SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - Starwood yesterday said its Sheraton Nassau Beach Resort at Cable Beach had seen a 10 per cent revenue increase in 2009, and confirmed to Tribune Business its brands were still committed to the delayed $2.6 billion Baha Mar project.
Andrew Neubauer, director of sales and marketing for the Sheraton Nassau Beach Resort, said that despite the delay in the project, four Starwood brands will be present when the Baha Mar vision is realised.
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Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Older women and younger men? Not on Carnival Cruise Lines
Apparently cougars put on more of a party than the Fun Ships can handle.
Carnival Cruise Lines has turned away a singles group that promotes cruises and other social events for cougars and cubs -- older women and younger men who, um, court each other.
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Carnival Cruise Lines has turned away a singles group that promotes cruises and other social events for cougars and cubs -- older women and younger men who, um, court each other.
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NYC proposes national salt reduction plan for restaurants
The New York City Health Department has announced that it is coordinating a nationwide effort to aid heart attack and stroke prevention by reducing the amount of salt in packaged and restaurant foods.
The National Salt Reduction Initiative, a coalition of cities, states and health organizations working to help food manufacturers and restaurants voluntarily reduce the amount of salt in their products, plans to reduce Americans’ salt intake by 20 percent over five years. The initiative is targeting packaged and restaurant foods because nearly 80 percent of sodium in Americans' diets is added to foods before they are sold.
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The National Salt Reduction Initiative, a coalition of cities, states and health organizations working to help food manufacturers and restaurants voluntarily reduce the amount of salt in their products, plans to reduce Americans’ salt intake by 20 percent over five years. The initiative is targeting packaged and restaurant foods because nearly 80 percent of sodium in Americans' diets is added to foods before they are sold.
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Cheesecake Factory: revenue steady in 4th quarter
CALABASAS HILLS, Calif. (AP) -- The Cheesecake Factory Inc. said Tuesday that its preliminary fourth-quarter revenue held steady while sales in established locations dipped slightly.
The restaurant chain said sales for the period that ended Dec. 29 were $401 million compared with $400 million during the same quarter in 2008.
Meanwhile, sales in locations open at least a year dipped about 1 percent, with sales down 0.7 percent at the company's namesake locations and down 3.9 percent at Grand Lux Cafes.
Sales in restaurants open at least a year are an important retail industry measure that tracks sales in established stores, rather than newly opened ones.
They declined 2.8 percent in the preceding third quarter, and Cheesecake Factory said the sequential improvement was "driven almost entirely by guest traffic."
The restaurant chain said sales for the period that ended Dec. 29 were $401 million compared with $400 million during the same quarter in 2008.
Meanwhile, sales in locations open at least a year dipped about 1 percent, with sales down 0.7 percent at the company's namesake locations and down 3.9 percent at Grand Lux Cafes.
Sales in restaurants open at least a year are an important retail industry measure that tracks sales in established stores, rather than newly opened ones.
They declined 2.8 percent in the preceding third quarter, and Cheesecake Factory said the sequential improvement was "driven almost entirely by guest traffic."
rwood Announces First of Three Luxury Collection Hotels to Debut in Peru
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT - News) in a franchise agreement with Libertador Hotels, Resorts & Spas, today announced the opening of Hotel Paracas, a Luxury Collection Resort, marking the debut of the first of three Luxury Collection hotels opening in Peru over the next two years.
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Ex-Hilton CFO La Forgia Launches Hotel Asset Management Group
HENDERSON, NEVADA — A group of hotel and casino industry executives led by company founder and principal Robert M. La Forgia announce the launch of Apertor Hospitality LLC, an asset management and advisory firm serving the hospitality and gaming industries with a team of industry professionals based throughout the United States.
Highly relevant to today's rapidly evolving economy, Apertor offers a full complement of advisory services tailored to existing owners, investors and lenders with exposure to financially struggling hotels and casinos, as well as to new entrants looking to take advantage of current market conditions. Comprised of proven industry veterans and leaders, the dedicated team offers customized strategies designed to enhance and optimize asset value and investment returns for their clients.
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Highly relevant to today's rapidly evolving economy, Apertor offers a full complement of advisory services tailored to existing owners, investors and lenders with exposure to financially struggling hotels and casinos, as well as to new entrants looking to take advantage of current market conditions. Comprised of proven industry veterans and leaders, the dedicated team offers customized strategies designed to enhance and optimize asset value and investment returns for their clients.
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For sail: 200 homes on a cruise ship
About half of the cabins on the $1.1-billion Utopia, set to launch in 2013, will be offered as permanent residences ranging from about $3.7 million to $26 million
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McDonald’s Names New President and COO
PRESS RELEASE - (Oak Brook, Illinois) - - Jim Skinner, Chief Executive Officer of McDonald’s Corporation, today announced that Don Thompson, currently President of McDonald USA, has been elected to the role of President and Chief Operating Officer, with oversight responsibility for the company’s 32,000 restaurants worldwide
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Monday, January 11, 2010
Deadline for Las Vegas Fontainebleau bids set for Friday
Bids are due Friday from companies and individuals wanting to buy the bankrupt Fontainebleau casino-resort development project on the Las Vegas Strip.
Parties desiring to take over the 70-percent-complete, 3,815-room resort will have to offer more than the $156.2 million currently offered by "stalking horse bidder" and investment veteran Carl Icahn.
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Note: Investopedia explains Stalking-Horse Bid
This method allows the distressed company to avoid low bids on its assets. Once the stalking horse has made its bid, other potential buyers may submit competing bids for the bankrupt company's assets. In essence, the stalking horse sets the bar so that other bidders can't low-ball the purchase price.
Parties desiring to take over the 70-percent-complete, 3,815-room resort will have to offer more than the $156.2 million currently offered by "stalking horse bidder" and investment veteran Carl Icahn.
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Note: Investopedia explains Stalking-Horse Bid
This method allows the distressed company to avoid low bids on its assets. Once the stalking horse has made its bid, other potential buyers may submit competing bids for the bankrupt company's assets. In essence, the stalking horse sets the bar so that other bidders can't low-ball the purchase price.
Cable Beach Bahamas Hotels open only because of Owner funding
Baha Mar's two existing Cable Beach resorts are only still open because their owner's family has used their own money to cover "significant multi-million dollar losses", particularly over the last two years, something that has made the Izmirlians the "largest private investor in the history of the Bahamas".
Sarkis Izmirlian, Baha Mar's chairman and chief executive, told Tribune Business in an exclusive interview that there was "no way" the Bahamian hotel industry could maintain its long-term competitiveness unless its operating cost base - chiefly labour and utilities - were brought into line with this nation's rivals.
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Sarkis Izmirlian, Baha Mar's chairman and chief executive, told Tribune Business in an exclusive interview that there was "no way" the Bahamian hotel industry could maintain its long-term competitiveness unless its operating cost base - chiefly labour and utilities - were brought into line with this nation's rivals.
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Sunday, January 10, 2010
Franchises sue KFC over shift to grilled chicken
At Kentucky Fried Chicken, the name once said it all. But the world's most popular chicken chain is betting heavily that its grilled chicken -- which racked up nearly $1 billion in sales in its first year -- is the Next Big Thing. That has angered a coalition of franchise owners, who run most of the restaurants and believe the focus should remain fried.
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Travelodge unveils plan for 26 new hotels
Travelodge, the budget hotel chain, pledged yesterday to create more than 500 jobs in Britain this year with the opening of 26 new hotels.
The group, owned by Dubai International Capital, said that the opening programme, to cost £115 million, would add more than 2,000 rooms to its estate.
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The group, owned by Dubai International Capital, said that the opening programme, to cost £115 million, would add more than 2,000 rooms to its estate.
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California Hotel Foreclosures Quadrupled in 2009 on Travel Drop
Jan. 7 (Bloomberg) -- Hotel foreclosures in California more than quadrupled last year as business travelers and vacationers cut spending and commercial real estate values plunged, forcing owners into default, according to a survey released today.
There were 62 foreclosures on hotels in the state last year, compared with 15 in 2008, Irvine, California-based Atlas Hospitality Group said in a statement. Properties in default jumped almost six-fold to 307, said Atlas, which specializes in selling hotels. The survey only covered California.
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There were 62 foreclosures on hotels in the state last year, compared with 15 in 2008, Irvine, California-based Atlas Hospitality Group said in a statement. Properties in default jumped almost six-fold to 307, said Atlas, which specializes in selling hotels. The survey only covered California.
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Friday, January 8, 2010
New Cici's CEO revamps corporate structure
Michael R. Shumsky, recently appointed CEO of CiCi's Pizza, announced in a statement a restructuring plan to better position the company for growth and success in 2010 and beyond. The restructuring has resulted in new organizational realignments to better support CiCi's franchisees, provide an industry leading experience for its guests and own the value position in the pizza segment.
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Marriott: 4Q better than expected in North America
BETHESDA, Md. Marriott International Inc. said Thursday it expects its fourth-quarter revenue per available room in North America to be slightly better than it forecast.
Marriott said the figure, a key measure of a hotelier's fiscal health, fell 13 percent to 14 percent, while the company said in early December that it would fall 13 percent to 16 percent decline.
Marriott said the decline in other regions would be in line with its earlier estimate of 14 percent to 16 percent on a constant dollar basis.
Marriott is scheduled to report its fourth-quarter results on Feb. 11. The hotel company is based in Bethesda, Md.
Its shares fell 11 cents to $27.87 in after-hours trading Thursday after closing up 11 cents at $27.98 during regular trading.
Marriott said the figure, a key measure of a hotelier's fiscal health, fell 13 percent to 14 percent, while the company said in early December that it would fall 13 percent to 16 percent decline.
Marriott said the decline in other regions would be in line with its earlier estimate of 14 percent to 16 percent on a constant dollar basis.
Marriott is scheduled to report its fourth-quarter results on Feb. 11. The hotel company is based in Bethesda, Md.
Its shares fell 11 cents to $27.87 in after-hours trading Thursday after closing up 11 cents at $27.98 during regular trading.
