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Another Ueberroth Making Name in Hotel Business

Lindsey Ueberroth says she loved to play hotel when she was little.

Now, at 30, Ueberroth is managing partner of Preferred Boutique, a marketing network for 75 specialty hotels that’s part of Chicago-based Preferred Hotel Group. She runs the boutique arm from Newport Beach.

It’s a family business,dad John Ueberroth is chairman, chief executive and majority shareholder of Preferred Hotel Group, which offers sales, marketing and operational help for 300 luxury hotels and resorts worldwide, including for the boutique arm.

Hotels run in the family. In the 1990s, Lindsey Ueberroth’s uncle, Peter Ueberroth, sold his hotel company to Hilton Hotels Corp., where he’s a director.

The idea behind Preferred Boutique came from her, Lindsey Ueberroth said.

“I have a personal passion for smaller, intimate boutique properties,” she said.

Ueberroth said she took her idea for a separate boutique chain to her dad. Preferred Boutique got its start last year.

She’s now on a five-week trip to Africa and Europe to meet with prospective hoteliers about joining the network. All of Preferred’s hotels are independently owned and run.

Her goal: to double the boutique unit’s hotels to 150 by July.

The long-term goal is 300 hotels, she said.

“It’s a fine balance between quality and quantity,” Ueberroth said.

Preferred Boutique hotels include Alisal Guest Ranch and Resort in Santa Ynez Valley, Solage Calistoga near Napa, the Copperwynd Resort in Scottsdale and the Lodge & Spa at Cordillera in Colorado.

Preferred Boutique’s hotels pay a yearly branding and marketing fee along with a percentage of their room revenue, usually about 7%.

“It’s a very reasonable option for those who want to remain independent,” Ueberroth said.

Preferred Boutique puts hotels in four groups: classic (think European), design (architecturally unique), adventure (tented camps or lodges) and resorts.


Looking in OC

There are no Orange County hotels operating under Preferred Boutique. Finding one here is a goal, Ueberroth said.

Several local hotels do fall under the hotels and resorts unit at parent Preferred, including Balboa Bay Club & Resort in Newport Beach, Montage Resort & Spa and the Surf & Sand, both in Laguna Beach.

The Preferred name “has credibility,” said George Lysak, director of sales and marketing for Balboa Bay Club.

Fees for linking with Preferred are lower than those of other hotel chains, according to Lysak.

“We get more bang for the buck,” he said.

Not any hotel can join Preferred, or the boutique arm for that matter. Some are referred. Others apply to join. All have to pass an inspection that includes about 1,200 items.

For boutiques, the checklist includes technology, bedding, room service and concierge service, as well as room features and overall style.

Preferred Boutique’s closest competitor is Britain’s Small Luxury Hotels of the World, which has 360 hotels worldwide.

Boutiques can be anything from quirky hotels to those with a specific theme or design. Typically, they have around 100 rooms.

Until recently, boutique operators mostly were small companies with a few hotels, such as Huntington Beach-based Broughton Hospitality Group or San Francisco’s Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants and Joie de Vivre Hotels.

The lines are blurring.

Kimpton has moved to develop hotels under its own name. And big hotel chains have started their own boutique brands, such as Starwood Hotels and Resorts Inc.’s W brand.

Boutique hotels make up only 1% of U.S. hotel rooms. But it’s a good time to be focused on the luxury hotels, said Milton Pedroza, chief executive of the Luxury Institute in New York.


‘Rich Experiences’

There has been a “luxury access revolution,” with the number of rich people growing worldwide, he said.

Baby boomers seeking to “collect memories and experiences” are driving the trend, Pedroza said.

“They’re looking for rich experiences,” he said.

Luxury hotels have seen room rates and occupancy grow in the first five months of this year, according to Hendersonville, Tenn.-based Smith Travel Research.

Nationwide, luxury room rates hit an average of $274, up 9% from a year earlier. Occupancy grew 3% for that period, to 72% nationally.

Luxury rates in California were flat for the first five months of the year at $282. Occupancy was 69%, up from 60% a year earlier.


Famous Name

Ueberroth said she faces a challenge: a famous name.

Uncle Peter Ueberroth is chairman of the U.S. Olympic Committee and chaired the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. He once was Major League Baseball commissioner.

Dad John Ueberroth used to be an executive with Carlson Travel Group and part owner of Hawaiian Air.

There’s always the chance people will think you didn’t earn your title, Lindsey Ueberroth said.

Her prior work,with the golf arm of Newport Beach’s Ambassadors International Inc. and at Preferred Hotel Group,also was in the family business.

Ueberroth said she doesn’t let it faze her.

“I’ve gotten over the fact that people may have preconceived notions,” Ueberroth said.

Being a Ueberroth in the hotel business brings high expectations, she said.

“I know (Preferred Boutique) has to prove what we can do with the hotels,” Ueberroth said.

The proof, she said, will be if hotels renew memberships and if Preferred Boutique continues to grow.

Ueberroth said she’s learned business lessons from her family, among them to maintain integrity, don’t be afraid to ask questions and never bad-mouth a competitor.

“I work closely with my family and I enjoy it,” she said. “I’m very proud of them.”



Lindsey Ueberroth


Position:

managing director, Preferred Boutique, Newport Beach


Age:

30


Home:

Corona del Mar


Experience:

managing director of Ambassadors Golf; regional director, Americas West, Preferred Hotel Group


Education:

bachelor’s in communications from Wake Forest University


Hobbies:

skiing, watching college basketball(especially Wake Forest), professional football (Denver Broncos are favorite). Has traveled to 70 countries, to every continent except Antarctica

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