SEDONA, AZ— West Paces Hotel Group LLC, headed by former Ritz-Carlton executive Horste Schulze, is moving on its first luxury hotel project here, with LAuberge de Sedona, which the company took over January 1. According to Schulze, the company hopes to take the famed Ritz service and product that he helped develop to a new level. As such, West Paces hopes to create a six-star brand, which will cater to the very top of the travel market. Each of the top-of-the-line hotels are expected to have about 100 rooms, conducive to customer service and intimacy, with average daily rates of roughly $500. A second West Paces brand, to be called Hemingway Hotels and Resorts, will operate more typical full-service hotels of 300 to 400 rooms at the 4 1/2-star level, said the company. A third segment will manage boutique hotels like LAuberge. Each brand will include new construction and conversion of existing properties. While the three products will differ, the service and attention to customers will be evident throughout, according to the company. “In a sense, LAuberge will be a springboard for much of the service ethic West Paces wants to instill at its properties. LAuberges size, at 60 rooms, will allow the company to implement its service style more easily,” said said Scott Rohm, senior vice president of operations . The company will manage some hotels and partially own others. Besides LAuberge, West Paces now manages one other hotel, at Auburn University in Alabama, where it also has a hand in the hotel school curriculum. While the company plans to manage other Arizona hotels, it has no plans for an ultra-luxury product here. West Paces plans to add a spa to LAuberge as well as activities like wine-tasting in the evenings, said Schulze, who noted that at the heart of every property will be exceptional customer service.
