Concise insights on global finance in the Covid-19 era. ------------------------------------------------- TURN-DOWN SERVICE. Boutique hotels’ struggles could be a lucky break for their bigger rivals. Across the country, from Brooklyn boutique The Tillary Hotel to Hotel Indigo in the California Coachella valley, properties from Chicago to Sacramento have succumbed to a travel slump during Covid-19. It’s easy to imagine the schadenfreude from the corner suites of larger chains like Marriott International and Hyatt Hotels. Independent hotels had been eating away at their pricing power. Revenue per available room at a big operator was only $5 higher than at independent hotels on average in 2019, according to hotel data provider STR – down from $8 in 2014. Financial distress might drive smaller hotels into the arms of bigger ones with better-padded balance sheets, speeding up a trend. In 1990, nearly two-thirds of hotels were independent – a figure that fell to 40% by 2018, STR says. The future of travel will still have a place for boutique hotels, but they’ll need bigger-than-boutique finances. (By Lauren Silva Laughlin)