Front & Center: Ramada makes Spokane a great place to wake up

Denise Vickerman has seen it all.

Literally.

Soon after she started working at the Ramada at Spokane Airport 32 years ago, Vickerman was heading toward the hotel’s indoor swimming pool when a woman walked by wearing nothing but sun glasses and a big black hat.

“I asked, ‘Can I help you?’ She said, ‘No, no. I’m just leaving,’ and she walked out of the building, got in a car and drove off – completely naked.

“When I returned to the office and told the general manager what I’d seen, he said, ‘Denise, you’ll learn that every day is a new day in the hotel business.’ ”

Over the years, Vickerman did learn – so well, in fact, that in 2012 the American Hotel & Lodging Association named her the nation’s top general manager for midscale hotels.

The Ramada at Spokane Airport has operated continuously since it opened in 1969 – a rare feat. It began with 109 rooms, then added another 52 in anticipation of Expo 74.

Today it features a full-service restaurant with complimentary breakfast, a lounge, ballroom, meeting rooms and an indoor pool with water slide.

During a recent interview, Vickerman discussed the importance of kindness, dependability … and free breakfasts.

S-R: Where did you grow up?

Vickerman: On a 300-acre farm outside Ritzville. Sometimes we raised cattle, sometimes chickens, but it was primarily a wheat farm.

S-R: When do you start helping out?

Vickerman: When I was 7, I got paid to feed the dogs. We always had at least three mutts. My dad couldn’t refuse a stray. I started driving a wheat truck when I was 12.

S-R: How about your first job off the farm?

Vickerman: I started waitressing at a fast-food place – Spike’s Drive-In – when I was a sophomore.

S-R: What else do you remember about high school?

Vickerman: I liked biology. I was a cheerleader. And I was in chorus and band. I played the flute.

S-R: Did you attend college?

Vickerman: I went to Spokane Falls to study fashion merchandising.

S-R: Then what?

Vickerman: After graduation, I went to work for Lawton Printing as kind of a bookkeeper-secretary-all-around person. I took time off when my daughter was born in ’82.

S-R: When did you start at the Ramada?

Vickerman: Two years later. They were looking for someone to work three hours a day, tracking labor and food-and-beverage costs. I had no idea what that was, but I applied and got the job. Six months later, I was offered a full-time secretarial position, and a couple of years after that I was promoted to administrative assistant, which I did until I became general manager in 2007.

S-R: As you moved up, did you get training?

Vickerman: No, I winged it. But by the time I was made general manager, I had more than 20 years of experience with five different GM’s.

S-R: How many employees work for you?

Vickerman: Eighty-two. Most are part-time – college students – but the core group of team leaders are all full-time. One has been here 20 years.

S-R: Tell me about awkward encounters with guests.

Vickerman: One older lady paid for two nights, then refused to leave. She wouldn’t talk to the general manager at that time, so he sent me up there, thinking maybe she would relate better to a woman. By the time I arrived, she’d hung dozens of wind chimes in her room, clearly moving in. We chatted, and I asked her about her relatives. When I contacted them, they said they’d been looking for her, and we were able to get her help. We’ve also had people pass away here. It seems some people want to take out their struggles somewhere other than home.

S-R: What’s the difference between a hotel and a motel?

Vickerman: A motel typically is somewhere you can drive up to your front door, whereas a hotel is two floors or higher.

S-R: Is this Ramada a franchise?

Vickerman: Yes. Our owners live in Scottsdale, and have seven hotels, mostly in the Southwest. We’re part of the Wyndham Hotel Group, which has 13 different brands. Ramada is one of their midlevel brands.

S-R: Has this hotel always been successful?

Vickerman: It rolls with the economy. We can count on older guests – retirees – but we’d like to attract more teens and groups. Adding an indoor water slide in 2000 helped. One mother let her daughter invite a bunch of her friends for a birthday sleepover. After they used the pool, all 14 of them slept on the floor in one room.

S-R: What’s been the biggest change since you started working here?

Vickerman: Technology. We used to have hand-written registration cards. One copy we filed, another went with their room, and the third went on the telephone board.

S-R: What else?

Vickerman: Room phones used to be a big money generator. Local calls were 50 cents. Now everyone has cellphones, and room phones are just an amenity, like having a wastebasket. Pay-per-view movies also have gone by the wayside. Now we offer free cable TV, and don’t charge for Wi-Fi.

S-R: What’s your typical annual occupancy rate?

Vickerman: Around 60 percent. Most midscale hotels run a little less than that. But because of our airport location, people stay here before taking an early flight, or when they arrive late at night.

S-R: How much impact did the recession have?

Vickerman: That was bad. My first year as GM – 2007 – was great. Once the recession caught up with Spokane, we lost around 20 percent. But this year has been very good. People are traveling again, and taking generational trips – parents, grandparents and children all traveling together.

S-R: Did you ever clean rooms yourself?

Vickerman: When I was administrative assistant I volunteered for every job, because I figure if I couldn’t do it, how could I expect other people to? My least favorite was dishwashing.

S-R: How’s the local labor pool?

Vickerman: Most young people today aren’t ready for a job. They don’t realize that if a shift starts at 8 o’clock, they can’t arrive at 8:30.

S-R: What qualities do you look for?

Vickerman: Someone who is dependable and honest. They don’t have to have experience — we can teach a job. But we can’t necessarily teach kindness, which everyone in the hospitality business needs. You don’t just serve guests coffee. You ask them, “What brings you to Spokane?” “Where are you headed next?”

S-R: What are you most proud of?

Vickerman: We recently added a complimentary buffet breakfast, which was a game-changer. Once you give something away, guests don’t mind paying a little more for their room.

S-R: How do you estimate how much food to prepare?

Vickerman: If it’s free and we have 161 guests, you can bet 150 will show up.

S-R: What’s your business philosophy?

Vickerman: I’m not a micromanager. I pick team leaders who can do their job, then let them do it. And all nine of my managers were promoted from within – they started out in entry-level jobs.

S-R: Are there common misperceptions about your business?

Vickerman: (laugh) People think we hold rooms back. If it’s Hoopfest weekend and the town is full, we’re full. Yet people come to the front desk and say, “Come on, I know you’ve got a room. I don’t care what the price is. I’ll pay.” Nope, we sold all the rooms. We didn’t know someone would walk in at 3 a.m.

S-R: How can travelers get the best price for a room?

Vickerman: We have parity pricing, so what they see on Expedia is the same rate I offer here. But I’d rather sell them the room and avoid Expedia’s or Priceline’s commission. And if it’s 8 p.m. and I have 50 vacant rooms, we’re going to make them a great deal. Just ask.

S-R: What’s the career outlook for your industry?

Vickerman: If you’re willing to start at the bottom, it’s very good. Managers need to know how to make beds, how to check in people. You don’t need a college degree to do my job.

S-R: If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

Vickerman: I’d like to be less emotional. I get really invested in … I’m going to cry now … in team members and their lives. Oh, lord. (tearful laugh) This is what happens.

S-R: How do you relax?

Vickerman: I love to embroider – tea towels, pillowcases. That’s how I de-stress. And my husband and I love to travel.

S-R: Do you stay at other Wyndham properties for free?

Vickerman: No, but we get employee rates – about $45 – which isn’t bad.

S-R: What’s at the top of your bucket list?

Vickerman: Retirement.

This interview has been condensed. If you’d like to suggest a business or community leader to be profiled, contact Michael Guilfoil at mguilfoil@comcast.net.