Earlier this month I had the opportunity to meet with a Hilton "New Business Development" guy and reviewed the company's roll-out plan for its new and revitalized hotel brands for the future. Timing is everything in the hotel biz (franchise/development) and I could only feel for Hilton during such a stagnant, unfunded period right now. I mean, nobody is interested in buying a new brand, hoteliers are just trying to break-even.
After looking through a power point of colorful slides refacing Conrad, Waldorf Astoria, Astoria Collection, we finally came to the gleaming jewel that would stop all boutique luxury travelers in their W Hotel tracks. Alas, the one and only "Denizen." No it is not an upgraded and zen-inspired "Denny's franchise"...the Hilton guys make the point that this actually means "Citizen of the World" - as in a person who inhabits a particular place, a citizen of a natural setting which is not his/her own. Profundity at its best rivaling the other whimsical lifestyle hotels which have emerged of late. Brands like Andaz, Edition, Indigo, and now Denizen - I may need to carry a dictionary to fully comprehend their impact on my uber-travel lifestyle. To me they are all copycats of each other: you got the innovative "non" check-in experience (which is confusing), the plug-and-play cluttered furniture throughout public spaces, the trendy design of the day (used to be Twall - to Damask - to London Chic), and of course the uncomfortable Euro-like bed.
Hilton continued to pitch the idea that Denizen offered something new. I will say that some of the programming specs seemed innovative like the "Hotel-Guest Only" lounge with bathrooms, bar, and media centers. But really people, we are talking about cannibalism of market share. W Hotels started this vision many years ago and, despite being incredibly expensive to build, have done a decent job capturing the "lifestyle" business and leisure traveler.
the last thing that smelled like "Sell-out" was when the Hilton rep spoke of how feasible the Denizen was with respect to hotel development and conversion. Mentioning that mill work and construction costs would be at the cheaper-end than its proposed competitors. I guess they meant it would be like selling a Honda Accord with the price tag of a BMW. Hilton should know better than to dress up a shoddy build with cute design and a "lifestyle" facade.
All in all, the Denizen brand by Hilton should be another brand aimed to boost franchise sales and will only steal market demand from the existing upscale boutique properties out there. In a recession like this one, the guys may need to work on the "Hilton Hotel" brand instead of rolling out 10 new ones.
Unfortunately, for our Blackstone pals, Hilton recently issued a press release acknowledging a federal grand jury subpoena "requesting documents relating to employment of former employees of Starwood Hotels 7 Resorts Worldwide, and materials which Hilton returned to Starwood in February 2009." These employees are two ex-Starwood big-wigs who migrated over to Hilton, allegedly taking sensitive information with them illegally. According to the press release Klein, Lalvani, and their "luxury & lifestyle team" have all been placed on paid leave pending Hilton's review of the situation. Oops...looks like the cheaply-built lifestyle brand just got quite expensive!
HM
