Newly Opened Gaylord Palms Uses Design To Attract Core Clientele

KISSIMMEE, FL— During a tour of the newly opened Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center, Greg Hnedak, Hnedak Bobo Group, told HOTEL BUSINESS® that the property is using the design of its Florida-themed atrium, covention center, and 1,406 guestrooms to capture its core clientele: business travelers, meetings and conventions. According to Hnedak, when Nashville,TN-based owner Gaylord Entertainment Co. hired the firm to create the hotel and brand concept in 1998, the whole idea that drove the design was that it had to be in step with Gaylords growth strategy for the new brand. That is “to bring the brand into several U.S. cities so that when a convention is booked at one hotel one year, it can move to another hotel in another location the next year, and so on. Gaylord can then take advantage of different market areas,” explained Hnedak. Gaylord wanted to create a brand that would capture convention and meetings business and keep them coming back each year to different locales that offer completely different area-specific experiences. And it wanted to accomplish this as soon as possible. That put the Gaylord Palms on a fast-track construction schedule, said Hnedak, to make its set-in-stone opening date of February 2, 2002 at 2:02 p.m., which it did. The end result was a 2.2 million-square-foot resort that was able to pre-sell more than 1 million room-nights to meeting and convention groups through 2012. It is in line with the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center in Nashville, and reflects Gaylords 25 years of conventions experience in Nashville, said Hnedak. Indeed, Gaylord is optimistic about the resorts success since it took the suggestions of its customers (meetings planners) and incorporated them into the hotel. “We asked our customers what they needed in a resort and convention center, and then we built it,” said Mike Mason, vp/sales and marketing. The Orlando-area property also encompasses the five brand standards that Gaylord is looking to bring other potential properties across the country: — A design that reflects the locale so that each property offers a different feeling and helps keep conventions coming back to different locations each year. — A signature atrium, which extends and maximizes the retail, F&B, meeting and wedding area opportunities for the hotel. — A design program that caters specifically to the conventions business. — A facility layout and design that simplifies “wayfinding” at the property. — The integration of entertainment features throughout the property. According to Hnedak Bobo Group Principal Barry Marshall, Gaylord is actively looking at locations for the new brand on both coasts, but couldnt give specifics. Plus, according to Hnedak, whose firm is also working on the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center in Grapevine, TX, progress slowed post-Sept. 11 at that fast-tracked site, so that “Gaylord could get some more bids for the construction.” It is slated to open sometime in 2004, he said. Hnedak also told HOTEL BUSINESS® that his firm “has completed studies for the Potomac project [in the Washington, D.C. area]for Gaylord.” However, progress has not moved much further than that for that location, he said. Meanwhile, Gaylord Palms showcases the brand standards Gaylord wants in all of its properties going forward. It features 400,000 square feet of convention, meeting, exhibition and pre-function space with a 178,000-square-foot exhibition hall; a 4.5-acre atrium with Florida-themed interiorscapes of Key West, the Everglades and St. Augustine; a 20,000-square-foot Canyon Ranch Spa Club; an on-site La Petite Academy Kids Station; two pools, four restaurants; and several retail outlets. Guestrooms offer customized, residentially inspired design schemes that relate to the atriums interiorscapes. Each one— St. Augustine (Old World and nautical); Key West (bright and white); Everglades (lush and green); and Emerald Bay (Old World and boutique-like; conc