Viva La Revolution
By Jeff Weinstein, Editor In Chief -- Hotels, 2/29/2008 11:00:00 PM
The hotel industry has officially evolved to a higher level of style, design, functionality and fun. I have been writing with zeal and ever-growing hope about this revolution for a few years. I have pointed to the likes of Barry Sternlicht, the late Bill Kimpton, Kurt Ritter, Adrian Zecha, Ian Schrager, Chip Conley, Sol Kerzner, Steve Wynn, Gordon Campbell-Grey, Tim and Kit Kemp and a handful of others breaking the mold and creating new templates many so badly needed for guidance.
I found what I consider the ultimate proof of the revolution in late January at a surreal event during the Americas Lodging Investment Summit in Los Angeles. Schrager, the man who brought nightclub hip to the hotel business during the 1990s (now a bit more humble and mellow at age 61), and a gentleman who certainly needs no introduction, J.W. Marriott Jr., were standing side-by-side, praising each other for their contributions and telling the investment world how they are about to dominate the lifestyle segment with their new brand, Edition. If any of you would have predicted 10 years ago this stylish, over-the-top event—in an art gallery way too hip for most in attendance, including Marriott, who said he hadn’t been at such a cool party since his high school days—I would have said you were crazy. Now it all makes sense as this industry prepares for the next generation of customers. Your father’s Marriott? Hardly!
Actually, Marriott is one of the last big-time players to the party with its lifestyle brand, but it should come as no surprise that the company is attacking the segment from a point of strength by shrewdly partnering with Schrager and capitalizing on existing relationships with developers worldwide. Initial plans call for 100 Edition hotels over the next five years or so, and Schrager, still the instinctive dreamer, believes there is potential for many more. What is supposed to set Edition apart from the other lifestyle brands is the hype of the iconic partnership and what they hope is a distinct and unique product in each market, eschewing any type of cookie-cutter approach. Of course, dreams and visions sound great and all too familiar to this veteran reporter. Unfortunately, realities of the marketplace always seem to get in the way. Time will tell, and you can read more about Schrager’s initial vision based on a very recent interview starting on p. 16.
The most questionable part of the Schrager-Marriott deal at the moment appears to be the duo’s timing. Money for new development is suddenly very tight and probably will remain so for the foreseeable future. The initial target of 30 development deals by the end of 2008 could be a stretch. That being said, good deals will get done, and Marriott brings a lot of credibility to the table when it comes to arranging financing. We are about to see how powerful this partnership really is in the market.
Either way, I say, viva la hotel revolution. A new day has dawned and the hotel business is better for it. The hotel “box” is almost dead and gone. Long live style, a bit of whimsy, imagination and an ever-growing awareness of what customers really want in a hotel experience.
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