Aqua-Aston Hospitality , a management company that has been closely associated with Hawaii since 1948 and has 25 properties in the state , announced earlier this year that it would be opening a dual-branded Fairfield Inn & Suites and TownePlace Suites in Tempe , Ariz . It was a dramatic leap across the Pacific for the company , leading to the question : Why , when and how does a company move into a new market ? Andrea Mue , managing director of Aqua-Aston
Andrea Mue , managing director , Aqua-Aston Hospitality
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Hospitality , said the company targets locations or markets where demand generators have solid historical track records but are also projected to grow in the future . In addition to markets with growing appeal , said Mue , Aqua-Aston looks at more “ tired ” areas of a destination that are going through a renaissance — significant new capital investments , large redevelopments of existing areas and zones and new businesses and amenities that could support a property . Even major lodging companies , such as Hilton , continuously enter destinations where they have been absent before . Recently , for example , Hilton announced that it was entering no fewer than five new markets : Bermuda , Paraguay , Nepal , Laos and Timor-Leste .
Developers and management companies regularly venture afield , too . Hotel Equities , a
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Joe Reardon , chief development officer , Hotel Equities
management company based in the Atlanta area , recently announced its selection as the management partner for a Hampton by Hilton hotel in St . Thomas , U . S . Virgin Islands , the first new hotel development in the islands in more than 30 years .
Joe Reardon , chief development officer for Hotel Equities , said there are multiple reasons for entering a new market , including an area needing expertise in a particular hotel classification or segment . Historically , he said , the
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company has moved outside the continental U . S . because brand partners have asked it to do so as they expand their reach and want top-tier operators in the global markets they serve .
Of course , said Reardon , the demand must be there for a hotel to make sense . Often , the company joins developers early in development to determine if that is the case .
Hotel Equities , said Reardon , only enters markets after doing its homework . The company spent over a year immersing itself in the ins and outs of operating in both Canada and the Caribbean and Latin America ( CALA ) before inking its first deals in those destinations . One key , he said , is the “ people piece .” It only works , said Reardon , “ If we ’ re physically based in a market , running hotels with people from the area who are ingrained in the culture of a location .”
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12 hotelsmag . com July / August 2024 |