerator that can hold up to 39 bottles of wine.
Dometic is always adding new products to its hospitality offerings, noted Babou. “Our team is constantly innovating,” she said. “We are developing many sustainably minded products for hospitality.”
While some are saying that minibars will become a thing of the past, Babou disagrees.
“Minibars are an established amenity of luxury hotels,” she said. “Although perhaps unused or removed during the height of the pandemic, we believe that minibars are an ingrained piece of the hotel experience worldwide and that they are not likely to be removed from design schemes anytime soon.”
