Choice Hotels Asia-Pac CEO Trent Fraser

Trent Fraser_CEO_and_Mark Bouris 2

With a year of record development and expansion under its belt, Choice Hotels Australasia is reflecting on a job well done.

Having successfully added almost 30 new properties to its Australian portfolio in 2014, including strategically-located properties in Sydney, Brisbane, Townsville, Hervey Bay, Perth and Fremantle, Choice Hotels has gone from strength to strength in the past 12 months.

Eight new properties have joined the Choice Hotels Ascend Hotel Collection this year, including: the Balgownie Estate Resort in Victoria’s Yarra Valley, the Oceans Resort Hervey Bay and The Kingsford in Brisbane.

International expansion was also on the menu in 2014 with Choice Hotels Australasia signing an historic development agreement with Hangzhou-based Boli Hotel Management Co., Limited to develop and operate an anticipated 30 hotels in China.

Construction of the first new Clarion build is underway in Hangzhou, one of China’s most popular tourist destinations, with plans to move ahead and deliver the remaining 29 properties in additional cities across the region by 2021.

At the conclusion of such a successful 2014, Choice’s Chief Executive Officer, Trent Fraser, said he was excited to see the Choice Hotels business continuing to expand and grow.

“2014 has been a bumper year for Choice Hotels and it is one we are all very proud of. Everyone throughout the group has gone above and beyond to ensure all our targets were met and achieved. The challenge now is to continue our rapid growth into 2015 and it’s one I’m confident we can all achieve together,” he said.

As well as attracting new properties to the group in 2014, one of Choice Hotels’ key goals was to ensure it continued to assist existing properties to grow and develop. From new and innovative sales and marketing initiatives through to evolving technological systems such as ChoiceADVANTAGE, Choice Hotels proprietary property management system and RateCenter, a system where properties can easily manage their rates; Choice Hotels has continued to put its franchisees first, ensuring their properties continue to experience great results.

The Choice Privileges loyalty program has also reached new heights this year with the total number of members in the Australasian region now exceeding 200,000 – almost double the number of members in the program at the same time last year.

With 20 million members globally, the Choice Privileges program has driven significant revenue for all properties throughout 2014, with member stays increasing by more than 30% year on year.

Business expansion has also led to an inevitable labour expansion, with Choice Hotels adding a number of highly experienced and talented team members across its Australasian business throughout the year.

The group’s latest recruits include: Tania Graves, sales manager for Western Australia and South Australia, Bree Mansell, communications coordinator, Daniel Kitch, general manager of development, Todd Morgan, sales executive for New South Wales and 25 new staff across Victoria and New South Wales.

James Wilkinson

Editor-In-Chief, Hotel Management