COLUMBUS, OH—Red Roof continued to drive demand for the brand in 2018, ending the year with a 17% increase, year-over-year, in property openings across all brands including Red Roof Inn, Red Roof Plus, The Red Collection and the newly acquired extended-stay brand, HomeTowne Studios by Red Roof.
Red Roof grew 42% over the last two years. Most notably, as of Jan. 23, Red Roof has officially entered the New York City market with the expansion of The Red Collection, the brand’s upper-midscale soft brand that launched in Chicago in 2018, with one location currently open in Manhattan and two additional properties scheduled to open in Brooklyn later this year. Red Roof also expanded internationally into Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
“Red Roof continues to evolve and grow based on consumer, franchisee and investor demand, and we have truly become one of the most sought-after lodging solutions,” said Andrew Alexander, president Red Roof. “As we continue to bring to market products that cater to consumers’ evolving needs and wants, we will be well positioned for sustained profitable growth entering new markets and geographies.”
A large contributor to future brand success is Red Roof’s strategic expansion of The Red Collection to New York City. In partnership with Real Hospitality Group, the soft brand offering city-center hotels has expanded with the Lord & Moris Times Square Hotel in Manhattan and will introduce Lord & Moris Brooklyn and Artel Brooklyn this year. These new properties will join The St. Clair Hotel – Magnificent Mile in downtown Chicago and State House Inn, in downtown Springfield, IL.
Internationally, Red Roof continues to gain momentum. The company’s expansion into Calgary, Alberta, in partnership with Fans International Hospitality Group, is an indicator of the brand’s approach to global growth. A conversion of a former Travelodge hotel, the Red Roof Plus & Suites is located at Calgary Airport, targeting a new segment of business travelers with comfortable and affordable accommodations. This is the first of multiple properties that Red Roof plans to convert in Canada over the next five years.
“As our footprint expands domestically and internationally through our portfolio of brands, which now caters to travelers’ varied needs, we continue to provide franchisees with a number of opportunities to drive revenue and profitable growth,” said Phil Hugh, chief development officer, Red Roof. “Our recent entry into new markets is a true testament to our mission to provide great value accommodations to travelers around the world, and as a result, we anticipate fueling continued growth in 2019 across Red Roof Inn, Red Roof Plus, The Red Collection and HomeTowne Studios by Red Roof.”
In addition to its growing global collection of properties, Red Roof is proud of its upscale economy Plus properties and has been converting more Plus locations across the country, continuing to focus on growth west of the Mississippi, in addition to adding more franchisees to the portfolio.
Red Roof is positioned well, with a strong development management team, to capitalize on successes, including the recent hiring of Bill Hall, SVP of franchise operations. Hall will work to reach healthy financial goals and business objectives while supporting new initiatives and rollouts including the continued growth of HomeTowne Studios by Red Roof, which launched in August 2018 and now has 54 open extended-stay properties with a developing pipeline.
The brand will also continue to focus on consumer programs and promotions to leverage existing and popular initiatives such as RediCard and its hallmark pet-friendly policy to drive loyalty and bookings.
