BY FRAN GOLDEN
BOSTON -- With all the talk of hotel companies for sale, let it
be clear that Omni is not among them.
Robert Rowling, the wealthy Texas oilman who bought Omni a year
ago from Hong Kong-based Wharf Holdings at what now seems like a
bargain price of $500 million, said in an interview at the Omni
Parker House here that when it comes to hotels, he is a buyer.
The hotel company's chairman said he is looking for top-quality,
individual properties to buy and not necessarily another brand
name.
But when asked if he has called Wyndham, which is reportedly for
sale, Rowling said, "Everybody has called them."
Rowling said he gets about one call a week from major players
trying to buy Omni. And he would not rule out the possibility of
aligning Omni with a real estate investment trust (REIT) like
Starwood or Patriot American.
But he said his plan to move the headquarters of Omni from
Corpus Christi to Dallas this summer, which involves relocating 50
families, including his own, shows how serious he is about staying
in the hotel business. (When he acquired the chain, he moved the
headquarters from New Hampshire to his home base of Corpus
Christi.)
"I think the perception in the industry was that we would put
Omni up for sale because I have sold things in the past --
financial institutions, oil and gas companies -- and we've just
sold a pipeline company." Rowling said.
But with Omni, he added, he is more focused now on growth
opportunity.
Rowling said he sees Omni fitting into a four-star niche, just
slightly below Four Seasons and Ritz-Carlton in service and
product, and at a price that clients of those top-tier chains would
consider a bargain.
Not that the chain does not need some upgrading to get to that
level.
Rowling spent his first year as owner remedying problems with
"inconsistent products," he said.
"These are problems we are fixing."
He has spent $20 million in his efforts to upgrade the chain and
said he has earmarked $45 million for the renovation of the Parker
House and more than $60 million for the Omni Shoreham in Washington
to bring those properties up to snuff.
The Parker House is partially closed for the project, and the
Shoreham will close half of its guest rooms beginning in June, when
the upgrade project begins.
In both cases, the renovations will take into account historical
ambience, as the executive said, "right down to the doorknobs."
And Rowling, who also is president of TRT Holdings, a firm with
oil and gas interests and one of the wealthiest people in the U.S.,
said the $380 million he recently got for selling his oil pipeline
company will go into bringing more Omni properties on line.
Rowling said he has plans to expand the 42-property Omni chain
both in the U.S. and internationally and would not rule out
eventually going public to fund the growth, noting the kinds of
hotels he is interested in sell for upwards of $50 million
apiece.
In the hopper is a deal to acquire another property in a U.S.
gateway city and a possible deal in Europe.
Rowling was mum on the details of that deal.