Dive Brief:
- New York City-based hotel management, investment and development firm Highgate has formed a strategic alliance with Orlando, Florida-based hospitality company The Kessler Collection to create Kessler Hospitality, a luxury and lifestyle management division, the companies jointly announced Wednesday.
- Kessler’s property-level employees and corporate leaders will transition under the Highgate division, which will assume management of several Kessler Collection properties, per a news release.
- Both companies said the partnership is designed to “unlock new growth in the luxury and lifestyle” segment, which Highgate Principal Richard Russo said in the release was an increasingly “important area of hospitality.”
Dive Insight:
Through the partnership, Highgate will manage Kessler’s Casa Monica Resort & Spa in St. Augustine, Florida; the JW Marriott Savannah Plant Riverside District in Savannah, Georgia; and the Grand Bohemian Lodge Greenville in South Carolina.
Highgate adds the hotels to its existing portfolio of luxury and lifestyle properties. Last year, the firm operated more than 8,100 rooms in the luxury and lifestyle segment, with another 1,500 keys under development.
“By combining Kessler’s creativity and design-forward sensibility with Highgate’s investment acumen and operational expertise, we’re creating meaningful long-term value for these exceptional assets and setting a new standard for performance in the luxury and lifestyle space,” said Russo.
The newly created division will “align with each organization’s unique objectives and amplify their strengths, unlocking enduring value,” Russo added.
Both Highgate and Kessler have a long history of operating in the luxury and lifestyle space. The Kessler Collection, offering artistically designed boutique hotels, was the founding member of the Marriott Autograph Collection, per the release.
The companies join a list of other hospitality players growing their luxury and lifestyle portfolios. Marriott International and IHG Hotels & Resorts expanded in the segment as recently as last month.
