JDB Fine Hotels & Resorts Courts Travel Agents in US Re-Launch

PHOTO: Antica Torre Di Via Tornabuoni 1, Florence. (Photo courtesy of JDB Fine Hotels & Resorts)

JDB Fine Hotels & Resorts, a collection of boutique properties in Italy and France, is set to re-launch itself in the U.S. with a marketing campaign and a new website, both targeted to travel agents.

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The move follows the 38-year-old sales, marketing and reservation company’s acquisition two years ago by Waterstone Ventures. JDB now has 63 four- and five-star hotels and resorts, the lion’s share in Italy, and is adding another 14 to its collection. It expects to represent some 100 properties by the end of the year, said Brian Froelich, JDB chairman.

“JDB is made up of small, independent boutique hotels, some of them owned by the same families for generations,” said Froelich. “They need a connection to the U.S. and they need to talk to travel agents and consumers.

“In the U.S., about 70 percent of the hotels are branded and 30 percent are boutique properties,” he said. “In Europe, it’s the opposite.”

Froelich and JDB CEO Brian McCabe stressed their view on the value of agents who, said Froelich, are enjoying a “renaissance of relevancy.”

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Both executives are industry veterans. Froelich is a former executive vice president and general manager at American Express. McCabe is former senior vice president of sales and marketing for Millennium &  Copthorne Hotels.

“The experience of looking for a hotel online is interesting for about a minute and a half,” said Froelich. “As we move deeper into the second decade of the 2000’s, it is becoming more and more apparent that discerning customers require and are demanding expertise to navigate the tremendous amounts of online information.Today we all want some travel curation.”

Representatives from 20 JDB hotels have been conducting a road trip throughout the U.S. to introduce themselves to agents.

Twenty-five percent of the attendees at the roadshows have been young agents, said McCabe. They are catering to clients who want experiences and JDB’s new website, to go live this weekend, “will offer that content,” he said.

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JDB is developing a number of “specialized experiences”—including cooking classes and visits to quarries where Michelangelo selected the Carrara marble for his sculptures—to augment itineraries.

The new website will have an agent log-in and offer agents several ways to book JDB properties, including the capability to book online. The standard commission for JDB properties is 12 percent.

Consumers too can book the properties via JDB’s website, Froelich admitted. But the company is not going after direct bookings; there is also a call to action for agents on the site, he said.

Information on JDB’s 2016 “Exclusive Offers” will also be available on the site. These include complimentary dinners or lunches, confirmed upgrades at the time of booking, one free night based on a minimum of nights booked, and private complimentary arrival or departure transfers.

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