Tony Talks Business
How Motels Make Money
Why was Motel 6 called Motel 6? Where did sixty one thousand American motels go? And why do so many of the ones still standing have the same cars parked outside all week?
This is how motels actually make money, and why the real business is no longer the night, it is the week.
The numbers in this video
61,000Roughly how many motels America had in 1964.Source: Smithsonian
16,000Around how many motels were left by 2012.Source: Smithsonian
77%The share of their income that people living long-term in extended stay hotels in DeKalb County, Georgia, were spending on the room, on average.Source: Georgia State University, January 2026
Every number has a source
Chapters
- 0:00The Price
- 0:21The Night
- 2:01The Count
- 2:32The Name
- 3:37The Slogan
- 3:58The Door
- 5:35The Exit
- 6:33The Interstate
- 7:24The Family
- 8:36The Brand
- 9:26The Buildings
- 10:09The Week
- 11:01The Deposit
- 12:09The Shuffle
- 13:08The Court
- 13:47The Buyer
- 14:26The Audit
- 15:22The Verdict
Sources
4 pages the figures in this video were read from.
