Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, one of the founders of the boutique hotel segment in the U.S., has come a long way. In 1981, Bill Kimpton acquired his first property, The Bedford Hotel, in San Francisco, as a real estate investment. An investment banker (not yet a hotelier), he’d traveled throughout Europe and enjoyed boutique hotels there. He wanted to recreate that experience in the U.S. and his goal at The Bedford was a personal, intimate and almost-residential setting.

This spring, Kimpton Hotels — now numbering 51 properties in 24 cities with more than 10,000 rooms total — celebrated 30 years of boutique evolution. Also in 2011, Kimpton was named to FORTUNE’s “Best Companies to Work For” list for the second time.

Niki Leondakis, president and chief operating officer of Kimpton Hotels, recently talked with Lodging Hospitality about the San Francisco-based company’s growth and Bill’s legacy. Bill passed away 10 years ago.

Hotel Monaco Alexandria

How has Kimpton evolved?
We’ve crystallized Bill Kimpton’s leadership style so we can continue our growth without losing our soul. When Bill was around we did things the way we did them with what I like to call an unconscious competence. In the past 30 years our culture, values and mission have become more systematic and process-oriented. We’ve gotten a lot more structure within our organization. We’ve strengthened the infrastructure to deliver value for an institutional investor.

One way we’ve evolved, since Bill’s early days, is to more upscale hotels. We’ve gone up in the quality of the physical plant and the price point. Where properties were three-star when he started, we’re averaging around the four-star/four-diamond level. We’ve gotten a little more upscale over time. We’ve stayed true to the core of our culture. That hasn’t changed. Care has been a constant. Care for community, employees, guests, planet. That’s the cornerstone. We’ve just evolved in the way we deliver on that.

How has the industry changed?
One of the biggest changes is the development of the boutique segment as an increasingly desirable choice for the traveler. Another change, in the industry, is that the customer has become trained to expect some kind of reward. The retail industry in this economy has trained the customer to expect some sort of “thank you” for their business from miles to points.

Technology has changed the way customers shop and buy hotels stays. Paid advertising is becoming a dinosaur. Social networking and e-channels, the whole distribution system, has completely evolved.

So, what hasn’t changed?
We’ve maintained, even gotten more laser-like, in our focus on developing our people. We go beyond helping them build their skills and help them learn about themselves, become introspective and have a personal-growth journey. We’ve become more focused and adept at providing development and training deeper into the employee levels of our organization.

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You have a broad menu of programs for guests. What do you do for employees?
We continue to build upon Kimpton University. We add to the curriculum and develop our employees. We build on programs, systems, training and ways to culturally immerse our people and help them deliver service in newer and better ways. We continue to evolve in the way we take care of our employees. One of our long-standing commitments is to diversity and inclusion. We were providing domestic partner benefits in 1997, when most people still didn’t know what that was. We have a program where employees can donate their vacation time to another worker in need. We have opportunities every year where employees can work and give back to the community and are paid while they’re doing that.

We hire people and help them feel comfortable being who they are. They can be their best self. Our service is about authentic and genuine connections. Employees don’t have to use scripted language. They are empowered to do what they think they need to do to create a Kimpton experience for a guest. Employees get to use their imagination on how they can surprise and delight a guest.

Kimpton started on the West Coast. Where are you today?
Today, we actually have more properties on the East Coast. We’re focused on expansion and investment in most primary and many secondary markets around the country. We look for a combination of convention, leisure and individual business travel. We expect to continue our growth. We plan to add four to six hotels per year through both acquisitions as well as management contracts for other owners. The next three will be in South Beach, FL, Philadelphia and Phoenix.

How has the economy touched Kimpton’s business?
We certainly were, during the past couple of years, affected by the recession. We’ve been pleasantly surprised the first quarter of 2011 with better than expected growth. Previously, occupancy wasn’t the issue, it was rate. We’re really pleased with what we’re seeing for the remainder of the year.

Kimpton Through the Years

April 1981
• Bill Kimpton opened the first boutique hotel; the Clarion Bedford Hotel, San Francisco, CA

• Kimpton became the first hotel company to feature a complimentary nightly wine hour — Thirty years later, Kimpton hotels maintain the complimentary nightly wine hour tradition

April 1983
• Kimpton’s Hotel Vintage Court became the first themed hotel, establishing a wine emphasis — Today, Kimpton hotels continue to exhibit individuality with each one telling its own (themed) story.

May 1990
• Completed first ground-up construction — Kimpton’s Tuscan Inn in San Francisco, CA

July 1992
• Introduced a brand-wide pet-friendly policy, welcoming animals of all shapes and sizes to enjoy the Kimpton experience

July 2003
• Introduced complimentary in-room yoga baskets and a 24-hour yoga channel for all guests

January 2004
• Introduced Kimpton InTouch guest loyalty and Inner Circle programs

• Launched LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) travel program

May 2004
• Launched Women InTouch program that includes services and amenities created with women in mind, such as the “Forgot It? We’ve Got It!” menu of travel essentials

April 2005
• Formalized EarthCare program, reinforcing Kimpton’s commitment to ecological sustainability

Fall 2006
• Launched Mind.Body.Spa. wellness program to celebrate healthy living on the road

May 2008
• Introduced KimptonKids program to offer children activities and parents ease while traveling

January 2010
• Launched Wines That Care, a program offering wine hour pours hand-picked by wine director and master sommelier, Emily Wines for the producers’ dedication to the earth and local communities

May 2010
• Opened 50th hotel.

September 2010
• Kimpton and city of Philadelphia announced first hotel and restaurant to earn LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (Kimpton’s Hotel Palomar Philadelphia and Square 1682 restaurant) – Today, 47 of Kimpton’s 51 hotels have become Green Seal certified

January 2011
• Launched new Travel Healthy initiative in partnership with renowned health and nutrition expert Joy Bauer to offer guests healthy in-room dining options and wellness-inspired On Demand in-room videos