Red Lion Hotels Corporation , doing business as RLH Corporation , is an American hospitality corporation that primarily engages in the franchising, management and ownership of upscale, mid-scale and economy hotels. Red Lion, headquartered in Denver , Colorado , has 90,000 rooms across more than 1,400 properties (as of May 2018) in North America.
41-586: Red Lion Hotels is a full-service, midscale hotel brand owned by Red Lion Hotels Corporation . Red Lion competes in the moderate-priced, full-service segment of the lodging industry, along with Holiday Inn , Ramada . Its complementary brand, Red Lion Inn & Suites competes in the moderate-priced limited-service segment of the lodging industry, along with Holiday Inn Express , Comfort Inn , and La Quinta Inns & Suites . They have 53 hotels in their system with 12,344 total rooms, and 712,687 square feet of meeting space. Red Lion Hotels' roots began in 1959 in
82-843: A $ 40 million "rejuvenation project" for the rest of the chain. The following year WestCoast Hospitality changed its name to Red Lion Hotels Corporation , part of its effort to emphasize a renewed focus on the Red Lion brand. Red Lion hotels are currently located in Arizona , California , Colorado , Connecticut , Florida , Idaho , Maryland , Michigan , Mississippi , Missouri , Montana , Nevada , New Mexico , Ohio , Oregon , Pennsylvania , Utah , Washington , Wisconsin , as well as British Columbia in Canada. This includes approximately 30 company-owned and 17 franchised properties. The majority of these are full-service properties, though there are
123-438: A 40-year hotel, weighed against potential revenues that would be generated by a redevelopment of the site, as its reason for closing the inn. The motel was demolished in 2002, clearing land for redevelopment, however, at the time of its demolition, it was unknown what the site would become, and as of December 2020, the site is still owned by Aegean and remains vacant. In 1984, Ed Pietz was ready to sell, so McClaskey and Pietz sold
164-516: A brief time, before transitioning into real estate development. In July 1995, Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts & Co. took Red Lion Hotels, Inc. public , with the stock ticker RL, at an initial stock price of $ 19 per share. On September 13, 1996, Red Lion Hotels, Inc., still based in the Portland area in Vancouver, entered into an agreement to be acquired by then-Phoenix based Doubletree Corp. in
205-472: A cash and stock deal worth $ 1.2 billion. At the time of the merger's closing on November 8, 1996, Red Lion had 56 properties, about half of which were company-owned. Doubletree acquired Red Lion to strengthen its footprint in the upscale hotel market and compete with other upscale brands like Marriott , Hilton , Sheraton , and Hyatt Therefore, it rebranded most of Red Lion's properties, a majority of which were upscale, full-service hotels as Doubletree Hotels,
246-650: A full-service Red Lion Hotel, which offer restaurant and banquet meeting space; a limited-service Red Lion Inn & Suites; or under the Leo Hotel Collection, for unique, boutique, or historic hotels. The Las Vegas Hotel & Casino was the first hotel to join the Leo Collection in February 2013. RLHC operates a loyalty program called Hello Rewards with support provided within a mobile app provided by Monscierge. Each qualifying stay will earn
287-517: A growing number of limited-service locations. In 2006 Red Lion Hotels announced plans to double the number of properties under the Red Lion brand within five years through acquisitions in Texas, California and Nevada and a gradual eastward expansion. However, by 2009 the chain had only managed to increase its holdings by two hotels. Between 2007 and 2008 parent company Red Lion Hotels Corporation lost one-third of its market value and subsequently instituted
328-570: A limited liability partnership with the Burlington Northern Railroad on a four-acre plot of land, then-utilized as a coal storage yard, that the railroad owned but no longer needed, in part because of the urban transformation and redevelopment of Spokane's riverfront for Expo '74 . Goodale & Barbieri eventually created a brand name for the company's hotel operations, launching the Cavanaughs brand in 1980. By 1987,
369-526: A process that was decided through individual vetting of each property. Mid-scale operations remained under the Red Lion banner. By the time Doubletree would go on to merge with Promus Hotel Corporation in December 1997, only 19 hotels remained under the Red Lion name. Promus Hotel Corporation recognized the equity of the Red Lion brand in the Pacific Northwest (in a consumer study, Red Lion had
410-572: A regional office along with the former headquarters of Vantage Hospitality in Coral Springs, Florida. On August 17, 2017, RLHC announced it had sold its TicketsWest business to Paciolan, a ticketing business which is owned by Learfield . On April 4, 2018, RLHC announced it had reached an agreement with Wyndham Worldwide to acquire the Knights Inn brand for $ 27 million. The transaction closed on May 14, 2018. On December 30, 2020, it
451-657: A separate company. The spun-off company was reestablished as Goodale & Barbieri Company, a nod to its historical past, and as of 2020, remains based in Spokane and led by members of the Barbieri family. In mid-2008, Columbia Pacific Opportunity Fund, an investment manager for the Baty family, the Seattle founders of Emeritus Corporation , submitted an unsolicited acquisition offer of $ 9.50 per share to acquire Red Lion. At
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#1732772487024492-520: A very small footprint. With the brand realignment, RLHC also subdivided its economy segment into three tiers – upper economy, economy, and lower economy – and promoted its existing GuestHouse brand to the upper economy segment. The retired Vantage brands and properties were reorganized into an RLHC-owned entity called the Stays Inns Collection. To reflect its growing portfolio of brands beyond its eponymously named Red Lion Hotels chain,
533-421: A wage freeze and five percent pay reduction for salaried employees. In a 2008 interview, CEO Anupam Narayan stated he expected the chain to lose six properties by the end of that year; franchises that did not commit to a required remodel program. In early 2014 Red Lion Hotels Corp shifted the company focus away from the financial struggles of the market to the operation of the hotels under the Red Lion banner. This
574-474: The Hampton Inn brand it had also acquired from Promus. As a result, in 2001, Hilton announced it would sell the Red Lion brand to Spokane, Washington -based WestCoast Hospitality. By the time of the sale, the chain had rebounded to 42 hotels, 22 of which were franchises. Seeking to revitalize some of its aging properties, in 2004 WestCoast Hospitality announced plans to sell 11 company-owned hotels to fund
615-557: The Moda Center , opened in 1995 and would become part of the larger Rose Quarter sports and entertainment district. The motor inn's proximity to the new district greatly increased its redevelopment potential. Allen's company continued to own and operate the motel, then known as the Red Lion Inn Coliseum, until it was permanently closed on October 31, 2001. Aegean, cited the extraordinary maintenance costs of operating
656-711: The Portland metropolitan area by two local business partners, Tod McClaskey and Ed Pietz. The two had met at McClaskey's first business, the Frontier Room, in Vancouver , Washington and went on to purchase the 89-room Thunderbird Motor Inn in Portland , Oregon, located along the Willamette River , at the east end of Portland's Broadway Bridge , across the street from the Memorial Coliseum . It
697-461: The "most innovative rewards program yet" that will provide "a personalized experience with every reservation and hotel stay". Red Lion Hotels Corporation Red Lion Hotels Corporation's roots can be traced back to Spokane, Washington in 1937 when the property management division of Washington Trust Bank , then known as The Washington Trust Company, was established and led by a man named Frank M. Goodale. Goodale quickly hired Louis Barbieri, who
738-536: The Red Lion brand. At that point, they branded their motels under the Thunderbird name, and their full-service hotels under the Red Lion name. By the time the pair sold the company in 1984, the chain had grown to over 50 properties. The original Thunderbird Motor Inn motel remained operating under the Thunderbird/Red Lion brand throughout its entire history, ultimately growing to 212 rooms, despite
779-566: The Red Lion company and brand being sold numerous times through the 1980s and 1990s. The original motel would eventually land in the hands of Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen 's Aegean Development Company, which purchased it on November 1, 1992 for $ 5 million. Allen had purchased the Portland Trail Blazers of the NBA several years prior and was planning a new arena next to the existing Memorial Coliseum. The new arena, known today as
820-691: The campaign was recognized with an Adrian Award by the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI). In February 2008 Red Lion announced it had revamped and renamed "GuestAwards", its customer loyalty program. The newly debuted "Red Lion R&R Club" featured lower point redemption thresholds. In May 2014, the company announced it was changing its rewards program, and no longer issuing points. They began announcing in August 2013 their rewards program, called "Hello Rewards". The announcement offered little in details, but claimed to be
861-512: The chain—which had grown to 52 properties—to Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts & Co. for a reported $ 600 million. At the time of the sale, the company had a footprint stretching across eight states and employed 11,000 workers, becoming the largest privately owned hotel chain west of the Mississippi River . McClaskey stayed on with Red Lion as its CEO until his retirement in 1989, while Pietz would go on to operate Raffle Hotels and Inns for
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#1732772487024902-501: The company established a computerized event ticketing company, G&B Select A Seat, which is now known as TicketsWest. In 1991, the company briefly ventured into food production, purchasing a local Spokane dairy, Broadview Dairy, out of bankruptcy and operating it until its closure in 1997. Preparing for an initial public offering , Goodale & Barbieri Companies adopted its hotel brand into its corporate identity in 1997, changing its name to Cavanaughs Hospitality Corporation. The IPO
943-484: The company in 1959, he maintained the company's name. The company focused primarily on commercial real estate and development, but expanded into housing in 1972. In 1976, Goodale & Barbieri launched its hospitality division, constructing and opening its first hotel near present-day Riverfront Park . The hotel, originally called the TraveLodge River Inn (unrelated to Travelodge), was constructed in
984-418: The company quietly rebranded itself as RLH Corporation around July 2017, though still maintaining its legal name of Red Lion Hotels Corporation. In conjunction with this, the company also began using a new logo that could be best described as an evolution to the old logo, rather than a wholesale rebranding. The revised logo largely maintained the fonts, colors, and design language of its former logo, but removed
1025-792: The company's footprint to every Western state, except New Mexico, and grew its portfolio to nearly 90 hotels and 15,000 rooms. Capitalizing on the Red Lion brand, a majority of the company's WestCoast Hotels properties were rebranded to the Red Lion name within the two years following the acquisition. In September 2005, further realizing the revitalization of the Red Lion name, WestCoast Hospitality Corporation assumed its present-day name, Red Lion Hotels Corporation and changed its stock ticker to RLH. It also announced its ambitions to double in size from 50 markets to 100 markets by 2010 through company-owned, joint venture, and franchised hotel openings. In April 2006, RLHC divested its real estate management business, G&B Real Estate Services, spinning it off into
1066-465: The flexibility to move between brands. In addition to retiring the Vantage name, the announcement eliminated five of the nine Vantage brands – keeping only Signature Inn, Americas Best Value Inn, Canadas Best Value Inn, and Country Hearth Inn & Suites. All five of Red Lion's pre-acquisition brands were maintained. The eliminated Vantage brands competed directly with Red Lion's existing brands or had
1107-687: The full service category, alongside sister chain Hilton Hotels & Resorts . Among the many signature things that DoubleTree is known for are their chocolate chip cookies , which were originally made in the early 1980s for VIPs but now given to all guests and made by Nashville -based Christie Cookie Company for over 30 years. In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic the brand published a home-adapted recipe for their cookies. The first DoubleTree hotel opened in Scottsdale, Arizona , in 1969. It
1148-544: The guest 10 Hello Bucks, which can be used towards future stays with no blackouts. DoubleTree DoubleTree by Hilton is an American hotel chain managed by Hilton Worldwide . DoubleTree has been the fastest growing Hilton brand by number of properties since 2007, and by number of rooms from 2007 to 2015. As of December 2019 , it has 587 properties with 135,745 rooms in 47 countries and territories, including 122 that are managed with 35,122 rooms and 465 that are franchised with 100,623 rooms. DoubleTree competes in
1189-468: The highest brand recognition in the region). In May 1999, Promus moved forward on a plan to relaunch the fledging Red Lion brand in the mid-scale market and grow it to over 100 properties by 2004. The revival plan included transitioning nine properties from the Doubletree brand back to the Red Lion brand, and opening up the brand name to franchising. However, Promus never had the opportunity to complete
1230-613: The launch of its new stock ticker and announced plans to rebrand its hotels into the WestCoast name. In addition to the expanded hotel portfolio following the acquisition of WestCoast, the company also announced plans to franchise properties under its brand. By 2001, the company grew again; this time by announcing it would acquire the Red Lion Hotels brand and properties (along with several other DoubleTree properties) from Hilton Hotels . The $ 51 million acquisition expanded
1271-433: The revival. In the fall of 1999, Hilton announced it would acquire Promus, along with its brands that included Red Lion. While Hilton initially intended to continue with Promus' plan to reestablish the Red Lion brand in the west, the brand, now positioned in the mid-scale hotel market, ultimately became a misfit with Hilton's customer base and portfolio, which already had other mid-scale brands such as Hilton Garden Inn , and
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1312-1063: The share price increased significantly, Red Lion removed its poison pill. Growth of its hotel operations continued into the 2010 decade. In October 2014, RLHC announced a new upscale conversion brand, Hotel RL. In April 2015, RLHC acquired GuestHouse International, LLC and its two brands, GuestHouse International and Settle Inn & Suites, from Boomerang Hotels in a deal with up to $ 10 million. The acquisition more than doubled Red Lion's size from 57 properties to 130 properties and added 5,187 rooms to its portfolio. In September 2016, RLHC acquired Vantage Hospitality Group and its brands Vantage Hotels, Americas Best Value Inn, Canadas Best Value Inn, Lexington by Vantage, America's Best Inns and Suites, Country Hearth Inns, Jameson Inns , Signature Inn, and 3 Palms Hotels & Resorts. Following up on its acquisition of Vantage and its nine brands, RLHC pared down its brand lineup and positioning in May 2017 to eliminate market position overlaps and provide its franchisees
1353-399: The time, Columbia Pacific held 12.7 percent of Red Lion. By October, Columbia Pacific had withdrawn its offer and, shortly thereafter, the Red Lion board of directors enacted a poison pill plan, drawing the ire of Columbia Pacific which stated its belief that Red Lion should be liquidated because company-owned assets were in "excess of Red Lion's market capitalization". Later that year, after
1394-546: The umbrella of the newly renamed Hilton Worldwide. In October 2010, Hilton Worldwide launched a logo and name rebranding for the chain, replacing the name "DoubleTree" with "DoubleTree by Hilton". DoubleTree's strategy to grow the brand has been to convince operators of other brands to switch flags. This is in contrast to brands like Marriott or Sheraton , prior to its acquisition, which rely on new construction to grow their footprint. DoubleTree also provides lower cost options to improve properties, which help operators remain in
1435-629: The words "Red Lion Hotels" and placed a visual emphasis on the "RLH" acronym that was present in its former logo by enlarging and thickening the font, as well as enlarging and darkening the red square that the acronym resides in. As a result of its acquisition of Vantage Hospitality, which transformed the company's footprint from regional to national, Red Lion Hotels Corporation moved its corporate headquarters from Spokane to Denver , Colorado , in August 2017, to be more centrally located to its franchisees, partners, vendors, and two regional offices. The former headquarters office in Spokane will be maintained as
1476-414: Was announced RLHC would be acquired by Sonesta International Hotels Corporation. The acquisition was finalized on March 17, 2021. Red Lion Hotels Corporation operates six hotel brands within the following market segments: The Franchise Segment licenses the Red Lion brand to third-party hotel owners. As of 2009, there were approximately 17 franchised Red Lion hotels. Hotel owners can franchise as either
1517-520: Was completed in April 1998, and Cavanaughs began trading under the ticker CVH. By the end of 1999, Cavanaughs announced it would acquire its regional rival, Seattle -based WestCoast Hotels, Inc. with transaction closing on January 7, 2000. On March 1, 2000, the combined company began trading under the new ticker, WEH. Recognizing the broader geographic reach of the WestCoast name, Cavanaughs also changed its name to WestCoast Hospitality Corporation with
1558-538: Was due to a stabilization in the hospitality market following the economic downturn of 2007. The new CEO of the company coming from over 25 years in the hospitality industry wanted to focus more on providing a high quality brand for guests of the corporation. In 2004 Red Lion launched a major advertising campaign under the tag line "Stay Comfortable". Featuring a cartoon lion caricature, the campaign included full-page ads in daily newspapers in nine U.S. cities, as well as regional editions of USA Today . Created by ISM Boston,
1599-442: Was from nearby De Smet, Idaho and a recent business degree graduate from Gonzaga University , to work under him. Frank Goodale purchased the property management business from Washington Trust in 1944 and kept Barbieri on as an employee. By the mid-1950s, Barbieri was elevated to a partner in the business, and the company formally became known as Goodale & Barbieri Companies. Though Barbieri went on to buy out Goodale's share in
1640-820: Was located on the grounds of Scottsdale Fashion Square and was built by Sam Kitchell. The DoubleTree Hotels Corporation merged with the Guest Quarters Hotels Partnership of Boston in December 1993. The acquired hotels were rebranded under the DoubleTree name. The Doubletree Corporation later merged with the Promus Hotel Corporation in December 1997, bringing together the DoubleTree, Red Lion , Hampton Inn , and Embassy Suites brands. In December 1999, Hilton Hotels Corporation acquired Promus Hotel Corporation, which brought Doubletree Hotels and other Promus hotel brands under
1681-556: Was the first property in what was initially called Thunderbird-Red Lion Inns. McClaskey's business background and Pietz's construction background allowed the hotel company to grow rather quickly and the two continued constructing and acquiring motels in the Western United States under the Thunderbird name, until they ran into a situation in Medford , Oregon where a Thunderbird already existed, at which point they launched