Wyndham’s Latest Deal Signals Importance of Boutique Hotel Brands During Pandemic Recovery
Photo Credit: A Wyndham soft brand deal with a Mississippi-based hotel developer shows just about every hotel company wants in on the so-called lifestyle hotel space. Wyndham Hotels & Resorts
Skift Take
Wyndham's deal to bring in seven boutique hotels to its portfolio begs the question: Is there a hotel company that isn't trying to tap into the so-called lifestyle hotel sector?
A seven-hotel Wyndham expansion may not seem like much, but it says a lot about where the general hotel industry sees future growth.
Seven hotels owned by Mississippi-based The Thrash Group, including its five-hotel Origin Hotel Collection, are taking on Wyndham brand affiliation, the company announced this week. But the hotels will largely maintain their current boutique feel and name with the exception of adding “A Wyndham Hotel” at the end — essentially becoming what the industry calls a soft brand.
The portfolio growth also further accelerates Wyndham’s push into the lifestyle hotel sector, where individual properties make as much as half their revenue from food and beverage offerings — an increasingly competitive field for the entire industry.
“Once we established what [The Thrash Group founding partner] Ik
