LODGING lately sat down with BWH Resort Group CEO Larry Cuculic and Senior Vice President and Chief Improvement Officer Brad LeBlanc particularly to debate the expansion of its SureStay Resort Group, which lately surpassed 400 properties globally and 250 resorts in North America. Each say the expansion of what they name their “premium financial system model” is going on “organically” primarily based on SureStay’s number of resorts with totally different options and facilities, which permits hoteliers to seek out the proper product for his or her market.
LeBlanc describes circumstances within the financial system market that impressed their determination to create SureStay as “inconsistent,” saying, “Understanding the market has an financial system set that’s extremely inconsistent, BWH acknowledged the chance to step in, as a trusted model, and apply requirements that would make it a constant providing in our goal market, and make house owners a part of a household they’ll belief.”
LeBlanc notes that the overwhelming majority of the properties are conversions of “an eclectic mixture of resorts,” however asserts that the place the consistency is available in most of all is on the within. “The skin will be an inside or exterior [corridor], and they are often one story or 4 story, however house owners have to be keen to inject capital enough to carry the guestrooms to a sure degree of requirements.”
Each LeBlanc and Cuculic understand that the majority financial system resort house owners can’t afford to carry properties to the extent of an upscale providing, however say they have to be keen to make a “actual funding” to transform to SureStay.
Cuculic says the target of this funding is to carry them into “the higher financial system phase,” that’s, “to distinguish themselves from the run-of-the-mill financial system product, and thereby capable of command a better ADR, recoup that funding, and compete higher with the remainder of the financial system phase.”
LeBlanc says the SureStay model—whether or not it’s SureStay, SureStay Plus, SureStay Studio, or SureStay Assortment—most of all defines what visitors might anticipate when it comes to fundamentals. “The bedding, measurement of tv, breakfast choices, and smile behind the desk are essential to the patron journey on the financial system degree. We might not discover that in the remainder of the financial system set.” And in relation to security and wellness requirements, they affirm, SureStay is “phase agnostic,” as a result of, as LeBlanc places it, “We carry the identical requirements throughout all of our chains to verify we care as a household about well being and safety.”
What separates the totally different segments inside SureStay, say Cuculic and LeBlanc, are facilities that transcend the fundamentals, resembling these discovered on the extra upscale chain resorts, “like a full-service restaurant, plus possibly a bar, a bigger room, and barely nicer toiletries and bedding”—extras past what price-sensitive visitors particularly need. “A lot of our customers simply desire a good, clear room and a easy breakfast providing—not a sit-down restaurant—after which get again on the interstate or go about their work,” says LeBlanc.
LeBlanc and Cuculic say what all SureStay house owners can anticipate is assist from a worldwide group in myriad methods, together with steering on labor points and security protocols, and reaping the advantages of their procurement packages, reservation and income administration methods, and their Greatest Western Rewards loyalty program.
As for the expansion of SureStay, Cuculic notably praises the efforts of LeBlanc. “Brad and his staff recognized the resorts and the hoteliers keen to speculate capital to ascertain a model that may dominate its market by being higher than the remainder of that comp set.”
Whereas Cuculic expects the variety of SureStay resorts to quickly attain the five hundred mark “as a result of there’s demand for the providing,” he stresses that “larger just isn’t all the time higher” until the product is correct. “What I’m searching for is consistency. I don’t need to get to 800 with out it being the proper product.”
Cuculic sees a vivid future for the model not a lot due to demand for financial system merchandise generally as demand for its specific providing. “The phase is the phase. The explanation SureStay is rising amongst a number of chains that aren’t rising is that we’re rising prudently with the proper product.”