BETHESDA, MD—For the past 26 years, Fairfield Inn & Suites has enjoyed a prosperous relationship with its franchisees. Many of these companies have praised the relationship with the moderate-tier brand, which is part of Marriott International’s 13-brand portfolio, and acknowledged its growing presence.
One of the first franchisees with Fairfield Inn & Suites is Merrillville, IN-based White Lodging Services. For Bruce White, founder, chairman and CEO of White Lodging Services, the greatest attraction to franchising with Fairfield Inn & Suites was becoming affiliated with Marriott International. After opening the company’s first Fairfield Inn & Suites in Merrillville, IN, White quickly realized that the brand offers a number of residual benefits.
White stated that Fairfield Inn & Suites has built a successful culture of consistent service execution that “was and continues to be the foundation of White Lodging’s ongoing growth and success.” He also said the brand attracts “higher quality people into the organization at all levels and provides instant credibility with our lenders, land sellers and most importantly, providing us the internal confidence to develop an aggressive long-term plan for growth that would not have been possible without the Marriott affiliation.”
White Lodging currently has 20 Fairfield Inn & Suites, representing 2,100 rooms, in its portfolio. The company just opened a new 180-room Fairfield Inn & Suites in downtown Chicago. “It opened at a stabilized 80% occupancy with rate premiums to upscale competitors,” said White. “It has performed well beyond our expectations. We continue to look for Fairfield Inn & Suites opportunities as they provide portfolio leading returns and are the most consistent/reliable performers.”
In White’s opinion, the Fairfield brand’s propositions for business and leisure travelers looking for a Marriott quality experience remain the same since its founding. As the brand has evolved, it has met the ever-increasing expectations of its guests. “The physical product is such that even the most sophisticated traveler will feel comfortable staying in the brand recognizing the great value,” said White. “Fairfield Inn & Suites is my favorite brand when traveling. The combination of product service and value cannot be beat.”
TMI Hospitality has been developing and building Fairfield Inn & Suites properties since the inception of the brand. Steve Martodam, regional VP of TMI Hospitality, indicated that the company has experienced success with the Fairfield brand. Based in Fargo, ND, TMI has built over 120 Fairfield Inn & Suites properties over the past 25 years with 84 hotels currently in its portfolio. TMI also has a handful of Fairfield hotels in the construction pipeline.
“The brand has stayed true to its segment,” said Martodam. “The focus of the brand has always been consistency and updating offerings to stay ahead of guest expectations. Fairfield continues to offer what guests need with the Marriott expectation of service. And they haven’t encroached on other Marriott brands. The Fairfield brand provides a great ROI. We feel comfortable with brand so we will continue to invest in them.”
After Glenn Higdon, founder and CEO of Owensboro, KY-based LinGate Hospitality, got started in the hotel business in 1985, he built a relationship with the Fairfield brand just as it got its start. His company, which became one of the original Fairfield franchisees, built seven hotels.
“The brand caters to all of business and leisure travelers’ needs,” Higdon said. “The brand has evolved from a two-floor, exterior corridor property to a product that offers spacious lobbies and guestrooms.” Higdon also noted that Marriott International’s culture of providing service successfully trickled down to Fairfield Inn & Suites.
Shaner Hotel Group, based in State College, PA, owns and/or manages 40 hotels in its portfolio, in which eight are Fairfield hotels. For Plato Ghinos, president of Shaner Hotel Group, the brand’s fresh new design and customer friendly approach to guests is its’ most appealing aspect. Compared to other competitive brands over the last 25 years, Fairfield Inn & Suites’ Gen 4 prototype “implemented great designs features and services that are appreciated by the customer,” said Ghinos.