Best Western Hotels & Resorts will add another brand to the fray, BW Signature Collection by Best Western, its 11th.
The brand joins the company’s other soft brands like upper economy SureStay and upper upscale BW Premier Collection.
But according to Best Western President and CEO David Kong, there was room to grow in upper midscale, BW Signature’s sector.
“We saw an opportunity here and, based on increasing demand for soft brands from independent hoteliers who are hungry to succeed but maintain their own distinctive identity, we believe we will be successful,” Kong said Monday.
The first two hotels to sign on for the collection are Killington Mountain Lodge in Killington, Vermont and Brooklyn Way Hotel in Brooklyn, New York. Despite the early U.S. showing, Kong emphasized that the brand would be an international one.
To qualify, properties must maintain a TripAdvisor score of at least 4.0 (a move which Kong described as “key” to the brand’s success) and meet other standards, as well. The company anticipates 100 hotels in the pipeline by 2020.