Starwood Capital Group to launch new luxury hotel brand
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Starwood Capital Group to launch new luxury hotel brand
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Category: Worldwide
This is a press release selected by our editorial committee and published online for free on 2006-01-24
Starwood Capital Group today announced plans to
launch a new international luxury brand called the Crillon through its Societe du Louvre affiliate.
The company will develop European-style Crillon hotels and serviced residences in major
destinations throughout the world.
The Crillon’s flagship is the Hotel de Crillon in Paris, located on Place de la Concorde and one
of only six Palace hotels (six-star) in that city. Housed in a historic building commissioned in
1758 by Louis XV, the 147-room de Crillon is considered a true Paris institution and has been a
favorite of luminaries, including heads of state and celebrities, since it opened as a hotel in 1909.
Starwood Capital expects that the Crillon Paris will undergo continuing upgrades in the near
future.
The Crillon brand will build on Paris’ Hotel de Crillon’s name recognition and reputation for
impeccable service among discerning travellers internationally. The hotel’s two-Michelin-star
restaurant, Les Ambassadeurs, is considered one of France’s finest. Starwood Capital plans to
develop Crillon hotels on its own and to partner with other developers and owners and will target
properties in the world’s most sophisticated cities, which may include London, Rome, Barcelona,
New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Las Vegas, Tokyo, Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, Delhi,
Mumbai, Dubai and Qatar. Resort destinations may follow in one-of-a-kind locations in the
Caribbean, the Far East and in ski markets like Starwood’s recently acquired Mammoth
Mountain in California. Starwood Capital is already working on sites in several of these cities
with potential partners.
Each Crillon hotel, like its Paris flagship, will be designed to reflect the unique spirit and soul of
its location, providing guests a one-of-a-kind luxury experience. The hotels and residences will
include a full complement of top-line amenities, including premier shopping and dining options,
world-class personalized unique service, spa and fitness facilities, and in some instances, a
residential component. Starwood Capital intends to enhance the dining experience in each
Crillon by utilizing the expert services of its affiliated world class chefs. Exquisite dining is
perhaps the hallmark signature of French culture. These chefs include Jean-Francois Piege, who
currently supervises Les Ambassadeurs, and Guy Martin, Chef of the Grand Vefour and one of
only a handful of three-star chefs in Paris. In addition, each Crillon may include a Baccarat
inspired Bar and a “Taittinger Champagne Lounge”, two companies with global luxury brand
status that are now part of the Société du Louvre family of brands acquired by Starwood Capital.
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“When Starwood Hotels & Resorts acquired ITT in 1998, there was only one St. Regis Hotel. In
my 10 year tenure as CEO, we were able to grow the brand to a dozen hotels open or under
construction and a significant pipeline under development, including the recently completed St.
Regis San Francisco. At my departure from Starwood Hotels & Resorts, we had successfully
moved St. Regis into the resort market in places like Anguilla and Punta Mita, Mexico,” said
Barry Sternlicht, Starwood Capital’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “Starwood Capital
intends to pursue a brand growth strategy behind one of the European and global icons of the
luxury hotel market. Utilizing the backing of the $2.4 billion raised by Starwood Capital in its
two recent funds last year, we will build and partner with global developers to expand this brand
into the world’s most important travel markets. With the travel industry experiencing
tremendous growth in many regions of the world, the time is right to launch a new, premium
luxury hotel brand like the Crillon. The luxury travel market is one of the fastest growing
segments in the industry and none of the existing luxury hotel brands are offering the style of
European luxury and class that we have envisioned and that the Hotel de Crillon in Paris has
been providing for nearly a century.”
In 2005, Starwood Capital raised over $3.0 billion of equity capital and invested more than $1.7
billion in the hospitality area on behalf of its investors. In early January, Starwood Capital
completed the $3.2 billion acquisition of Société du Louvre, Hotel de Crillon’s parent company,
whose controlled affiliates include Taittinger Champagne, Baccarat and Annick Goutal, a luxury
fragrance brand. Société du Louvre’s assets also include the world famous Hotel Martinez in
Cannes, the Hotel Lutetia in Paris and Europe’s second largest budget hotel chain with 805
hotels in six countries.
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