MCLEAN, VA—Hilton’s All Suites brands division—comprising Embassy Suites, Homewood Suites and Home2 Suites—have had an active Q1 and Q2. Averaging a new hotel opening every four days, the All Suites brands have opened 49 new hotels over the past six months and have nearly 80 hotels in the current pipeline that are scheduled to open in 2017. Overall, there are 550 pending hotels and the category is on track to open the 1,000th All Suites hotel before the end of 2019.
In addition to celebrating the 800th All Suites property earlier this year, Embassy Suites, Homewood Suites and Home2 Suites are also all nearing individual brand milestones. Embassy Suites is slated to open its 250th property in 2018; Homewood Suites is gearing up for its 450th property possibly later this year; and Home2 Suites is approaching its 200th property milestone, which could also happen before the end of 2017.
“When you look at the upward trajectory of the individual brands since the launch of the All Suites category it becomes abundantly clear that the strategy works,” said Bill Duncan, global head of All Suites. “We’re opening new hotels at a faster rate than ever before, and with nearly 15,000 rooms opened or scheduled to open in 2017, the All Suites pipeline, which spans three continents, is at a record high.”
According to the company, the growth can be attributed to a focused, strategic expansion plan, centered on transitioning from simply a suburban staple to establishing and growing its presence in urban and “surban” locations, both domestically and abroad. Within the first six months of 2017, the brands opened six properties in urban and surban locations including New Orleans, Los Angeles and downtown Charlotte, NC, bringing their current footprint of urban properties to nearly 30 hotels. High-barrier-to-entry markets will continue to be broken into this year with upcoming properties such as the Embassy Suites in New York City; Homewood Suites’ upcoming properties in Las Vegas and downtown Austin, TX; and Home2 Suites’ new locations in downtown Birmingham, AL, and Columbia, SC.
A growing footprint outside of the United States is also a critical strategic component for the All Suites brands. All three brands are continuing to bolster their presence in Canada. Embassy Suites and Homewood Suites are also both setting sights on growth in the Caribbean and Latin America. Homewood Suites is slated to open its doors in Silao, Mexico, in November of this year, with four more Latin American/Caribbean properties in the pipeline. Likewise, Embassy Suites is growing its footprint in established resort destinations with upcoming properties in Aruba and St. Kitts & Nevis.
In January, Hilton unveiled its first-ever triple-brand property including a Home2 Suites slated to open in 2019 in Chicago near McCormick Place. This property will join the more than 60 multi-brand hotels in the Hilton pipeline, nearly half of which contain at least one Embassy Suites, Homewood Suites, or Home2 Suites. Other noteworthy upcoming multi-brand hotels this year include a dual-branded Home2 Suites and Tru by Hilton property in Murfreesboro, TN, and a Homewood Suites and Curio by Hilton property near Los Angeles International Airport.
Embassy Suites’ Atrium Refresh initiative and Homewood Suites’ Take Flight renovation programs have also seen significant activity over the past several months. Embassy Suites San Antonio NW I-10 and Embassy Suites by Raleigh-Crabtree were recently added to the list of more than 60 hotels that have completed renovations, with another 15 atrium refreshes in the works this year. So far, about 147 properties have completed Homewood’s Take Flight program with another 47 planned by the end of the year. Recent examples include the Homewood Suites Village of Providence and the Homewood Suites Dallas-Park Central.
May brought the launch of Bring It, the All Suites brands’ first-ever joint-marketing effort spotlighting the brands’ shared consumer-facing offerings. It has garnered 463 million impressions, 15% more than the brands would have received if they launched their own programs, according to the company. Bring It digital content had 24 million views in the first 48 hours.
Capitalizing on synergies to make one plus one equal three has also translated into sales efforts within the category. A new integrated revenue management system and enhanced cross-selling opportunities have increased All Suites’ market share by 1.1%, with gains expected to continue, according to the company.
“The impressive outcomes of the All Suites category are clear, and our strong network of owners have fully embraced this strategy, which has been a key component to our expansion and inked deals. In fact, we are proud to say that we now have 192 owners who have two or more of our All Suites brands in their portfolio, compared with 118 when the category was launched,” said Duncan.