U.S. HOTEL DEVELOPERS have a new choice of brands now. InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) is now signing franchise agreements stateside for its Vignette Collection, previously focused on development in Asia with its first properties in Australia and Thailand.
The Vignette Collection is part of IHG’s luxury and lifestyle portfolio that includes more than 400 hotels and 100,000 rooms. Hotel owners and operators in the U.S. are invited to attend an online symposium on franchising with the brand on Dec. 7.
“Vignette Collection gives owners and guests an inspiring new choice and, while each hotel in the collection will maintain its unique story and guest experience, guests will also enjoy the assurance of a consistent and high-quality experience backed by IHG,” said Julienne Smith, IHG’s senior vice president of development for the Americas. “There is outstanding potential in the Americas region for this brand, specifically in urban and resort locations, with Vignette Collection offering high value and flexibility for hotel owners.”
Properties in the Vignette Collection are generally located in urban and tourist destinations and each maintains distinct style and character. IHG said the collection offers scale, expertise and investment to owners of independent hotels and small hotel portfolios. The Vignette Collection franchisees have access to IHG’s reservation and loyalty systems.
Other brands in IHG’s luxury and lifestyle portfolio includes Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas, Regent Hotels & Resorts, InterContinental Hotels & Resorts, Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants and Hotel Indigo. The luxury and lifestyle market is worth more than $100 billion and contains more than 1.5 million independent hotel rooms globally.
Last year, IHG brought its upscale Voco brand, launched in Australia two years before, to the U.S. The first three properties were planned for New York City; St. Augustine, Florida; and Columbia, Missouri. Voco The Franklin in New York opened last year, while the voco St. Augustine and the voco The Tiger Hotel in Columbia are expected to open soon.
Also, in October, IHG said in an article on Reuters that it is seeing encouraging signs of recovery in business and international travel. The company said that its hotel RevPAR rose 66 percent in the third quarter, with the U.S. down just 7 percent from 2019 levels after a busy summer season.
