Chains and Franchises
Until the early post-war years nearly all motels were owner operated, “mom-and-pop” businesses. But as motel customers grew more sophisticated, so did motel owners. Mom and Pop joined motel associations to learn the latest in business
practices and marketing techniques. Member
motels referred traveling customers to other member motels with the assurance that they could enjoy high standards of hospitality clear across the country.
But by the 60s the individualistic owner- operated motels were being engulfed by the wave of the future– the chain and franchise motels. Post-war prosperity had given birth to America’s consumer culture. Advertising trained buyers to trust brand names. When it came to shopping for a place to spend the night tourists and traveling businessmen liked