October 29, 2025
By Lee Reilly, Sales Enablement Manager, Cardstream
Last week, I had the privilege of representing Cardstream at Hospitality Tech Expo 2025 at ExCeL London, a key event bringing together innovators, hoteliers, restaurateurs, and technology providers from across the hospitality space. The energy in the halls, the conversations, and the ideas floating around confirmed one thing: we are well inside a new era of payments, customer experience, and operational intelligence.
Here’s what stood out to me, and why I believe Cardstream’s vision is more relevant than ever in this space.
A Convergence of Challenges and Opportunities
Hospitality businesses are facing a multitude of pressures, including rising labour costs, workforce shortages, the growing demand for sustainable operations, and the need to deliver seamless guest experiences across all channels. The Expo’s focus on smart systems, automation, guest engagement, and integrated payments reflected exactly what operators are currently grappling with.
What became clear in my conversations is that payment infrastructure is no longer a back-office necessity; it’s frontline, customer-facing, and foundational.
Why Payments Are a Cornerstone of Guest Experience
In hospitality, every touchpoint with a guest is an opportunity to delight or disappoint. From check-in to dining, spa, in-room services, and even valet or parking, the payment ecosystem must be frictionless. A failed transaction or slow process can erode goodwill instantly.
That’s where Cardstream’s solutions, particularly our PayFac-as-a-Service model (PFaaS) play a crucial role. We don’t just enable payments: we ensure they are fast, secure, and invisible in the best possible way.
Three Key Takeaways from My Time at the Expo
1. Integration is Non-Negotiable
Many vendors at the Expo are building modules, POS systems, ordering systems, CRM, and analytics, but operators want these to communicate with each other seamlessly. A payments platform must integrate deeply, not sit on the side.
2. Data & Analytics Win Hearts
Operators are hungry for actionable insights: which menus are driving revenue, which service outlets lag in transactions, peak transaction patterns, and more. Payment data is a powerful lens into guest behaviour when surfaced correctly.
3. Scalability & Modularity Matter
Many hospitality businesses are multi-site or franchise models. They want to roll out enhancements across properties or markets without rebuilding from scratch every time. Flexibility in payments, adding new payment methods, currencies, or regional compliance, is essential.
What Cardstream Brings to the Table for Hospitality
Looking Ahead
Walking the aisles at Hospitality Tech Expo, meeting passionate entrepreneurs and tech leaders reinforced my conviction: hospitality will be defined as much by its payment experience as by its core services. Guests don’t separate “paying” from “dining” or “staying.” It’s all part of the guest journey.
Cardstream is committed to being at the forefront of that journey. We look forward to partnering with forward-thinking hospitality brands, helping them modernise payments, unlock data insights, and deliver flawless guest experiences.
If you’d like to connect and explore how we can help modernise your payments, whether in hotel, restaurant, or integrated hospitality services, please get in touch with our Sales Team – sales@cardstream.com
