August 1, 2006
Articles
Trendspotting
An ad agency recently asked me to articulate the five most important trends affecting the U.S. hotel industry. Their request coincided with an annual...
SPREADING THE KIMPTON EXPERIENCE
When Mike Depatie joined Kimpton Hotel and Restaurant Group as head of real estate three-and-a-half years ago, he aimed to beef up the financing. Did...
Gellein Adds Development Duties
Timeshare industry pioneer Rip Gellein is now working on a larger canvas. The chairman and CEO of Starwood Vacation Ownership was promoted last month...
BRANDING BRIEFS
America's Best Franchising The Atlanta-based brand company added 10 franchised properties in June. The openings included seven Country Hearth Inn & Suites...
KINDER, GENTLER FRANCHISING
Aberdeen, SD may seem to be an unlikely incubator for new hotel brands, but the small Midwest city is the birthplace of two chains: the decades-old and...
WYNDHAM'S HIGH-STYLE PROTOTYPE
Wyndham Worldwide (nee Cendant Hotels) recently took a giant step in the overhaul of its flagship Wyndham Hotels and Resorts brand with the introduction...
CHEF'S TABLE CREATES CACHET
How do you make a small group feel that it's receiving the same, if not better, service as a group of 5,000? At The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, the...
Supply Forecast: More Hotels
More than 1,000 hotels will open both next year and in 2008, according to a new lodging supply forecast from Lodging Econometrics. According to the New...
Upcoming Industry Events
AUGUST 20-23 AH&LEF Golf Classic, The Sanctuary at Kiawah Island, SC. Information: www.ei-ahla.com SEPTEMBER 6-7 HSMAI's Affordable Meetings National,...
TRANSACTIONS
Book-Cadillac Hotel The Ferchill Group, a Cleveland-based developer, secured a $180-million first mortgage construction loan through Meridian Capital...
LODGING Today
Here's a sampling from Lodging Hospitality's blog, The Front Desk. Check it out at www.LHonline.com/blog Fashionista brand extensionJuly 14, Carlo Wolff...
ARE SENTIMENTS GOING SOUTH?
Although it continues to reflect continued expansion in general lodging conditions, this month's Lodging Executives Sentiment Index (LESI) mark of 78.8...
HOTELS GET C+ FROM NAACP
The hotel industry got another lackluster review in the NAACP's 10th annual grading of diversity efforts by the major lodging chains. The national civil...
HOSPITALITY PEOPLE IN THE NEWS
Mark Weiner was named vice president, customer care at Choice Hotels International. He joins the franchisor from Travelocity, where he was vice president,...
Wyndham V.O. Buys on Kauai
Wyndham Vacation Ownership last month acquired Hawaii-based Pahio Resorts and Pahio Vacation Ownership. Through the deal, Wyndham assumed property management...
Timeshare/Resort Briefs
Condominium Ventures of America bought the two-year-old Pelican Beach Resort in Fort Lauderdale, FL and will convert it into 159 condo-hotel units and...
Leading The Way In Vacation Ownership
As the timeshare industry has evolved into a global success story over the past 30 years, Interval International has emerged as a leader and innovator....
Hiring Is Only the First Step
Hiring a salesperson is a very costly investment, particularly if you don't do some things to help that person become productive as soon as possible....
ABCs of Cap Rates
Investors often estimate hotel values based on capitalization rates, or cap rates. A cap rate is a rate of return calculated as the hotel's annual bottom-line...
The Top Performers
The best-performing hotels in the industry come in all sizes and serve all kinds of markets. Some are household names, but most aren't. What they generally...
HITEC Hits the North Star State
At times it felt there were more booths than attendees at HITEC 2006, the June 19-22 Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals-sponsored conference....
Trying To Get What You Wish For
Amarquee might have read, what you see is what you get, at the start of 90 minutes of stimulating discussion among hoteliers, consultants and vendors....
8 Easy Ways to Reduce Construction Costs
With the cost of construction going through the roof, there are still ways for owners to generate significant cost savings for new builds and renovations....
RENOVATION SHORT-CUTS
When it comes to commercial contracting, hotel work is a different animal. Time is always an issue in construction, more so with renovations. Being on...
FURNITURE SHOWCASE
Seating Styles GAR Products offers indoor and outdoor seating, tabletops and table bases for all levels of hospitality. GAR Products Four Seasons collection...
Locking Technology Takes a Step
ASSA ABLOY Hospitality, parent company of lock manufacturer VingCard and safe manufacturer Elsafe, unveiled European technology designed for U.S. hotels...
LITERATURE Showcase
Makinen's Unique Custom-Made Furniture Makinen is experienced in manufacturing high quality custom made furniture. Their latest innovation, the patented...
INNOVATIONS IN HOTEL PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
High-Definition TV Sharp introduces a high-definition AQUOS LC-TV designed for the hospitality industry. The 32-inch AQUOS LC-32HT2 combines Sharp's LCD...
Vendor News
HFS opened an office in Irving, TX. Included in the expansion is the hiring of Amanda Squitiero as senior designer and Sharon Maxwell as project manager....
