by Donald Wood
Last updated: 9:35 AM ET, Tue April 2, 2024
WHY IT RATES: The already
impressive Wyndham portfolio continues to expand.—Donald Wood, Breaking News
Senior Writer.
Wyndham Hotels & Resorts is expanding into the upscale
extended stay segment, launching a strategic relationship with industry
innovator WaterWalk.
The deal adds 11 hotels and over 1,500 rooms to the Wyndham
ecosystem, rebranding them under the newly created WaterWalk Extended Stay by
Wyndham brand, the 25th in Wyndham's portfolio.
Located in key markets such as Tucson, Jacksonville and
Wichita, the offerings perfectly compliment Wyndham's existing economy and
midscale extended stay brands and cater to guests seeking a local, yet elevated
stay with the comforts of home.
An Innovative Approach to Extended Stay
WaterWalk was founded by the late Jack DeBoer, an
extended-stay trailblazer who not only pioneered the segment but created some
of its most well-known and successful brands, including among others, Residence
Inn and Candlewood Suites. A wildly successful entrepreneur and industry
visionary, he created WaterWalk in 2014, leveraging the learnings of his past
successes while also reimagining what an extended stay hotel could be. Today,
his leadership, vision and entrepreneurial spirit live on through his granddaughter,
WaterWalk CEO Mimi Oliver.
Positioned squarely in the upscale segment, WaterWalk brings
a fresh take to the traditional extended stay experience with its unique
LIVE|STAY model. STAY units are fully furnished and cater to guests looking for
a traditional extended-stay, residential-like experience, while LIVE units are
unfurnished and allow guests to create a long-term space that truly feels like
home. The flexibility of the model is one of the brand's strategic assets as
units can transform and adapt in real-time to market and customer
needs—benefitting owners, operators and guests alike.
WaterWalk's current portfolio consists of 11 hotels
throughout the U.S. Newer hotels leverage the brand's Gen 2.0 prototype, which
combines efficient design and low operating costs to help unlock stronger
profits and higher returns.
A Portfolio Poised for Growth
WaterWalk marks Wyndham's third extended stay brand, joining
ECHO SuitesSM Extended Stay by Wyndham and Hawthorn® Extended Stay by Wyndham.
ECHO Suites launched in 2022 and has over 265 economy new construction hotels
in its development pipeline, half a dozen of which are nearing completion.
Hawthorn in 2023 saw 30% growth in its midscale conversion and new construction
development pipeline.
Collectively, the three brands give the Company a robust and
growing portfolio of offerings designed for the needs of today's extended stay
guests—be that construction workers hitting the road for weeks at a time or
digital nomads looking to mix business and leisure travel. What's more, with
the addition of WaterWalk, the portfolio of brands further reinforces owners'
ability to capitalize on the historical infrastructure spend in the U.S.,
what's believed to be about a $3.3 billion opportunity in additional room
revenue.
In joining the Wyndham family of brands, WaterWalk hotels
unlock access to the Wyndham Advantage – world-class marketing, distribution
and resources from the world's largest hotel franchisor. Over the last five
years, Wyndham has invested more than $275 million in innovative technology
that drives efficiency and supports owners bottom lines, including next-gen
property and revenue management systems, mobile check-in and checkout and OTA
reconciliation, to name a few. Owners also benefit from Wyndham Rewards, the
world's number one hotel rewards program, as named by readers of USA Today.
With its growing base of more than 106 million enrolled members globally,
members make up nearly half of all U.S. check-ins.
SOURCE: Wyndham Hotels
& Resorts press release.
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