Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide opened 74 new hotels in 2013, representing approximately 16,200 rooms in 22 countries. The company signed 152 new hotel agreements that same year, marking the fourth consecutive year of increased signings and the highest number of new hotel deals signed since 2007.
Nearly 75 percent of the company’s development pipeline and 60 percent of the 2013 signings were in fast-growing markets, including Bangladesh, Malaysia, Indonesia, Colombia, and Saudi Arabia. Approximately 40 of 2013 signings were in developed markets, with 13 conversions that signed and opened within the year.
Starwood is also seeing an increased interest in adaptive reuse projects, particularly for its Aloft brand. The company opened three such projects this year: Aloft Orlando Downtown, Aloft Tulsa Downtown, and Aloft Miami – Brickell, in addition to signing Aloft New Orleans. Starwood will open another three adaptive reuse Aloft hotels in 2014 with Aloft Liverpool, Aloft Detroit, and Aloft Tampa Downtown.
The company also opened six luxury hotels last year, including its first W ski retreat with the W Verbier, and its first W hotel in mainland China, W Guangzhou. Other luxury openings included the St. Regis Abu Dhabi, the brand’s second hotel in the Emirate and third hotel in the Middle East; and three properties under The Luxury Collection brand in Athens; Koh Samui, Thailand; and Cusco, Peru.
In 2014, the company will open 10 new luxury properties, making debuts in four countries. Key openings will include W Bogota, marking the W brand’s entry into Colombia; W Beijing, furthering the W brand’s footprint in strategic Chinese destinations; the St. Regis Istanbul and Chengdu; and six new hotels under The Luxury Collection brand in destinations including Odessa, Ajman, Dalian, and Hangzhou in China, and Broumana in Lebanon.
The company’s specialty select brands, including Four Points by Sheraton, Aloft, and Element, have grown nearly 80 percent since 2008. These brands are gearing up for another strong year of growth, on the heels of 37 openings and 77 new signings in 2013. Four Points by Sheraton, Aloft, and Element account for approximately 40 percent of the company’s development pipeline and nearly 45 percent of expected hotel openings worldwide in 2014.
