Intercontinental Hotels Group Steps up Focis on Crowne Plaza Growth

22 hotels in brand pipeline

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. October 14, 2008

ATLANTA, GA June 6, 2005. InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), continues to grow distribution in the Americas , with a heavy emphasis on franchising the Crowne Plaza brand. "Crowne Plaza growth started off strong in 2005, on the heels of a year where more Crowne Plaza properties were added to the portfolio than during any of the past five years," said Kirk Kinsell, senior vice president and chief development officer, the Americas, IHG.

Twenty-two Crowne Plaza hotels are currently in the brand development pipeline and scheduled to open by the end of 2006. Six properties have already opened since January 2005, with another eight scheduled to open before the end of the year. Hotels that have joined the brand since January are located in Concord , Calif., Cleveland Ohio, Williamsburg, Va., Englewood, N.J., as well as Acapulco and Pachuca, Mexico.

Kevin Kowalski, vice president of brand management, Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts, attributes the brand's growth success to key initiatives that continue to define Crowne Plaza within the upscale hotel segment. These include "The Place to Meet" brand positioning which was introduced globally in 2003, as well as the industry-first Sleep Advantage which was rolled out in North America in 2004.

Through "The Place to Meet," Crowne Plaza developed several hallmarks that effectively cater to the needs of the to small- to mid-size meetings segment - a group that was previously neglected by the industry. And, in North America , guestrooms feature the newly introduced Crowne Plaza Sleep Advantage, which encompasses the entire sleep experience, from training staff on how to create and maintain a restful environment to providing innovative products and services. Program components include new bedding, guaranteed wake-up calls, designated quiet zones, night lights, drape clips, sleep CDs, sleep tips and amenities such as eye masks, ear plugs and lavender spray.

Both initiatives were immediately embraced by the franchise community as not only a way to build loyalty among guests, but as strategic business objectives to facilitate growth. "The Sleep Advantage has been a great success with guests, who are seeing the benefits of getting a good night's sleep, and with franchisees, who are looking at converting or building new Crowne Plaza hotels to strengthen their portfolios," said Kowalski. "The same success holds true with 'The Place to Meet' and the positive response from both meeting planners and franchisees, all who recognize the value that the program brings forth."

Maximizing return on investment for owners is a top priority for Crowne Plaza.

"When developing the Sleep Advantage, we leveraged guest research and combined that with our purchasing and central buying power to provide maximum guest benefit and minimum cost for our franchisees," said Kowalski. And, the brand takes the same return on investment-friendly approach with regard to brand standards. "We focus on tangible initiatives such as 'The Place to Meet' and the Sleep Advantage, that provide significant guest value, rather than low-impact or trendy items that just add cost from an owner perspective," Kowalski added.

IHG's continued focus on growth is also evidenced in the Americas across the company's other six brands (as of March 31, 2005 )