Erdi Hotels, Case Study

From CBD to CLD A Pandemic Rebuild with Purpose

In the middle of COVID lockdowns, Erdi Group approached Morris with a question few in their industry were asking: What if we used this moment to completely reimagine what our hotels are for?

The result was the Erdi Innovation Lab a long-term collaboration that continues to this day. What began on Zoom became a ground-up strategic rebuild, involving keynote provocations, 1:1 coaching with C-suite executives, leadership workshops, guest journey redesigns, and visioning sessions inside Erdi’s venues across Victoria.

Morris’s pivotal foresight moment? Declaring that the CBD Central Business Dictrict was dead and that instead of clinging to commuter patterns, city-based hotels needed to become CLDs: Central Leisure Districts. Places people want to be, not just places to sleep between business meetings.

That one shift reframed everything. It led to new refurbs, new restaurants, gaming lounge redesigns, and community-first programming designed not just for guests but for locals who might never book a room but want to belong to the space.

Morris helped reposition Erdi properties as future-facing lifestyle anchors, not legacy buildings hoping business travel would bounce back.

Shift: From occupancy-led hotel thinking to destination-first hospitality design.

The result?: A pandemic-era reinvention that still guides strategy, space, and storytelling with Morris continuing to advise the group as their trusted foresight partner