Kobo and Fairmont: An Intriguing Partnership

This is one of the coolest partnerships in travel amenities and publishing that I have seen in some time here at thriftymommagogo. Today Kobo, the ereading service sold far and wide at Chapters/ Indigo and Wal-Mart, among other retail outlets, announced it has partnered with Fairmont hotels and Random House. Fairmont Gold travellers will be permitted use of a Kobo preloaded with numerous popular fiction and non fiction titles carried by Random House. Kobo and Fairmont recognize that travellers occasionally forget their books, or don’t want to travel with bulky heavy hardcovers. Let’s face it hardcovers can weight the luggage down a fair bit. So, thinking out of the box and planning for the future, Kobo, Random House and Fairmont have made Kobo ereaders available on check in at select properties in the US and Canada. The ereaders will be loaded with reads by Alexander McCall Smith, Sophie Kinsella and Bret Easton Ellis. Fairmont Gold is described in a press release as “a private, dedicated area offering guests the experience of an exclusive oasis with personalized service and enhanced amenities.” Upon returning the Kobo eReader, guests will receive a special offer for $2 off select Random House titles redeemable at www.kobobooks.com/randomhouse. The opportunity to try a Kobo ereader is a benefit of belonging to the Fairmont President’s Club (FPC), the brand’s guest loyalty program. It is free to join and it provides guests with special benefits and privileges designed to reflect individual travel preferences and offer an enhanced level of service. Benefits include private check-in, complimentary room upgrades, and high-speed and wireless Internet access. Guests can enroll at time of booking or online at www.fairmont.com/fpc. For more information on the Kobo visit http://www.thriftymommastips.blogspot.com/ for a full review. Thriftymomma was lucky enough to have one here to try out for three weeks. It was a true treat! The KOBO retails on average for about $149, but as recent as last weekeend this was marked down to $128 at both Wal-Mart and Chapters. I love that all three of these companies, Fairmont, Random House and Kobo, are thinking globally outside the box with a eye to the future. This clearly enhances a guest’s stay at Fairmont and is very clever branding. What a smart move!