Carlson, Rezidor go to market together
Carlson and the Rezidor Hotel Group have established The Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group. While the legal status and ownership structure of Carlson and Rezidor remain the same, the Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group will pursue the global alignment and management of its brands, the ambitious development of its revenue generation engines, global purchasing opportunities and personnel development on a global basis. Commercial activities will be conducted under the Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group name, regardless of geographies. Hubert Joly, president & CEO, Carlson said: “Carlson and Rezidor have a long common history and have grown together over the past 17 years. Going to market as one is a next and natural step. We are leveraging the strengths of two great companies to create value for all our stakeholders.” Rezidor’s president and CEO, Kurt Ritter observed: “The goal of this development is to generate more attractive financial returns for the owners and greater value for all shareholders, to be perceived by business partners around the world as one global hotel company, to offer more compelling and consistent value propositions to the guests and to offer global career and development opportunities to the staff.” The Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group has a portfolio of over 1,300 hotels, a global footprint covering 80 countries, and a powerful set of global brands (including including Radisson Blu; Radisson; Country Inns & Suites By Carlson, Park Inn by Radisson; Hotel Missoni; and Park Plaza). Through a number of concrete revenue generation initiatives, the Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group aims to generate more than US$400 million in additional revenue and a RevPAR Index increase of more than 9 points by 2015. These initiatives include a reinforced global sales team; unique revenue optimization tools, partnership projects with travel intermediaries, including Carlson Wagonlit Travel, and the rapid growth of Club Carlson, the group’s loyalty program. The group’s new web site — http://www.carlsonrezidor.com — will launch Feb. 1, 2012.
