What Kind of Woman would put a Hairdryer in the Wardrobe?

I have had the (mis)fortune of having to travel for work since the day my working life began. As a result of this I have stayed in literally hundreds of hotels, in quite a number of cities, in a fair few countries. 


And everywhere I go, it seems to be the same: The hotel rooms are designed by men, for men. 


Now don't get me wrong, I am fully aware that the lion's share of the business travel market is male. But that lion's share is getting smaller all the time and recent statistics suggest that over 40% of the business travel market is now female. 


So how come hotels don't seem to have cottoned on?


As a female business traveller, I'm a creature of habit. I like to use the same trains/planes/car hire companies, and I like to stay in the same hotel - it makes my life easier. But in all my travels I have rarely found a hotel who'd got is right for the girls. 


And it's not rocket science. Most women who travel often quickly get over the "don't like being alone in a restaurant" feeling - it's the lack of attention to detail that bugs us most. So here's my wish list for any of those hoteliers out there that want to stop ignoring this lucrative market and really stand out from the crowd:

• How about a free plug socket near to where a mirror is situated so we can plug in our hair straighteners?
• How about a plug socket situated far enough away from the desk (in height) so the cord attached to our hair straighteners/laptop etc etc can actually fit?
• How about replacing those terrible hairdryers in the wardrobe with something that will actually take less than five minutes to dry your fringe? (Note to hoteliers, anything less that 1600w is a) a waste of your money, b) a waste of your space, c) a waste of our time and d) means we can't travel quite as light as the boys).
• Even better, why not have qood quality ghd hair straighteners available at reception to borrow (booked in advance, of course). This is more useful to us than novelty (boys) toys like playstations - yup, I've stayed in more than a few hotels where they have been available. 
• How about having sanitary towels and ibuprofen available to purchase at reception or in vending machines? If you are travelling for a period (excuse the pun) of time and across time zones you can often get caught out. 
• Safety is a major priority for lone female travellers, how about a series of safe parking spaces close to the hotel doors so we don't have to wrestle with our suitcase and handbag, while constantly looking behind us in a strange and deserted car park late at night?
• When you are selecting toiletries, why not consider that the vast majority of women use hair conditioner as well as shampoo. Oh, and I think you'd be hard pushed to find a woman who still uses soap. So don't waste your money on toiletries we rarely use. I take mine home with me: to my husband. And yes, while it may seem old fashioned, a hair cap is actually very, very useful. But they are rarely found in hotel bathrooms anymore. 

This list is not exhaustive, by any means. But if hotels could just sort out a few of the easy peasy things, they'd have a loyal market of female business travellers just lining up to spend money with them. 


Imagine that.