Major Hotel Chains Get More Actively Deploy All Suites
<B>Major Hotel Chains Get More Actively Deploy All Suites</B>
By Bruce Serlen
A new entry and the adoption of more aggressive growth plans by an existing brand evidence the continuing strength of the all suite concept for business travel.
The new entry--Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide's W brand of business hotels--launched its first all suite project during the summer in Newark, Calif., in the tight hotel market of Silicon Valley. Meanwhile, SpringHill Suites by Marriott, which initially launched in late-1998, opened its 50th property last month in Gaithersburg, Md., outside of Washington, D.C. With 60 new properties presently in the pipeline, SpringHill intends to nearly triple in size by 2003.
In addition, Embassy Suites, which is credited with building the present popularity of the all suite concept since its launch in 1983, released the results of a customer survey in August that, not surprisingly, showed that travelers prefer more space when they check in to a hotel. In other words, they prefer suites to regular guest rooms and the larger the suite, the better. Embassy is a unit of the Hilton Hotels Corp.
For travel buyers putting together a hotel program, all suites are a logical choice compared with non-suite options, location and price being equal. In many tight hotel markets today, buyers are happy for the additional coverage that all suite properties afford them. For travelers looking for a place to hold business appointments, in particular, properties whose suites have a separate parlor area would be an especially appropriate choice. Recruiting interviews, sales presentations and legal depositions are among the business appointments that typically can be conducted in the suite parlor.
For W Hotels, developing an all suite property was a logical next step in the boutique brand's development. The 174- suite project is a new build that sits on the corporate campus of Sun Microsystems. It's W's second property in the greater San Francisco Bay area, the first being a traditional business hotel in downtown San Francisco.
Barry Sternlicht, Starwood's chairman and CEO, always speaks of W as a hotel for the "wired generation" and the all suite variant is consistent with that profile. According to Diane Briskin, corporate director for sales and marketing, the property features a PC card developed by Lucent Technologies that provides high-speed wireless Internet access with a range of up to 1,200 feet. This enables travelers to work on their laptops anywhere in the hotel's first floor public areas. In guest rooms, travelers can access the Internet through dataports or Web browser television.
Technology aside, the all suite property features W's signature social ambiance. In this case, that means a "living room" lobby, café, bar and "Zen-influenced" garden. The entryway of each suite also has a bamboo floor.
<B>Marriott's Moderate Offering</B>
SpringHill Suites is Marriott's entry into the moderately priced all suite segment. "It's consistent with Marriott's intention to provide a lodging alternative for every market segment," said Craig Lambert, senior vice president of select service lodging. "A key feature is that suites are up to 25 percent larger than standard hotel rooms. Another feature is the brand amenities, which are a step above competitive brands."
Initially, SpringHill grew through the conversion of Marriott's Fairfield Suites product, which has been discontinued. But the Gaithersburg property, and others coming online now are new builds. According to Marriott research, the midprice segment accounted for 37 percent of the U.S. lodging market in 1999. Fifty percent of SpringHill guests last year were business travelers.
On the technology front, high-speed Internet access is being installed in every suite by STSN, a technology provider based in Salt Lake City. "Like most chains we work with, Marriott has opted to charge a $9.95 daily fee for unlimited service," said Mark Morgan, director of marketing for STSN. "For business travelers especially, the unlimited service provides the greatest flexibility and ease of use."
The Gaithersburg property also features special bar-stool seating in the breakfast room where travelers also can access the Internet, though at the moment the access is via traditional modem. "Travelers tell us they like to be able to access their most recent e-mail while they're having breakfast," said Dana Pimentel, general manager. "That way, they can head right out afterward for their first appointments. Should demand warrant, we'll consider upgrading to high-speed access here too."
The Gaithersburg property is the 59th Marriott-branded hotel in the Washington metropolitan area across nine brands. Twenty-three more hotels are under construction or development. Lambert said the company views this saturation as a marketing advantage. "In sell-out situations," he said, "we direct business travelers either to a property of the same brand that has rooms available or, if location is the prime consideration, to the closest Marriott hotel, regardless of brand that has availability."
The Embassy Suites survey of 303 frequent travelers showed that three-quarters of the men and women surveyed feel more relaxed in a large space, while two-thirds said they're more productive in a similarly large space.
Opinion varies as to how much space qualifies as large. At Embassy Suites' 463-suite flagship property in New York's Battery Park City, which opened in June, "executive king" suites measure 700 square feet.