Raising the sought-after Trademark Hotel Collection flag at nine new U.S. destinations, hospitality giant Wyndham Hotel Group is ushering in more of its soft brand’s unique hospitality flair coast to coast. The latest additions in New York City, California, Ohio, Utah, Louisiana, Nebraska and Vermont more than double the brand’s U.S. portfolio to 15 hotels and more than 2,000 rooms.Launched last year, Trademark is a collection of upper-midscale-and-above hotels with fiercely independent spirit and individuality. It’s the first soft brand geared to independent hoteliers with landmark three- and four-star hotels designed for everyday travelers seeking unique accommodations. Globally, nearly 70 hotels currently don the Trademark banner.“Trademark offers entrepreneurial hoteliers a unique opportunity to tap into a hospitality mega-network without sacrificing their hotels’ distinct character and authenticity, which draws travelers through their doors,” said Chip Ohlsson, executive vice president and Chief Development Officer, North America. “The surge of owners joining the Trademark family is testament to their desire to be part of something greater, as well as to Wyndham’s steadfast commitment and track record of delivering for its owners.”Demand for soft-branded hotels continues gaining momentum in 2018. According to STR, last year’s soft branded occupancies topped 66 to 70 percent – the highest in occupancies – compared to 62 to 67 percent for hard brands and 63 percent for independent properties.The newest Trademark additions offer everything from downtown city escapes to mountain adventures, while delivering authentic experiences at affordable price points.
Ravel Hotel, A Trademark Collection Hotel, in Long Island City, N.Y.:
Guests discover the chic side of New York City’s Queens borough at this 113-room hotel featuring a variety of al fresco experiences. Ravel’s Penthouse 808, an eclectic indoor-outdoor rooftop restaurant and lounge, features Hawaiian- and Asian-inspired fare from executive Chef Seth Levine and breathtaking views of the Manhattan skyline. Additionally, guests can sip on 15 draught beers and imaginative cocktails at the hotel’s elevated beer garden sprawled across a welcoming green lawn, as well as take a dip in its Profundo pool club, opening in May 2018.
Lions Gate Hotel, A Trademark Collection Hotel, in Sacramento, Cali.:
Adorned with aero-inspired décor reflective of nearby McClellan Air Force Base in Sacramento, Lions Gate Hotel, A Trademark Collection Hotel, sits in the heart of McClellan Park. History meets luxury at this 112-room hotel with easy access to Old Sacramento, a 28-acre National Historic Landmark District, featuring museums, railroad excursions and Sacramento River boat tours.
Mulberry Life Inn & Suites, A Trademark Collection Hotel, in Moreno Valley, Cali.:
Soon to be “Xola, A Trademark Collection Hotel,” this 140-room boutique hotel in California’s Moreno Valley integrates wellness into every guest touchpoint – like soothing eucalyptus bed linens and allergen-free plush pillows.
Aksarben Suites, A Trademark Collection Hotel, in Omaha, Neb.:
Boasting Omaha’s most beautiful sunlit-atrium, the 186 all-suite boutique hotel flexes to host special events or business meetings up to 150 people. Visitors can explore the unique shops, galleries and restaurants of Omaha’s Old Market district and sports fans can catch a University of Omaha team playing at TD Ameritrade Park of Baxter Arena.
Quail Hollow Resort, A Trademark Collection Hotel, in Painesville, Ohio:
Guests at this Ohio gem enjoy easy access to two championship golf courses, Ohio’s growing wine region and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in downtown Cleveland. The resort’s 21 versatile meeting rooms can host up to 80 conference guests or 350 banquet guests.
The Bertram Inn & Conference Center, A Trademark Collection Hotel, in Aurora, Ohio:
Accommodating up to 1,500 guests for special events, this long-standing Ohio destination is Aurora’s go-to hotel for guests hosting big occasions or simply enjoying the state’s charming countryside.
Zermatt Utah, A Trademark Collection Hotel, in Midway, Utah:
Guests breathe in pure-mountain air at this inviting village resort near Park City, Utah, featuring traditional, Swiss-style architecture and décor, 308 rooms and a multitude of recreational activities. This mountain oasis is near the area’s top attractions including Utah Olympic Park, Park City ski slopes and blue-ribbon fly fishing.
Richmond Inn & Suites, A Trademark Collection Hotel, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana:
Close to downtown Baton Rouge and just an hour from New Orleans, Richmond Inn & Suites, this all-suite hotel is a prime location for business travelers seeking quick commutes. Designed for extended stay travelers, its 145-spacious suites feature separate living areas, fully-equipped kitchens and complimentary WiFi.
A Trademark Collection Hotel in Burlington, Vermont:
Formerly the Italian Bove Restaurant on Pearl Street in Burlington, Vermont, the 70-year, family run business will be transformed into a 76-room Trademark hotel. Owned by Rick Bove Jr., the hotel is planning to open in 2019.Trademark hotels participate in Wyndham Rewards®, the simple-to-use, revolutionary loyalty program from Wyndham Hotel Group. Named a best hotel rewards program for the past three consecutive years by U.S. News and World Report, Wyndham Rewards offers members a generous points earning structure along with a flat, free night redemption rate—the first of its kind for a major rewards program. Learn more at
www.wyndhamrewards.com.
About The Trademark Hotel Collection
Part of Wyndham Hotel Group, The Trademark Hotel Collection® is a portfolio of nearly 70 upper-midscale-and-above hotels across the U.S. and Europe, each with fiercely independent spirit and individuality. Launched in 2017, Trademark is the first soft brand geared to three- and four-star independent hotel owners and is designed for travelers seeking distinctive accommodations, yet lacking the budget for today’s existing luxury soft-branded offerings. Reservations and information are available by visiting
www.wyndhamhotels.com/trademark.
About Wyndham Hotel Group
Wyndham Hotel Group, the world’s largest hotel company based on number of hotels, is one of three hospitality business units of Wyndham Worldwide. Driving the democratization of travel, Wyndham Hotel Group is elevating the experience of the everyday traveler. As both a leading hotel brand franchisor and hotel management services provider, the company’s global network consists of approximately 8,400 hotels and over 728,200 rooms in 80 countries under the following brands: The Trademark Hotel Collection®, Dolce Hotels and Resorts®, Wyndham Grand®, Dazzler® Hotels, Esplendor® Boutique Hotels, Wyndham Hotels and Resorts®, Wyndham Garden® Hotels, TRYP by Wyndham®, Wingate by Wyndham®,Hawthorn Suites by Wyndham®, Microtel Inn & Suites by Wyndham®, Ramada®, Baymont Inn & Suites®, Days Inn®, Super 8®, Howard Johnson®, Travelodge®, Knights Inn® and AmericInn®. The Wyndham Rewards® program, named a best hotel rewards program for the past three years by U.S. News and World Report, offers 55 million enrolled members the opportunity to redeem points at more than 30,000 hotels, condos and homes globally. For more information, visit
www.wyndhamhotels.com.
Founded in March 2012 in Barcelona, ByHours.com is one of the startups of the year in Spain. It is the winner of several awards for being an innovative project that has introduced a new business model in the tourism sector, and for its growth, as in just 2 years there are already 28 people working in its offices.ByHours.com is an on-line platform and is also a mobile application, which allows the customer to choose their hotel check-in and check-out time, and book the hours they need, in packs of 3, 6, 12, 24, 36 and 48 hours. On one hand, it offers the customer flexibility and payment according to use, so that they can book a hotel only for the time they need it, always based on fair Price. On the other hand, it allows hotel operators to make their rooms more profitable, as they can sell them more than once per day, and this increase their RevPAR.ByHours.com is already working with over 600 hotels all over Spain from the best national and international hotel chains, such as H10, Eurostars or Meliá. Now, having consolidated the business model in Spain, it will open its way into internationalization and will operate in the UK, Germany, and Italy within the first and the second quarter of 2014. Actually, ByHours.com is operating in London, with 10 own recruited hotels.In this internationalization stage, ByHours.com has added experience and talent to its team, and included a new signing: Amine Saoudi, former CFO from Splendia.com, who has a great career path in opening new markets.ByHours.com is intended for all those situations where a hotel is only needed for a few hours, and so it offers hotels near train stations, ports, and airports, in order to avoid waiting; hotels near congress centers, urban centers, and highway rest areas; and also hotels near hospitals for all patients or accompanying persons needing a few hotel hours in order to rest, but without moving too far off from the health center.In relation to daily hotel operations, ByHours.com provides an internal tool that allows them to decide the price, hour packs, and check-in hours they want to sell, as well as connect with their PMS-Channel Manager, to make management easier and faster. The hotel operator decides at all times what they want to sell, how, and at what price, and ByHours.com receives a direct commission from the hotel operator, as the customer always pays at the hotel.The key to ByHours.com resides in that it is not only a site aimed at the final client, but also aimed at B2B. Thus, it has three business lines: Travel, Healthcare, and Leisure. These business lines allow us to work with important partners from different sectors, with ByHours.com being the only hotel accommodation-by-hours distributor. ByHours.com offers integration tools, such as for example White labels, which are completely customizable, allowing each partner to design its hotelby-hours search engine with their corporate image, and offer their customers an added value and a complementary product.In the travel line, ByHours.com is working with the number 1 in online flight sales, the Odigeo Group. eDreams is already selling hotel rooms by hours in Spain on its website. It is a very ambitious agreement that upon internationalization, it will let us work with other Odigeo brands: Opodo, Travellink, and GoVoyages.In this business line, ByHours.com also works with major industry leaders such as Pullmantur, Viajes Carrefour, or Grupo Areas. Within its Healthcare line, ByHours.com is working with hospitals all over Spain, which already offer accommodation by hours at their centers; this is also a product very much targeted towards health tourism. ByHours Healthcare also works with major insurance companies, which offer this service in their policies.Finally, the Leisure line is designed to complement leisure situations, and therefore ByHours.com works with ticketing companies, and also in different actions with nightclubs, theaters, movie theaters, or special events, in order to offer a different and complementary service.
Other important areas addressed were the impact social media and influencer marketing has had and how one manages to keep their brand and image on social as authentic as possible, whilst overcoming some of the fashion misconceptions in the region.Fashion has definitely seen a major shift in the GCC over the last few years, moving away from being known as purely high end ‘fashion consumers’ to giving rise to some of the industry’s fashion game changers. Rabia Zargarpur is an example of such, becoming one of the first designers to showcase Modest Fashion ready-to-wear looks on mainstream runways and fashion shows.A stand out take home message for all our guests would have to be that no designer ‘made it’ straight out of fashion school; brands like Tom Ford and Valentino all began at the bottom, working for others and building their story, and did not become successful overnight. The other key message was that there is no such thing as perfection – trial and error are key in all aspects of career and life, and if you don’t try you’ll never know!The panel wrapped up at 11am and all guests enjoyed an hour long opportunity to network with each other and the speakers after the talk, with business cards and contacts exchanged at all levels. As always, the energy that built in the room was infectious and the advice shared invaluable.”Our next Career Clinic will be held in collaboration with Mompreneurs ME at Life N One, Jumeirah, on April 23rd. To register your interest, email us at events@hopscotch.ae.
