Homewood Suites’ joint builds

TORONTO-Wendy's and Tim Hortons did it. So did Swiss Chalet and Harvey's. And while Hilton's joint build hotels aren't quite the same as restaurant twinning, they do offer some of the same advantages. They require smaller plots of land.  The hotels can share common areas and services. And hotels can refer guests back and forth when one hotel is fully occupied.

"Joint builds" house two different Hilton brands (Homewood and another) under one roof, or in the case of the first Canadian venture, two conjoined buildings.

In the U.S., Hilton has used Homewood Suites as a base and paired it with other brands including Hilton Garden Inns, Hampton Inn by Hilton and even a couple of full-service Hiltons.

And now, Hilton has just completed its first "international" joint build, with the launch of the Toronto Airport Corporate Homewood Suites and Hampton Inn on Eglinton Ave. West, backing on Centennial Park, a short, shuttle-bus ride away from Pearson International Airport.

The Homewood Suites section is an upscale, all-suite, residential-style hotel, catering to travellers who want a home away from home for a few days or more. It has 128 spacious studio, one and two-bedroom suites, each with fully-equipped kitchens.

The Hampton Inn offers value-minded travellers comfortable rooms with plenty of complimentary amenities. It has 126 guest rooms with either one king or two queen beds-each with Hampton's Cloud 9 signature bedding package.

Homewood a logical partner

Homewood is a desirable partner because it is "recession resistant", actually showing a four per cent increase in business, 13 per cent increase in occupancy and five per cent rise in RevPAR already this year.

"The food and beverage portion is a significant reason why Homewood has ratcheted up in this very difficult economy," notes Bill Duncan, global head, brand management at Home2 Suites by Hilton & Homewood Suites by Hilton, who was on hand for a media tour of the properties last month.

It has the highest value proposition when it comes to food.  Not only does the brand offer breakfast, but it also provides dinner four nights as week.

"Homewood caters to the upscale extended stay segment, and it's a brand that has been embraced by key audiences including owners, guests and very importantly, travel managers who are key decision makers."

And it's flexible-it can be used for joint builds, and can have an urban look or a suburban look. "It's not really a cookie cutter brand," says Duncan.

"The brand is celebrating its 20th anniversary, and it's in very good shape," opening its 300th hotel this year.

It's also stayed up to date, with 25 per cent of the hotel stock new in the last two years, and 40 per cent new in the past three years.

Dual branding synergies

"We've brought to life synergies of guests, ownership and design/construction," says Duncan, speaking of the Toronto airport Homewood and Hampton. "We have the best of both worlds under one roof, a cross-selling program for two Hilton brands, and the ability to keep separate identities but come together in the middle."

"Value-wise the Hampton brand is a category killer," he notes. (Hampton is a mid-scale brand with limited amenities.)

"Its guest satisfaction scores are 15 points above Fairfield and Holiday Inn Express, and it has a 97 per cent intent to return," says Duncan.

Hampton has grown from being primarily an Interstate brand, to one found in urban centres as well. And it's ubiquitous, with 1,281 hotels open, 80 this year alone.

The guest profiles for Homewood and Hampton are different, but there is some overlap.  Hampton caters to 48 per cent business and 50 per cent leisure guests, while at Homewood, the split is 70 per cent business and 30 per cent leisure.

Gulamani: Savings are substantial

Alnoor "Al" Gulamani, president of  Bayview Hospitality, Inc., and owner of the Toronto Airport properties, notes several areas for savings.  There's one housekeeping department, one manager and one engineering group for the entire building. There's one pool, one lounge and one fitness centre shared between the two hotels. All this accounts for an estimated 15 per cent in operational savings.

Gulamani adds that since there is just one fitness centre, they have the space to make it a much better fitness centre than guests would normally find in a hotel this size.

While the hotel was being built, there were savings of 15 to 20 per cent. And having two hotels enabled them to build on a smaller parcel of land-3.5 acres as compared to the recommended 2.5 for Homewood and 2.1 for Hampton.

While advantages far outweigh the disadvantages, Duncan cautions that there's a need to maintain brand integrity or ‘swim lanes' between each of Hilton's brands and segments.

L to R: Christina Anderson, regional director, sales and marketing, Homewood Suites, Al Gulamani of Bayview Hospitality and Bill Duncan.