When Matt Marquis joined his father’s company, Santa Barbara-based Invest West Financial Corp., two decades ago, Dale Marquis realized that his eldest child may have started a trend.
It’s an epiphany that many family-owned businesses go through, according to Adam Marquis, the second-eldest child and now president of Pacifica Hotels, the hospitality operating company that was spun off by Invest West in 1993 and moved its headquarters to Aliso Viejo in 2017.
“That ‘aha’ moment is different for each company, but for us, it started with my brother, and I think it caused my dad to think, ‘oh, I have a family business now,’” Adam Marquis told the Business Journal.
Matt Marquis is now chief executive of Pacifica, a company that all five of Dale’s children are involved in.
Seventeen, soon to be 18, prospective leaders, aka grandchildren, are in the pipeline.
Pacifica Hotels’ pipeline isn’t too shabby, either.
It has the largest hotel portfolio by total properties—40—of any Orange County-based operator.
Hotels under the company’s umbrella largely run along the coast from San Diego to the San Francisco Bay area, along with locations in Hawaii.
Pacifica has 1,700 employees and annual revenues of $230 million from its portfolio of 40 managed and owned hotels; a figure it hopes to nearly double in the next 10 years.
The company was honored at the Business Journal’s 20th Family-Owned Business Awards at Hotel Irvine on June 4; it was recognized in the Large Business category (see other profiles, pages 1, 16, and 19).
Outside Experience Required
While Dale, 77, didn’t exactly predict this level of family involvement, he fostered it.
He met with a family business adviser to set up a family constitution for the company that included guidelines for compensation, the board, and details about family values.
“It has been a really helpful guide for us,” Adam, 40, said. “It also encourages us to get at least five years of outside experience, which has helped us make sure we are bringing a skill set to the table, and can really contribute.”
The three brothers explored different industries before joining Pacifica: Matt worked on Wall Street, Adam worked for hospitality firms like PKF Consulting and Hyatt Hotels and Resorts, while Executive Vice President Chris Marquis, 37, worked in commercial real estate.
The remaining two siblings, Chad Marquis and Michelle Gardner, are shareholders and board members in the company.
“The five of us get together for a retreat every year to go over the business, what our vision is, and how we want to get the next generation involved,” said Adam, who was promoted to president in January.
The Business Journal got a glimpse of that engagement strategy earlier this month; the second eldest grandchild sat in during an interview with Adam and Chris; he has a summer internship with Pacifica.
Dale is still involved with the company as chairman, but he has been ceding his ownership to the next generation, who are now responsible to continue the company’s growth trajectory.
Growth Plans
The hotel company’s ambitious growth plans for the next decade focuses on a trio of key strategies: continue to acquire and improve underperforming hotel assets, expand its third-party management platform, and grow two new hotel brands.
Pacifica owns 28 hotels and manages 12 through its third-party management platform, a business line that has “significantly grown in the past few years.”
The bulk of the company’s assets are in California and Hawaii.
In February, the company closed on its first OC property in five years: a $25.5 million buy of the Residence Inn by Marriott Anaheim Hills Yorba Linda, a 128-room select-service hotel.
Notable hotels in its portfolio include the La Jolla Cove Hotel & Suites in San Diego, Santa Monica’s Georgian Hotel, and a collection of boutique properties in the Central Coast town of Cambria, near Hearst Castle.
The company markets its properties to a variety of audiences, from wine lovers, to hardcore surfers, as well as business travelers.
National Reach
Its portfolio may soon become a bit more spread out: Pacifica is eyeing properties across the nation as part of its growth strategy.
“We are looking beyond California as we’ve grown in capabilities,” said Chris, who was promoted to executive vice president of investments and acquisitions earlier this year. “Right now, we are looking at a few acquisitions in Texas and Pennsylvania.”
A large part of the company’s planned growth is centered on the company’s two independent hotel brands: Wayfarer and The Kinney.
The first Wayfarer hotel launched in 2014 and the second is slated to open this fall in downtown Los Angeles with the renovation of the city’s Milner Hotel.
The Wayfarer concept combines traditional hotel rooms with dorm-style guest rooms and communal amenities.
The Kinney brand is what Adam describes as an added-value concept that is implemented to certain select-service hotels in the company’s existing portfolio after a renovation.
“We are putting more of a focus on complementing the look and feel of our hotels with the amenities that hotel customers want,” Chris said.
Food and beverage revenues, for example, have been on the climb in the past several years as Pacifica paid closer attention to the full-service and fast-casual restaurant options in its portfolio.
“Revenues for F&B are now north of $30 million, when ten years ago they were pretty nonexistent,” Chris said.
Extracurricular
Pacifica is also working on expanding its charitable portfolio, donating hotel experiences to foundations and schools.
It has previously worked with Kids Helping Kids, the Alzheimer’s Family Center and the OC Veterans Initiative, to name a few.
Dale and his children can also be found giving talks on family business at universities and industry conferences.
“Our father has done a great job as the sole proprietor, and we are all really excited for the future of the company,” Adam said.
