INVESTMENT
Guestroom at the Gabriel on South Beach
H : There seems to be more focus on the limited-service space right now , and fear about acquiring the bigger boxes or higher-end assets , especially city center business hotels . How do you see it ? RT : We come back to the premise of investing correctly , which raises the value and prospect of value creation . Going into these investments and looking at things like location , location , location is key for us . Also , having a longer horizon versus narrow shifts the perspective on how we go into these investments . We are big believers that there will be continued growth within the urban markets , there will still be revamping at some point of business travel and business needs . But we will keep key count focus topped off at about 300 keys . So even though we are looking at a value proposition that is geared towards luxury , the key count is not going to be more than 300 . We are not going to be a big proponent of buying a massive big box that has extensive convention or banquet or event space .
H : How real is the ESG movement , especially among hospitality firms ?
RT : From our perspective , ESG , or social-minded investing has been a principal of the firm from day one . So , this is not new to us . But I do believe that the core movement towards embracing ESG is quite substantive and real because it ’ s a requirement by the constituencies , many private allocators of capital . They ’ re all held by these mandates … We ’ ll be focusing on something within ESG that is groundbreaking , which is a social component . We believe that we are a pioneer in this regard . Everybody has seen an establishment of parameters around everything from health and environmental issues , but when it comes to substantive change , we think it ’ s going to be around the social impact , and that ’ s why we want it to be meaningful and measurable … In the fourth quarter we will announce a global partnership with the highest credibility and reputational value that will help us create a proprietary model . And they will take ownership with us to publish this data independently .
H : What else are you going to do to
differentiate your products with guests ? RT : We chose soft brands for that creativity and flexibility , and to be able to create a unique way for guests to experience our hotels . We want to bring the experience of the communities to the guests . That ’ s going to be an exciting part of navigating the story of our social impact . We want the guest to get out and see the differences that we ’ re making in those communities and touch and be part of it so they see that their stay is making this difference , and they can relate to it visually … And this disclosure of impact will be done at a consumer level , as well , all the way up to stakeholders .
We are pioneering within this market space . We think there ’ s a legitimate demand and we are responding to this demand from a very unique position where we believe that this is accretive to returns . You can do good while looking out for your investors and ensuring returns , and we want to embrace that type of approach as we think it is sustainable over the long term .
46 hotelsmag . com November / December 2021