Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.® (NYSE:HOT) today announced its rapidly growing Aloft brand will debut in Wichita, Kansas in January 2017. Owned by Lake Charles Lodging, LLC, Aloft Wichita Northeast will feature 127 loft-like rooms, a buzzing social scene and innovative brand-led programming in growing and vibrant Ventures Business Park, directly adjacent to the global headquarters for Koch Industries.
“Aloft Wichita Northeast will provide travelers with a fresh, innovative lodging option at the heart of the city’s thriving northeast corridor,” said Brian McGuinness, Senior Vice President, Specialty Select Brands for Starwood. “The fastest growing brand in the history of hospitality, Aloft delivers distinctive design, accessible technologies and buzzing social atmosphere.”
Aloft Wichita Northeast will help meet the demand for high-caliber lodging generated by the city’s fast-growing business district. Situated next to the 1.2 million square-foot global headquarters of Koch Industries, the new Aloft will be just minutes from downtown Wichita, Wichita State University and Starwood’s Wichita Customer Contact Center. The hotel will also be convenient to McConnell Airforce Base, Cessna Aircraft Co., Spirit Aerospace, Bombardier Learjet and the shops and restaurants at Towne East Square and Bradley Fair Shopping Center.
Hotel facilities will include an outdoor Splash pool, a 24-hour fitness center, 3,736 square feet of flexible meeting space, re:fuel at Aloft – a one-stop gourmet grab & go food and beverage area, and the brand’s signature W XYZ bar where guests can enjoy a refreshing cocktail and catch the latest up-and-coming music acts as part of the brand’s signature Live At Aloft Hotels music series.
“We look forward to opening our first Aloft in Wichita as the brand continues to gain momentum in dynamic destinations throughout North America,” said Allison Reid, Senior Vice President of North America Development, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. “Aloft is enjoying tremendous success with the next generation of travelers and is rapidly closing in the 100th hotel milestone.”
The Aloft brand’s innovative and exclusive initiatives set it apart from the competition. Aloft Hotels recently announced the launch of SPG Keyless—an evolution of Aloft’s Smart Check-in— the hospitality industry’s first mobile, keyless entry system allowing guests to use their smart phone as a key. The technology is rolling out to all Aloft, Element and W Hotels Worldwide by year’s end. This forward-thinking initiative is part of the brand’s innovative DNA. Additionally, every Aloft Hotel around the world offers live, free access to local emerging artists and some of the hottest bands with Live at Aloft Hotels programming at the W XYZ® bars.
Aloft remains the fastest growing brand in the history of hospitality with nearly 100 hotels in 15 countries. On track to open its milestone 100th hotel later this year, the brand boasts the company’s second largest pipeline. Fueled by accelerating demand in dynamic markets worldwide, Aloft continues to enter new markets including Munich and Stuttgart, Germany as well as expand its portfolio in Greater China to ten hotels by year’s end.
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About Aloft Hotels
With 100 hotels soon open in 15 countries around the world, Starwood’s Aloft brand delivers a fresh approach to the traditional staid hotel landscape. For the ‘always on’ next generation of traveler, the Aloft brand offers a tech-forward, vibrant experience and a modern style that is different by design. For more information, please visit www.alofthotels.com. Aloft, like all brands within Starwood’s portfolio, is proud to offer the Starwood Preferred Guest® program, the industry’s richest loyalty program. To learn more, please visit www.spg.com.
About Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. is one of the leading hotel and leisure companies in the world with more than 1,200 properties in some 100 countries and over 180,000 employees at its owned and managed properties. Starwood is a fully integrated owner, operator and franchisor of hotels, resorts and residences with the following internationally renowned brands: St. Regis®, The Luxury Collection®, W®, Westin®, Le Méridien®, Sheraton®, Four Points® by Sheraton, Aloft®, element® and the recently introduced Tribute Portfolio™. The Company boasts one of the industry’s leading loyalty programs, Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG®), allowing members to earn and redeem points for room stays, room upgrades and flights, with no blackout dates. Starwood recently announced plans to spin off its Starwood Vacation Ownership, Inc. business, a premier provider of world-class vacation experiences through villa-style resorts and privileged access to Starwood brands, into a standalone public company by the end of 2015. For more information, please visit www.starwoodhotels.com.
About Lake Charles Lodging, LLC
Lake Charles Lodging, LLC is wholly owned by Great Plains Ventures, Inc, a Wichita, Kansas based holding company whose assets include Aerospace Systems and Components, Great Plains Industries, Inc., PowderTech, LLC., and Ventures Business Park. “We are excited to bring such a quality, exciting and relevant brand to Wichita. I can only imagine how dynamic this area will be once the available land adjacent to the hotel is developed with quality retail and restaurants too” says Marque Peer, Vice-President of Development of GPV.