About Hey Lou

Founded by long-time industry experts, Hey Lou is an innovative and sustainable hotel concept that operates seven economy hotels across Germany: Frankfurt Airport, Friedrichshafen, Hildesheim, Karlsruhe, Monheim am Rhein, Nördlingen and Piding. A central pillar of the Hey Lou concept is integrating AI into daily hotel management.

The team is focused on comprehensive digitalization and creating a seamless 360° digital guest journey tailored to individual needs. Both guests and staff benefit from simplified processes and time savings, thanks to the unique networking of systems within the hotel’s own software and hardware landscape.

Our partnership with Mews allows us to elevate the guest experience to a new level through the digital Welcome Desk with Mews Kiosk and seamless transactions via Mews Payments. All our systems – from the booking platform to the check-in process to the payment terminal – communicate perfectly with each other. Linus Bihn, Head of Digital Processes & Customer Journey, Hey Lou

— Source: Mews

Long check-in queues? Long gone

Challenge

Staff shortages made it essential to streamline operations, aiming to reduce front office tasks and guide guests towards self-service.

Solution

Mews Kiosk was the perfect solution for Hey Lou. By replacing traditional front desks with Welcome Desks, the team created a more welcoming environment, encouraging natural interactions between guests and staff. These self-check-in stations have become a signature feature across all Hey Lou hotels. With large screens and a user-friendly interface powering quick check-ins, long queues are a thing of the past, earning high praise from both guests and staff alike. Plus, all payments are cashless and effortless. By proactively anticipating guest needs, Hey Lou ensures that every stay is as seamless as possible.

Result

•<2 minutes to check-in via Welcome Desks powered by Mews Kiosk

The onboarding and onsite training were incredibly smooth and personal, making the transition effortless. We’ve been able to focus more on our guests and less on figuring out the software. Linus Bihn, Head of Digital Processes & Customer Journey, Hey Lou

Increased revenue with Multicurrency by Mews Payments

Challenge

Paying in a foreign currency can be stressful for international guests as they often encounter unwelcome surprises. Banks may apply hidden currency conversion fees, causing the price at sale to differ from the amount shown on their bank statements. The lack of transparency results in a poor customer experience for guests, while hotels also miss out on revenue opportunities as markup fees are usually retained by banks.

Solution

As a hotel group serving international travelers, Hey Lou Hotel believes Multicurrency is a “no-brainer”. Global guests can choose to pay in their preferred currency and are presented with exchange rates and markup fees instantly. That transparency builds trust and enhances their relationship with customers. The process is fully automated and embedded in Hey Lou Hotel’s current operation and is so intuitive that staff don’t even need training on the new feature. Multicurrency also drives additional revenue as Hey Lou Hotel now retains a share of markup fees that banks were taking.

Result

• Effortless revenue increase and enhanced guest experience

Mews Multicurrency is exactly what we expected – easy to use, fully automated and seamlessly integrated into our payment processes. We created an additional revenue stream, and guests appreciate seeing familiar currency options. Linus Bihn, Head of Digital Processes & Customer Journey, Hey Lou

Payment revolution and a seamless flow of transactions

Challenge

Before switching to Mews, Hey Lou struggled with a fragmented payments system. They had difficulties integrating the payment acquirer’s API with their PMS, so their accountants often had to manually fix errors and even reverse payments.

Solution

Mews Payments streamlined and connected all transactions, helping Hey Lou go 100% cashless. Guests can settle their bills with a quick card swipe, and for staff, everything is automated, eliminating manual work. Hey Lou is also using Mews Terminals, a fully integrated payment terminals that save time, reduce paper waste and eliminate the risk of mistyping card numbers. Plus, they’re avid users of Mews POS, an all-in-one solution for back-of-house that connects inventory and ePOS, letting the team track, analyze, plan and order with confidence. The team loves that they can take orders and payments directly at the table, saving time and simplifying the process for everyone. They’re also using digital ordering with Mews POS at Hey Lou Hotel Frankfurt Airport that has its own brewery, where guests can simply scan a QR code, pull up a digital menu, order and pay.

Result

• 50% faster payments through Mews Payments

• Staff use mobile phones with the Mews app, making bulky tills and cash handling a thing of the past

We’ve worked with several PMS providers, but Mews University offers the best training portal. It’s so straightforward that our staff had almost no questions and combined with a short personal training they are ready to start. Daniel Schleser, Expert Digital Hotel Processes & Customer Journey, Hey Lou

About Mews

Mews is the leading platform for the new era of hospitality. Powering over 12,500 customers across more than 85 countries, Mews Hospitality Cloud is designed to streamline operations for modern hoteliers, transform the guest experience and create more profitable businesses. Customers include BWH Hotels, Strawberry, The Social Hub and Airelles Collection. Mews was named Best PMS (2024, 2025) and listed among the Best Places to Work in Hotel Tech (2021, 2022, 2024, 2025) by Hotel Tech Report. Mews has raised $410 million from investors including Growth Equity at Goldman Sachs Alternatives, Kinnevik and Tiger Global to transform hospitality. 

www.mews.com