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Hotels
Congratulations, Mr. Sternlicht. You just invented motels. Econolodge without the econo. We look at the new brand's pitch deck.
Sean O'Neill | 24 hours ago
Starwood Capital has bet on two trends with SH Hotels. It seems likely that the rich will get richer, boosting demand for luxury hotels. It also seems likely climate change will worsen, increasing the demand for sustainability.
Sean O'Neill | 3 days ago
When every investor in a sector says they're "cautiously optimistic," watch out.
Sean O'Neill | 1 week ago
Don’t let the multibillion-dollar deals from Blackstone and Starwood Capital for brands like Extended Stay America cloud one's brand judgment. Marriott is the massive player in the extended stay hotel sandbox — and has a leg up in appealing to more lucrative business travel.
Cameron Sperance | 1 year ago
Coronavirus
Investors liked the durability and continual operation of extended-stay hotels during the worst of the pandemic. But a $1.5 billion play for a portfolio and not even the entire WoodSpring Suites brand shows where investors see travel demand concentrating during the recovery.
Business Travel
The world’s most famous flexible co-working space provider has a new lease on life following its SPAC deal, but is its model still relevant for the post-pandemic workforce? Its backers are betting so.
Matthew Parsons | 1 year ago
Investors like Barry Sternlicht tout the hotel industry as an opportunistic place to park capital during the travel recovery. But discounts aren’t coming in as steep as some hoped thanks to Uncle Sam and forgiving lenders.
The U.S. hotel sector is performing relatively well this summer, but there is too much uncertainty heading into fall in cities that rely on business travelers. Hotel companies shouldn’t take a few months of strong performance as a signal to reintroduce brand standards and costly renovation mandates.
Cameron Sperance, Skift | 2 years ago
Extended Stay America's launch of a higher-end brand isn't the sign of new owners Blackstone and Starwood Capital wanting some grandiose push into the upscale sector. It's about appealing to a segment of business travelers who may not have considered the brand as an option in the past.
Nothing in life (and business) is fair. Soho House is able to expand at lower development costs with a special landlord-tenant relationship unavailable to the average mom-and-pop company.