Dive Brief:
- Saddlebrook Equity and Management, the Doggett family office, acquired the 232-key St. Regis Houston in Texas, according to a press release obtained by Hotel Dive. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
- The luxury hotel will be renamed The Houston Grand Hotel — River Oaks, following the acquisition, and will undergo an “expansive, top-to-bottom renovation of all guest rooms, public spaces, and culinary venues,” per the release.
- Located in the River Oaks neighborhood of Houston, the hotel is central to the area’s luxury boutiques and fine dining on Post Oak Boulevard and close to The Galleria and the Texas Medical Center. The hotel will maintain its global affiliation with Marriott International, relaunching as a flagship member of The Luxury Collection.
Dive Insight:
The acquisition aligns with a continued investor appetite for luxury hotel assets, which has been supported by the Federal Reserve’s decision to cut interest rates last year. JLL previously reported that investors would keep their focus on luxury hotels in 2026 due to a bifurcation that has seen high-net-worth wealth grow while middle-class wealth has contracted.
But this particular acquisition was personal for Doggett Industries Founder and CEO Leslie Doggett and his wife, Ann: The couple, local to the Houston area, spent their wedding night at the property in 1984, two years after the hotel debuted, per the release.
“We are determined to curate a guest experience that is unparalleled in the city,” Leslie Doggett, who is also founder and CEO of Saddlebrook, said in the release. “Our vision is to restore the ‘familiar and grandest hotel’ of Houston hospitality to her former glory, blending world-class service with family-friendly warmth and attentiveness often unique to family-owned enterprises. We will bring back the soul of the classic hotel experience.”
HEI Hotels & Resorts has contracted with Saddlebrook to manage the hotel, per the release. HEI currently operates more than 100 luxury, upper-upscale and upscale independent and branded hotels and resorts in the U.S.
The renovations will include a complete redesign of the guest rooms and suites, a reimagined lobby and the debut of new food and beverage concepts designed to serve both business and luxury travelers. In addition, there will be significant upgrades to meetings and events spaces, as well as an upgraded fitness center with an F1 simulator. The hotel will also introduce custom coffee blends and a whiskey, martini and brandy bar.
“The upcoming refurbishments will be transformative,” Brian McConn, president of Saddlebrook, said in the release. “It is an all-hands-on-deck effort to create a spectacularly reimagined, yet comfortably familiar, destination at the intersection of River Oaks and Post Oak.”
