Wyndham and Lafayette Square Unveil $100 Million Fund for Diverse Hotel Owners

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts is teaming up with investment firm Lafayette Square to address a persistent barrier to hotel ownership — access to capital for diverse entrepreneurs.

Lafayette Square will earmark up to $100 million in financing for qualified Wyndham hotel franchisees, focusing on Black and women hoteliers, the companies told Skift.

“This is good business,” said Damien Dwin, CEO of Lafayette Square. “We are earning an attractive market return in collaboration with an experienced entrepreneur and what we think is the best brand in the business.”

Lafayette Square has a pool of capital for both hotel and franchising opportunities and Small Business Administration-guaranteed loans designated for women, minority, and veteran-owned entrepreneurs.

Boosting Hotel Ownership

The partnership has already produced its first case study. Dr. Amina James already owned one profitable hotel. However, she hit resistance when seeking traditional lending to add another property.

James recently secured financing through Lafayette Square to acquire the Wyndham Lake Charles in Louisiana as her second hotel.

James also benefited from Wyndham’s programs to encourage more diversity in hotel ownership — BOLD (Black Owners and Lodging Developers), Women Own the Room, and its Accelerator Circle launched last month.

The programs have also facilitated more than 100 hotel deals with Black and female hoteliers, said Galen Barrett, vice president of strategic franchise initiatives at the hotel group.

“It’s not just access to capital,” Barrett said. “We can provide education, we can provide a community of support, we can give people access to experts, whether in operations or facilities management.”

Wyndham Launches Peer-Based Program to Boost Diversity in Hotel Ownership

There is a big gender and diversity gap among hotel developers.

Read More

Accommodations Sector Stock Index Performance Year-to-Date

What am I looking at? The performance of hotels and short-term rental sector stocks within the ST200. The index includes companies publicly traded across global markets, including international and regional hotel brands, hotel REITs, hotel management companies, alternative accommodations, and timeshares.

The Skift Travel 200 (ST200) combines the financial performance of nearly 200 travel companies worth more than a trillion dollars into a single number. See more hotels and short-term rental financial sector performance.

Read the full methodology behind the Skift Travel 200.