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Dive Overview:
Wyndham Hotels & Resorts announced today that it has debuted its Registry Collection Hotels luxury hotel brand in the United States, opening its first hotel in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Located in the foothills of Colorado’s Rocky Mountains, the renovated 128-room boutique hotel Mining Exchange features “modern luxuries,” including multiple on-site dining concepts, a full-service spa and an art gallery, according to Wyndham. The opening expands Wyndham’s luxury hotel portfolio in the United States and advances its growth strategy in the upper segment. The company is one of several competitors making inroads into luxury hotels as travelers increasingly seek unique, experiential accommodations.
Dive Insights:
The luxury brand, Registry Collection, launched in 2021 and has since opened more than 20 hotels around the world, including in Greece and Panama City, with 10 more in the pipeline. Wyndham says the Registry Collection prides itself on distinctive design, service and experiences.
The Mining Exchange building was once home to a Rocky Mountain gold and silver exchange. The renovated hotel features coffee bar BLK MGK and Golden Hour, an indoor/outdoor bar and courtyard offering handcrafted snacks and live jazz music. The building also features 15,000 square feet of functional event space, including a ballroom, two meeting rooms, an outdoor terrace and a conference room.
Wyndham CEO Jeff Ballotti said in a statement that the brand is expanding to the U.S. because “affluent travelers are increasingly craving the tailored, immersive experiences that boutique, independently-minded operators can deliver.”
“Today, more than ever, travelers are looking for immersive experiences,” Leonardo Danese, brand leader for Registry Collection Hotels, said in a statement to Hotel Dive.
Travelers “want to enjoy their surroundings, so we want our hotels to reflect that,” Danese added. “At Mining Exchange, we bring the community directly into the environment through things like local coffee, local artists and other small but meaningful details that make a big impact on our guests’ experience.”
Danese said expanding Wyndham’s registry collection in the U.S. strengthens its value proposition and is “particularly important” as the company invests in its loyalty program. As of February, Wyndham’s loyalty program membership numbers lagged behind rivals such as Marriott International and Hilton, but it outnumbered peer Choice Hotels International by about 42 million.
Wyndham is looking to further grow its brand and will “look for white space that offers opportunities for owners to grow with Wyndham and bring compelling destinations to our portfolio,” Danese said.
The hotel company is in the midst of a luxury push, having entered the luxury extended-stay market in April with the acquisition of hotel brand WaterWalk, and recently moved into the fast-growing lifestyle sector, partnering with SBE in January to launch a new brand called Project HQ.
Other hotel companies have similarly expanded their upscale hotel operations to meet changing guest demands, including Choice Hotels, which has bolstered several of its top brands this year and expanded its Cambria portfolio with new construction starts and openings.
Marriott, which has a larger presence in luxury hotels, is also prioritizing the category, with a particular focus on immersive experiences, Dana Jacobson, Marriott’s chief development officer for U.S. luxury brands and global mixed-use properties, told Hotel Dive in June.