CHICAGO (May 17, 2019) – Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H) recently celebrated excellence among owners and developers at Hyatt’s Americas owners conference in Nassau, Bahamas at Grand Hyatt Baha Mar. Hyatt’s leadership team presented awards to 11 companies and introduced a new recognition in the program, the Purpose and Care award.
“At Hyatt, we are focused on thoughtful growth, driven by where our guests and customers want to be, and our longstanding relationships with industry-leading owners and developers enable us to achieve that vision together,” said Jim Chu, global head of development and owner relations, Hyatt. “With 63 hotel openings, 2018 was a record year for Hyatt. As we continue to expand our brand presence globally, we have the privilege of working with an extensive network of owners and developers that generate key milestones for our brands and share our commitment to delivering a superior level of care for guests, colleagues and customers.”
The Purpose and Care award is aligned with Hyatt’s purpose to care for people so they can be their best and recognizes a company whose efforts have truly demonstrated care in action:
- PRISA Group: Following Hurricane Maria, PRISA Group moved quickly to identify basic needs and provide resources to Hyatt colleagues and their families in Puerto Rico across its four properties on the island. In the first two weeks following the disaster, PRISA Group opened hotel facilities to colleagues and their families, given that many were still without electricity and water, and provided 5,000 meals during shifts. Relief efforts continued for many weeks and over the course of two months, PRISA Group distributed 5,000 gallons of water and nearly 5,000 bags of ice to colleagues. PRISA Group also provided direct financial assistance to Hyatt colleagues to assist with rebuilding and recovery efforts.
The Strategic Partner award celebrates a company’s culture, performance and operating philosophies, along with their strong, multi-brand relationship with Hyatt:
- Magna Hospitality is helping Hyatt increase its brand presence in key urban markets throughout the United States. In addition to existing Hyatt Place, Hyatt House and Hyatt properties that it operates in New York City and Austin, Magna opened Hyatt Centric Faneuil Hall Boston in 2019, and over the next two years is set to open Hyatt Centric properties in Old Town Alexandria, downtown Minneapolis and downtown Denver. Magna will operate two additional Hyatt Place properties in New York City, accounting for over 2,000 rooms over four Hyatt brands.
The Project of the Year award recognizes notable hotel openings:
- Grand Hyatt Bogota: In August 2018, Organización Luis Carlos Sarmiento Angulo opened Grand Hyatt Bogota as the first Hyatt-branded hotel in the Colombian capital and the first Grand Hyatt property in Colombia. Located in center of the Ciudad Empresarial Sarmiento Angulo commercial district, Grand Hyatt Bogota features 372 rooms and suites, more than 28,000 square feet of meeting space, an array of dining options and Zaitania Spa, one of the largest urban spas in Latin America.
- Hyatt Regency Seattle: With 1,260 guestrooms and more than 103,000 square feet of meeting space spanning four ballrooms and 46 meeting rooms, R.C. Hedreen Company opened Hyatt Regency Seattle in December 2018 as the largest hotel in the Pacific Northwest. Located near some of Seattle’s top attractions and adjacent to the expansion site of the Washington State Convention Center, this property joins Grand Hyatt Seattle and Hyatt At Olive 8, which were also developed by R.C. Hedreen Company.
- Hyatt House across from Universal Orlando Resort™: Summit Hotel Properties opened Hyatt House across from Universal Orlando Resort™ in June 2018. The hotel features 168 apartment-style kitchen suites, common lounge spaces for guests to relax, gather and socialize, and the H BAR, providing guests with the service and convenience of hotel living with the causal comforts of home.
- Hyatt Place Pasadena: Serving as the first Hyatt-branded hotel in Pasadena, Ensemble Real Estate Solutions & Investments opened the 189-room Hyatt Place Pasadena in December 2018. The hotel features the Hyatt Place brand’s intuitive design, casual upscale atmosphere and enhanced food and beverage, and is centrally located in the heart of downtown Pasadena, offering views of the San Gabriel mountains and cityscape.
The Developer of the Year award honors construction quality and efficiency:
- Mountain Shore Properties: The relationship between Mountain Shore Properties and Hyatt continues to deepen. Mountain Shore Properties has two open properties, Hyatt Place Sumter/Downtown and Hyatt House Mount Pleasant-Midtown, and two under construction, Hyatt House Nashville Downtown and Hyatt House Tallahassee. Mountain Shore Properties’ attention to detail and excellence in operating aligns with Hyatt’s strategy to cultivate franchisees who share Hyatt’s purpose of care.
- Talbot Hotels S.A.: Talbot was instrumental in introducing the Hyatt Centric brand to two South American countries with the openings of the 254-room Hyatt Centric San Isidro Lima and the 166-room Hyatt Centric Las Condes Santiago. Hyatt Centric San Isidro Lima is the first Hyatt hotel to open in Peru while Hyatt Centric Las Condes Santiago marks the second Hyatt hotel in Chile. These additions in two of the major gateway cities in South America represented key milestones in Hyatt’s brand growth in Latin America.
The Best Full Service Conversion award celebrates the reconfiguration of an existing property and conversion to a full service Hyatt-branded hotel:
- The Eliza Jane: Following the successful opening of the Holston House in Nashville, Tenn., HRI Properties, along with Rockbridge Capital, introduced another property to The Unbound Collection by Hyatt brand – The Eliza Jane. Located along Magazine Street in New Orleans and just two blocks from the historic French Quarter, The Eliza Jane opened in 2018 as a 196-room hotel. A thoughtful blend of elegance, combined with just the right mix of fancy and funky, The Eliza Jane was named after Eliza Jane Nicholson, publisher of The Daily Times Picayune in the late 1800s and the first woman publisher of a major metropolitan newspaper. The seven buildings comprising the property were constructed between the 1860s and 1880s and are listed on the U.S. Register of National Historic Places.
The Best Select Service Conversion award celebrates the reconfiguration of an existing property and conversion to a select service Hyatt-branded hotel:
- Hyatt Place Knoxville Downtown: Dover Development is an organization that has the vision to see through complicated adaptive reuse projects. In opening Hyatt Place Knoxville Downtown, Dover Development was able to transform the former hotel into a property that truly delivers on the Hyatt Place brand promise, and it has been a tremendous addition to the vibrant Knoxville market.
The Operating Excellence award recognizes outstanding operational performance:
- TKO Hospitality: TKO operates Hyatt Place Dewey Beach in Dewey Beach, Delaware, a highly leisure-focused market. As the operator, TKO has maintained a revenue per available room (RevPAR) index of over 120 for four years, which began just five months after the hotel opened. Guest scores for Hyatt Place Dewey Beach continue to be above the brand average and Hyatt Place Ocean City, Md., recently opened by TKO, is seeing similar results to Hyatt Place Dewey Beach.
For more information, please visit hyattdevelopment.com.
