Articles tagged “starwood”

Even though Marriott's CEO has said all 30 brands will survive the merger, we still think it's only a matter of time before Tribute Portfolio is culled and rolled into Marriott's competing Autograph Collection. Even so, it's good news for Starwood to see this kind of rapid growth for its newest of brands, especially during such a period of intense transition.

Online travel agencies and the looming Starwood-Marriott merger won't get Hilton down, according to Hilton's CEO. Solid first quarter earnings suggest a stable year ahead for the company. But will alienating online travel agencies and pursuing an asset-light strategy ultimately result in success? We'll have to see how the rest of the year plays out.

In fact, given all the praise that Marriott CEO Arne Sorenson has heaped on Element in recent weeks, it wouldn’t surprise us if Element’s growth gets even bigger when Marriott takes over. Element hotel owners and developers are probably thanking their lucky stars, too, knowing this brand won’t be going away anytime soon.

Unlike Starwood's deal with Marriott, which definitely had its share of ups and downs, its timeshare spin-off to Interval Leisure Group went pretty smoothly by comparison.

Preferred Guest members may be in for a lucrative year as Starwood starts offering up incentives.

More travel and hospitality brands are trying to find novel ways to monetize Instagram and although the platform has evolved to try to accommodate more of marketers' needs, its abilities as a hotel booking channel remain somewhat limited. Still, Starwood's Tribute Portfolio is betting that user-generated content from influential fashion stars on Instagram can help them boost bookings at two of their Parisian properties.

The merger is approved and we're moving steadily towards the June closing date. How many of the combined companies' 30 brands will remain this time next year?

Being a digital savvy hotel brand goes beyond just having a social media account. Brands that truly understand digital brand strategy in all its forms, from mobile and SEO to social and e-commerce, have the upper hand as more and more consumers demand these platforms and services.

Picking up on anxiety within its loyalty program member ranks, Starwood is getting proactive on communication.

Anbang, who? We thought this day might never come, but here we are: Marriott and Starwood are now just a few months away from becoming the world's largest hotel company.