Hotel Cos. Add Corp. Rooms

<FONT SIZE="+3"><B>Hotel Cos. Add Corp. Rooms</B>

By Linda Humphrey

Chains lacking business-class rooms are becoming scarce, as the first all-suite chain builds in-room office space and two economy chains revamp and relaunch their corporate rooms.

Other hotel firms are thinking up new twists for a 1997 launch or have opted to add business amenities in every room.

The 29-property AmeriSuites chain launched "Taking Care of Business Suites" last month, swapping the living area for an office. The standard suite's pullout couch, combination desk/eating table, lamps and coffee table give way to an L-shaped executive desk with a rolling right- or left-handed return, task lighting, executive chair, dinette table and overstuffed chair and ottoman. Amenities include a dual-line phone with speakerphone, office-supply kit and snack package.

"A typical hotel has a guest-room box, so they can introduce a desk, chair and light, but you're still working in your sleeping quarters," said brand manager John Leavitt.

Each AmeriSuite offers at least 24 TCB suites, carrying a $10-to-$15 premium. The chain based the number of TCB suites on the percentage of travelers who say they use laptops in their rooms-industry research shows that about 40 percent carry laptops, and 20 percent of those use them in their rooms. AmeriSuites divided 20 into 128, the number of suites in its typical property.

The chain, which rents 65 percent of its rooms to business travelers, has set up a model TCB suite on the ground floor of each hotel and has granted free upgrades to its 5,000 AmeriClub members. At an average daily rate of $72, guest rooms include free local calls and business-center use, continental breakfast, VCRs, irons and ironing boards, and a kitchen equipped with refrigerator, microwave and coffeemaker.

The chain plans an aggressive growth track, reaching 70 properties by the end of next year.

Meanwhile, two economy chains have upgraded and relaunched their business rooms this year.

A pioneer in setting up business class, Red Roof debuted its Business King rooms in the 1980s. The rooms featured such premium gear as television remote controls and work desks. By mid-'97, the chain will transform the timeworn rooms into a '90s- style business class as part of its just-launched $50 million sprucing-up program. Featuring workstations with enhanced lighting and accessible outlets, high-tech telephones, 25-inch televisions and recliners (which customer surveys overwhelmingly preferred over the traditional table and two chairs), the rooms will carry a $10 average premium, varying by location. The new telephones feature extra-long cords, dataports, speakerphones and hold buttons.

"You won't find this in a Courtyard or Hampton," said Francis W. "Butch" Cash, Red Roof's chairman, president and chief executive officer.

The chain, which counts half its guests as business travelers, offers Business King rooms in 22 percent of each property, on average. Some may feature 30, while others offer five, Cash said. "A lot of our customers don't even have offices anymore," Cash said. "They're demanding a comfortable place to work in their hotel rooms." Ultimately, "all economy chains will offer rooms with good workstations," Cash predicted.

At an average daily rate of $45, Red Roof offers free <I>USA Today</I> delivery, free local calls and long-distance access in all rooms. To spur growth, the 230-inn chain recently kicked off a franchising program and plans to announce its first franchisees next month.

Howard Johnson, which also pioneered business class back in 1987, has begun to add fax machines, microwaves, refrigerators and VCRs with movie rentals to its Executive Section rooms. The rooms already come stocked with task light, coffeemakers, irons and ironing boards, two telephones, daily newspaper, 25-inch televisions and free local calls and long-distance access.

"We have to put our Executive Section back on the map to keep up with the other chains and compete head-on," said Stephen Phillips, Howard Johnson's president and chief operating officer. "If you don't have business class, you can't compete in the business market, just as if you don't have a pool, you can't compete in the family market."

Currently, all 50 Howard Johnson Plaza hotels and more than 100 Howard Johnson Hotels offer Executive Section in at least 10 percent of the rooms. Premiums vary from $8 to $15.

Hilton has yet to emerge from the test lab. A SmartDesk tryout-desks laden with computers and fax-copier-printer combinations-brought little usage, said vice president of corporate marketing Jeff Diskin. A second test featuring office-supply kits and a task lamp fared better, but guests declined to pay extra for these amenities. "It's a bit difficult to tell what's whimsical and what's going to be more permanent," Diskin said.

Wyndham, meanwhile, has opted to stock all rooms with business amenities rather than carve out business-class rooms. By Dec. 31, every hotel will include free long-distance access, <I>USA Today</I>, dataports, voicemail and irons and ironing boards. The chain already has added coffeemakers, work desks, extra-long phone cords, task lighting and complimentary "toiletries you forgot" to all rooms.