NEW YORK -- The Leading Hotels of the World unveiled a
three-year plan designed to raise the visibility of its name.
As part of the initiative, the 313-property luxury group plans
to forge marketing partnerships with travel and nontravel companies
in an attempt to hook up with firms that share its affluent
clientele.
In addition, Leading Hotels will add member properties in China,
eastern Europe, South Africa and South America. In North America,
the group said it will target Chicago, Houston and the West
Coast.
At the same time, Leading Hotels will tighten its criteria for
membership and engage its first technology company partner. Plans
to increase sales and strengthen marketing include recruiting
additional staff, focusing on the Internet and opening new regional
offices.
Last month, Leading Hotels debuted its first frequent guest
club, the Leaders Club. Members, who join by invitation, receive a
luggage tag that alerts staff to their VIP status before they check
in.
Meanwhile, Leading Hotels named three new officers.
Paul McManus, formerly executive vice president of Leading's
parent company, Hotel Representative, Inc. (HRI), will become the
brand's first American president and chief executive officer.
Joseph Giacoponello, its president and chief executive officer
for 25 years, will serve as chairman of HRI. Lee Andrews, formerly
vice president of finance, was promoted to HRI's chief financial
officer.
The recent marriages of competitive luxury chains to mega hotel
chains -- such as the Ritz-Carlton to Marriott and the ITT Luxury
Collection to Starwood -- prompted the group to launch the
three-year plan.
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Firm Predicts Decline in Luxury Hotels' Occupancies NEW YORK --
Luxury hotel occupancies will decline across the U.S. this year,
breaking a five-year trend of increases, Coopers & Lybrand's
Lodging Research Network said. In addition, upscale hotel
occupancies will decline for the first time in three years, the
firm said.
Overall, U.S. hotel occupancy will drop from 64.5% in 1997 to
63.6% in 1998, according to Coopers & Lybrand. Luxury occupancy
will dip from 73.7% to 73.4%, and upscale occupancy will drop from
67.1% to 66.1%.
The downward trend will continue across all hotel segments
through 1999, the firm said. "This is a turning point for U.S.
lodging," Bjorn Hanson, chairman of Coopers & Lybrand's lodging
and gaming group, said.
Despite the occupancy drop, 1998 will bring the industry another
year of record profits, up 16% over 1997's record profits of about
$14.3 billion, Hanson said. Demand for hotel rooms will remain
steady, dipping from a 2.3% increase in 1997 to a 2.2% increase
this year.
The rise in average daily room rates will more than offset
declines in occupancy, the firm added. In cities like New York and
San Francisco, occupancy is slowing because full hotels are turning
travelers away, Hanson said. This year will be New York's second
highest for turnaways, following 1979, he said. -- L.H.