Carlson commits more than $1 billion to Radisson growth

Carlson president and CEO Hubert Joly

Orlando—Carlson Hotels has ambitions, and one of its priorities is to position Radisson as a shining star.

Over the past two years, Carlson Hotels has quietly shifted its leadership and business focus. Under president and CEO Hubert Joly, the company sold its cruise segment in 2008 and its marketing segment in 2009, paving the way for a focus on its core businesses of hotels, restaurants and travel.

At the 2010 Carlson Global Business Conference this week in Orlando, Joly outlined what he called “Ambition 2015,” a multi-pronged strategy to achieve the following: To become known as “a vibrant, innovative hotel company;” to be the No. 1 hotel company to work for; to be the No. 1 hotel company to invest in; and to grow the global portfolio at least 50 percent by 2015.

“This is going to be a journey,” Joly said. “We have defined what to do. We are well on the way to defining how to do it. We’re going to be focused on progress. It’s a journey we’re going to navigate together.”

The company’s largest brand, Radisson, is at the center of Ambition 2015. “We want to expand Radisson as a powerful, globally consistent, first-class brand,” Joly said. “That is the piece de resistance of the strategy.”

To do that, the company will commit more than $1 billion to the brand in North America alone.

Up to $700 million of that sum will go toward establishing flagship Radisson properties in key U.S. gateway cities, with the first one to be announced this year. The company also plans to invest in renovations at franchised and corporate-owned properties, sales and marketing, technology and revenue optimization.

Today, 422 Radissons are in operation around the world, and 90 are in the contracted pipeline. Of those, 276 are franchised, 176 are managed by the company and 60 are owned by the company.

“The key is to have the right mix,” Joly said. “We’re going to continue to franchise, manage and own.”

Part of the Radisson strategy that franchisees will learn more about as the conference progresses are product innovations: The company has five new model rooms that showcase “vibrant, contemporary design, use of bold colors and lighting, and a very comfortable sense,” Joly said.

Also, two new restaurant concepts are part of the package.

The service innovations will address what Joly called “travel empathy,” and enhance the guest experience. “We know how painful travel can be,” he said. “The hotel is the only part of the travel process where you have a chance of being treated like a human being. The hospitality world has meaning. For us, we translate that into travel empathy. Our strategy is focused on developing this travel empathy. This is a guest-centric strategy.”

Additional conference coverage:
Carlson: Most U.S. Radissons will be upper-upscale

News releases:
Radisson to expand as a powerful, globally consistent, first-class brand
Carlson Hotels unveils 'Ambition 2015' strategy