Starwood Hotels & Resorts increases its operating hotel footprint in Latin America by 50 percent through the next five years, opening an ordinary of 7 new hotels per year within the region.
Emphasizing Latin American’s growth potential as one of the most world’s fastest growing hotel and travel markets, Starwood’s CEO Frits van Paasschen and members of the company’s senior executive team visited Latin America last week, traveling to key growth markets, including Brazil and Colombia.
“Macro-economic trends continue to reshape the Latin American travel and business landscape, creating strong growth in lodging demand and lots opportunities for Starwood to expand inside the region,” said Frits van Paasschen, President and CEO, Starwood Hotels & Resorts.
“At an analogous time, Latin America’s middle class grew by 50 percent within the last decade and this increase in wealth signifies that there are an increasing number of those with the means to travel and an increasing appetite for global, luxury brands like ours.” Frits added.
As the 1st international hotel company in Latin America dating back to the outlet of the Sheraton Maria Isabel in Mexico City in 1963, Starwood today is the most important high end hotel operator within the region with 72 hotels in 13 countries and a complete of 15,600 rooms. Since 2007, the corporate has grown by 36% in Latin America.
In the last two years the corporate opened 13 hotels, including its debut in Costa Rica with Westin Playa Conchal, Starwood’s first all-inclusive hotel on earth.
Starwood has a pipeline of nineteen hotels with a complete of three,200 new rooms in development. Within the rest of 2013, Starwood expects to open six more hotels with a complete of one,100 rooms, covering four brands across four countries.
“Latin America is emblematic of the expansion we’re seeing in regions worldwide and key to our development plans,” said Simon Turner, President of worldwide Development & Acquisition, Starwood Hotels & Resorts. “There is robust affinity for all of our brands within the region around the luxury, upper upscale and mid-market segments, and we’re trying to build in this interest with new world-class hotels within the right places, with the correct partners.”
“We are optimistic concerning the way forward for our company in Latin America because we’ve various competitive advantages, including an extended-established presence for greater than 40 years, local know-how and robust relationships driven by our in-market teams,” said Osvaldo Librizzi, co-president of Starwood Hotels and Resorts Americas. “Combined with our world-renowned lifestyle brands, we’re well-positioned to grow and maintain our lead available in the market.”
Brazil
With greater than 80% of the world’s economic growth coming from fast-growing markets over the following few years, Brazil is a key focus for the corporate. Underscoring the significance of the rustic, van Paasschen and members of Starwood’s senior executive team met with hotel owners, customers and investors in Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, Recife, and Salvador to judge new projects. Additionally they visited the enduring Sheraton Rio Hotel & Resort in Rio de Janeiro, one among Starwood’s most respected owned-assets within the region. In 2012, the hotel began a multi-million dollar renovation project that’s component to Sheraton Hotels & Resorts’ ongoing commitment to improve its global portfolio and reflects Starwood’s unwavering commitment to Brazil. Renovations are expected to be complete by the second one quarter of next year.
“There is vital opportunity for hotel development in Brazil by reason of its sheer size, natural beauty, and relative under penetration, particularly on the high end. We wish to bring our skills and expertise at operating high-quality branded hotels to this dynamic market, and believe rising rates and occupancies, and clear pent up demand for travel, make this a promising time to pursue growth opportunities,” added van Paasschen.
Starwood currently has eight hotels in a few of the main cities within the country, including Sheraton Rio Hotel & Resort and Sheraton Barra Hotel & Suites in Rio de Janeiro; Sheraton Vitoria Hotel; Sheraton São Paulo WTC, Sheraton Porto Alegre Hotel, Four Points by Sheraton Curitiba, Four Points by Sheraton Macaé and the Sheraton da Bahia Hotel in Salvador, that is celebrating its recent inauguration today. Sheraton Reserva do Paiva Hotel & Convention Center near Recife is scheduled to open within the first quarter of 2014.
Colombia
Starwood executives also hung out in Colombia meeting with owners and partners and visiting the positioning of the longer term W Bogota, that allows you to mark the brand’s entry into the rustic. Previously years, Colombia has made important steps in enhancing its economy and hotel infrastructure, becoming a fine looking destination for foreign investment and international hotel brands. Starwood have been found in Colombia for nearly two decades, and today, the corporate has several exciting projects inside the pipeline, including Four Points by Sheraton Bogota, Sheraton Cartagena Hotel, and W Bogota- all slated to open in 2014.
“We believe that Colombia is a rustic ripe with opportunities for growth and we plan to expand our brands within the major cities and secondary markets within the future years with development partners who’ve a proven track record of success and seek a brand new and exciting growth vehicle,” van Paasschen concluded.
Starwood currently has four hotels in Colombia, including Sheraton Bogota Hotel, Four Points by Sheraton Medellin, Four Points by Sheraton Cali and Aloft Bogotá Airport.
Recommended