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FEATURE PROFILE: Feature from the FALL 2024 ISSUE of STAY Magazine
News
Wyndham enters upscale extended stay with WaterWalk
Wyndham Hotels & Resorts has expanded into the upscale extended stay segment, launching a strategic relationship with industry innovator WaterWalk.
The deal adds 11 hotels and over 1,500 rooms to the Wyndham ecosystem, rebranding them under the newly created WaterWalk Extended Stay by Wyndham brand, the 25th in Wyndham’s portfolio. Located in key markets such as Tucson, Jacksonville and Wichita, the offerings perfectly compliment Wyndham’s existing economy and midscale extended stay brands and cater to guests seeking a local, yet elevated stay with the comforts of home.
WaterWalk was founded by the late Jack DeBoer, an extended-stay trailblazer who not only pioneered the segment but created some of its most well-known and successful brands, including among others, Residence Inn and Candlewood Suites. A wildly successful entrepreneur and industry visionary, he created WaterWalk in 2014, leveraging the learnings of his past successes while also reimagining what an extended stay hotel could be. Today, his leadership, vision and entrepreneurial spirit live on through his granddaughter, WaterWalk CEO, Mimi Oliver.
Positioned squarely in the upscale segment, WaterWalk brings a fresh take to the traditional extended stay experience with its unique LIVE|STAY model. STAY units are fully furnished and cater to guests looking for a traditional extended-stay, residential-like experience, while LIVE units are unfurnished and allow guests to create a long-term space that truly feels like home. The flexibility of the model is one of the brand’s strategic assets as units can transform and adapt in real-time to market and customer needs—benefitting owners, operators and guests alike.
WaterWalk’s current portfolio consists of 11 hotels throughout the U.S. Newer hotels leverage the brand’s Gen 2.0 prototype, which combines efficient design and low operating costs to help unlock stronger profits and higher returns.
WaterWalk marks Wyndham’s third extended stay brand, joining ECHO SuitesSM Extended Stay by Wyndham and Hawthorn Extended Stay by Wyndham. ECHO Suites launched in 2022 and has over 265 economy new construction hotels in its development pipeline, half a dozen of which are nearing completion. Hawthorn in 2023 saw 30 per cent growth in its midscale conversion and new construction development pipeline.
Collectively, the three brands give the Company a growing portfolio of offerings designed for the needs of today’s extended stay guests—be that construction workers hitting the road for weeks at a time or digital nomads looking to mix business and leisure travel. With the addition of WaterWalk, the portfolio of brands further reinforces owners’ ability to capitalize on the historical infrastructure spent in the U.S., what’s believed to be about a $3.3 billion opportunity in additional room revenue.
In joining the Wyndham family of brands, WaterWalk hotels unlock access to the Wyndham Advantage – world-class marketing, distribution and resources from the world’s largest hotel franchisor. Over the last five years, Wyndham has invested more than $275 million in innovative technology that drives efficiency and supports owners' bottom lines, including next-gen property and revenue management systems, mobile check-in and checkout and OTA reconciliation.
“In the last year, guest demand for the extended stay segment reached record highs, which has been underscored by demand from owners and developers looking for new opportunities to partner with Wyndham. Our vision is to offer the industry’s most robust portfolio of extended stay brands and the addition of WaterWalk marks an important step in that direction—helping ensure we have an offering in every segment, for every owner and for every guest,” says Chip Ohlsson, chief development officer, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts.
