 |
- March 30, 2008 -- From sheets to scents, 'boutique' hotel is all about hip style
- March 24, 2008 -- Boutique-style hotels embrace the suburbs
- January 29, 2008 -- First Hotel Indigo in New England Opens in Newton, MA
- January 27, 2008 -- The Golden Mean
- January 25, 2008 -- Hotel Brings New Look to Old Holiday Inn
- January 30, 2008 -- First Hotel Indigo in New England opens in Newton, MA
- January 29, 2008 -- Hotel Indigo Opens In Newton, MA
- January 16, 2008 -- Hotel Indigo Opens Near Boston
From sheets to scents, 'boutique' hotel is all about hip style
By Ralph Ranalli
Boston Globe
March 30, 2008
With two leaf blowers adding their cacophony and fumes to the roar of nearby Route 128 one recent morning, tranquility wasn't the first word that came to mind in the front parking lot of the new Hotel Indigo in Newton Lower Falls.
But in the lobby, meditative music played softly, adding to the atmosphere created by the muted earth tones in the fashion-forward furnishings and in the uniforms of the employees at the reception desk. Something else was in the air, too, but it took some help from hotel president David Shamoian to pinpoint.
"Oh, that's vanilla and grapefruit," he said, inhaling deeply through his nose. "We have a full-time aromatherapy machine. People experience different senses when they come into the hotel and we wanted to address everything, including their sense of smell."
Welcome to the Indigo, the first "boutique" concept hotel in Boston's suburbs.
For decades, the hotel industry along the Route 128 belt has been dominated by inter national players such as Marriott and Ramada, which woo business travelers by placing functionality before style, offering amenities like cheap suites, kitchenettes, minibars, and laundry rooms.
The Indigo was designed instead to emulate small, high fashion, urban hotels such as Fifteen Beacon in Boston and Hudson in New York City.
There are feng-shui principals incorporated in design decisions, designer furnishings in the rooms, and even free designer spring-water bottles on the bedside tables.
But will a boutique hotel work in the suburbs? Pioneered by hotelier-visionaries like Ian Schrager in the 1980s, the concept is normally built on selling well-heeled urban hipsters on uber-stylish (if cramped) digs strategically placed near all the culture, cuisine, consumerism, and nightlife that great American cities have to offer.
But if Indigo patrons are thinking about going anywhere without a car, they'll need to buy a Charlie Card, because virtually the only amenity within walking distance is the MBTA's Riverside Station. The former tenant of the building at 399 Grove St. was a decidedly unhip Holiday Inn.
"I think that's the only thing that they are really going to have to overcome; the fact that this building was a Holiday Inn basically forever and that is how the locals remember it," said Michael Szathmary, a local developer of upscale gourmet food markets who recently checked out the Indigo over coffee with a colleague.
Szathmary, however, also said he is impressed with the Indigo's stylish yet low-key atmosphere and devotion to its design concept.
While striving to seem unique, the Indigo actually is the new boutique brand of a major chain, InterContinental Hotels Group, which is franchising them across the country. There are already 14 Indigos open, including two in the Chicago area, and a total of 60 in the works, its website says.
But there is competition en route. Starwood Hotels, which operates the Westin, Sheraton, and W chains, has its own suburban boutique, aloft (complete with stylish lowercase "a"), with a Lexington location to begin taking reservations this fall, and an independent, NYLO, is about to open its second hotel in Warwick, R.I.
In order to consistently fill its 191 rooms, the local Hotel Indigo is trying to cobble together several different market segments.
In the first group, said codeveloper Paul Ferreira of Newton, are style-conscious business travelers. The office market stretching from Waltham to Needham covers more area than Cambridge or Tampa, he noted. "When they start comparing their choices in the marketplace, we think they'll find we have a better mousetrap."
Another target group, he said, will be style-conscious travelers who might otherwise stay in Boston but are intimidated by the traffic or the price associated with staying at a chic hotel downtown. Rates at the Indigo will vary by season and demand, but generally are expected to be $200 to $250 - about half of what downtown Boston's boutique hotels charge.
Conscious that there isn't much to do around the hotel, Ferreira said, the developers hope to turn the Indigo into a destination unto itself, even for nearby residents. The hotel serves Starbucks coffee in its Phi Bistro, and a Las Vegas-style restaurant developed by a former Hard Rock Cafe executive is under construction. Also in the works is an outdoor pool facility, which will feature fire pits and cabanas with designer furniture and flat-screen televisions.
And then there's the market niche of parents, like Barbara Berkeley, who want a different experience when they travel from out of town to tour local colleges with their children (and who might be returning for visits and for graduations).
Berkeley and her daughter, Jennifer, who live in Austin, Texas, said they had stayed at a Marriott near Philadelphia's airport for a tour of Villanova University before arriving in Newton to check out Boston College.
Jennifer Berkeley said she preferred the Marriott. "Those were great beds," the 17-year-old said. Her mother opted for Indigo, saying the hotel's dark hardwood floors and fashion-forward furnishings made her think of upscale home-design magazines.
Overall, Shamoian said, the Indigo's design theme is based on the mathematical concept of phi, also known as the Divine Proportion or the Golden Mean, which was incorporated into as much of the hotel as possible, including the proportions of the art hanging on the walls, its logo (a nautilus shell), and even smaller details.
The hotel also coordinates the aromatherapy scents in the lobby with the crystal candy bowl at the reception desk; the peppermint scent and York Peppermint Patties of February gave way to the springlike pairing of grapefruit-vanilla and Sunkist Fruit Gems being deployed this month, he said.
In fact, there is so much going on that even the hotel's advocates sometimes have trouble keeping it all straight. During a recent tour, a public relations representative called attention to the mathematically symmetrical design of a king-size headboard, which was made of three sections of dark wood adorned with three wall lamps.
Asked the significance of the number three in relation to the overall design concept, Shamoian replied: "Um, I think that's just a coincidence."
Boutique-style hotels embrace the suburbs
By Barbara De Lollis
USA TODAY
March 24, 2008
Visiting the suburbs no longer has to mean staying in a cookie-cutter hotel.
Suburbs around the USA's biggest cities are starting to get their first wave of boutique hotels, as more travelers seek hotels with personality closer to outlying areas that have transformed into business and social hubs.
"People are looking for something different. They want something design-driven, that looks like where they live," says John Russell, CEO of Nylo, a new independent chain of stylish hotels that is basing its strategy on building hotels in suburbs (Plano, Texas; Warwick, R.I.) instead of big cities, at least initially.
The latest wave of boutique-style hotels tends to offer modern furnishings, the latest high-tech offerings such as flat-screen TVs and MP3 plugs, a thoughtful collection of art and trendy gathering spots such as the "living rooms" pioneered by the W chain.
"From now on, it's going to be brands with style," predicts Matt Ouimet, president of Starwood's (HOT) hotel group, which includes W, Aloft, Westin and Sheraton. "The suburbs have earned that right."
One of the most-watched examples is the 225-room W under construction in Hoboken, N.J., just across from Manhattan on the Hudson River.
The project was conceived in 2001 when brothers Michael and David Barry of Applied Development proposed a W hotel and condominium tower on the docks where On the Waterfront was filmed decades earlier. Hoboken was then in the early stage of transition, with old factories getting converted into million-dollar lofts, and new retail, restaurant and office buildings showing up amid neighborhood pizzerias and Irish pubs.
The Barry brothers wanted to make a statement about Hoboken's transformation, so they went after a hotel brand that would be unexpected for the town.
Today, the sleek, metal-and-glass-skinned, 26-story W tower is a bustling construction site. When doors open in December, the hotel will feature spectacular panoramas of the Manhattan skyline, an indoor/outdoor terrace bar with fireplaces and the W chain's only ballroom for 500 to capture local weddings and corporate parties.
The hotel's potential to fill rooms looks stronger than initially thought because Manhattan's five W's often sell out.
Hoboken, in fact, is looking like such a smart move that Ross Klein, W's brand chief, says he's eyeing other suburbs such as Oak Brook, Ill., La Jolla and Huntington Beach, Calif., and the Coconut Grove area in Miami.
"The W has shown that there is a market for more hip hotels," says Jan Freitag of industry tracker Smith Travel Research. Kimpton, which started in 1981 and is the largest independent chain of boutique hotels, recently opened Palomar in Arlington, Va. — its third hotel in the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C., where it has seven hotels.
Kimpton's now eyeing farther-out suburbs such as Chantilly, Va., about 25 miles outside the city, says Kimpton CEO Mike Depatie. Nine of Kimpton's 42 existing hotels are in suburbs, he says.
Hotel Indigo, InterContinental's 4-year-old boutique brand, recently opened in Newton, Mass., near Boston, and Fishers, Ind., near Indianapolis.
Half of Hotel Indigo's existing 17 hotels and half of its 62 future hotels have suburban addresses, typically near upscale shopping, business and residential centers, says Jim Anhut of InterContinental.
He expects Indigo to flourish partly because many people want hip design but don't want to give up InterContinental loyalty points by staying in independent hotels.
The main drivers pushing design-driven hotels outside cities:
Travelers bored with old hotels. Business travelers who travel to suburbs want more unique choices, Nylo's Russell says. Younger employees who travel frequently for big consulting and accounting firms are especially hungry for new choices, Starwood's Ouimet says.
Because companies ask for choices in markets where W's don't make sense, Starwood's rolling out a midprice version called Aloft, going up in places such as Rancho Cucamonga, about 30 miles east of Los Angeles. The first will open later this year in Lexington, Mass., about 10 miles outside of Boston.
Suburbs are thriving. More business is being done in the suburbs, and mass retailers such as Ikea, Pottery Barn and Target helped pave the way for "democratization of design," Anhut says. "Ten years ago, the suburbs might not have been ready."
Urban land's getting too costly. It's cheaper to develop in the suburbs, where land and construction cost less, says Robert Mandelbaum of Atlanta-based PKF Consulting.
For hoteliers, that means that "If you want to grow the brand, you have to look beyond the city center," he says. Also, there's less competition, says Mike Mueller, a Nylo founder. "We really like the suburbs because they've been ignored by the boutique brands."
Finding these hotels will still require some digging. That's because they're going up mainly in the close-in suburbs of the USA's 25 biggest cities, where they can expect to fetch the highest rates, Mandelbaum says.
And most of the hotels rising in the suburbs remain limited-service brands without restaurants, such as Holiday Inn Express, Fairfield Inn, Hampton Inn and La Quinta, according to industry tracker Smith Travel Research.
What travelers will pay for the rooms will vary by market and by chain. Rooms at Aloft, Nylo and Hotel Indigo cost at least $140 a night. Travelers won't necessarily see a discount relative to what they'd pay in the nearest big city. Kimpton's Alexandria, Va., hotels fetch about the same rate — about $250 a night — as its downtown Washington hotels, Depatie says.
In some cases, travelers might get a deal. The developers of Hoboken's W, for instance, expect to fetch an average of about $280 a night (although the hotel is not yet accepting bookings). The average rate at W's Manhattan hotels last year was $405.
First Hotel Indigo in New England Opens in Newton, MA
The FINANCIAL
January 29, 2008
The FINANCIAL -- After the completion of a substantial, year long, renovation and conversion, the
Hotel Indigo in Newton opened Jan. 15 as the first in New England.
According to IHG, a new offering from InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), Hotel Indigo is the
industry's first branded boutique hotel. Hotel Indigo artfully combines the conveniences and
consistencies of a brand hotel with the unique design and service personality of a boutique.
It is designed for guests who desire luxury, service and an alternative to traditional hotels
without sacrificing any of the business amenities they have come to expect. The seven-story,
191-room Hotel Indigo property was redeveloped and is owned by a joint venture between Normandy
Real Estate Partners and Blue Hawk Investments, under a license agreement with a company in the
InterContinental Hotels Group. It is managed by Peabody Hotel Group.
"We are excited to bring an innovative, new hotel concept to Newton," said David V. Shamoian,
President of the Peabody Hotel Group Brand Management Division. "Travelers are looking for
something more than the typical 'cookie cutter' hotel and restaurant experience. Hotel Indigo
will provide guests with the tranquility and renewal the brand is known for."
Hotel Indigo features the distinctive design of the brand that combines math, art and nature in
perfect symmetry. Based on timeless beauty found in nature and realized through the Golden Mean
(also known as the Fibonacci Sequence or Phi) the design and décor of Hotel Indigo creates a
welcoming environment. Phi and the Fibonacci Sequence describe a pattern of numbers that increases
by adding the two previous numbers until it reaches the fixed value of 1.618034-the Golden Mean.
For centuries this principle has been applied to achieve beauty and balance in art, architecture,
music and design. The use of the Golden Mean in the design of Hotel Indigo is also reflected
throughout the property. For example, the headboards in the guestrooms are 'Golden Rectangles,'
meaning the sides are made up of two successive Fibonacci numbers.
"Hotel Indigo Newton is our first hotel to open in 2008, and we are proud to add it to brand's
growing portfolio of hotels. This ownership group has done an excellent job of elevating an already
distinctive brand concept and making this a hotel a showpiece in the marketplace," said Jim Anhut,
senior vice president, Brand Management, Hotel Indigo. "I have no doubt that the Boston community
will embrace this hotel and their unique interpretation of the Hotel Indigo concept."
In addition to Phi, the Newton hotel has incorporated other interesting design details, including
oversized lobby chairs, which create a personal work or "a dining for one" space within the public
areas of the hotel; inviting guestrooms with plush bedding, hardwood-style flooring, spa-inspired
showers and products by Aveda; and a "Phitness" studio with cardio equipment, yoga mats, and free
weights. Also, the open-floor layout, inviting design and vivid color pallet reflects the attitudes
and personality of its guests, while facilitating the guest-first service culture.
In keeping with the brand's Interpret IndigoTM philosophy which emphasizes creative design
interpretation of the Hotel Indigo concept to suit a property's local market, the hotel will also
offer a heated outdoor pool, hot tub and relaxation deck with cabanas outfitted with LCD flat-panel
televisions, fire pits, and area heating for extended season enjoyment. All 191 guest rooms also
feature such state-of-the-art elements as 32-inch LCD flat-screen televisions with high definition,
MP3 docking stations, and complimentary wired and wireless high-speed internet access, available
throughout the hotel.
The soul of the Hotel Indigo brand's retail-inspired concept is renewal - thoughtful changes that
are made throughout the year to keep the hotel fresh, similar to the way retailers change their
window displays. The renewal concept provides even the most frequent guest a unique experience
with every stay. The hotel will feature renewable elements such as vivid murals, area rugs, plush
duvets and slip covers that will change periodically. Public spaces will be transformed seasonally
through changing artwork, music, flora and murals.
Also, in the spirit of renewal, the hotel is taking steps to ensure that conservation and
preservation also take center stage. The hotel has installed a cogeneration power system that
recaptures used energy, and will operate a voluntary conservation program, which will encourage
guests to reuse linens and towels, to reduce water, energy and detergent use. The hotel is
committed to using recyclable glass and reducing plastic use wherever possible; takeout meals will
be packaged in biodegradable containers made of sugar cane.
"The unique amenities and design features make the Hotel Indigo a perfect destination for travelers
who want a boutique hotel experience," says Paul A. Ferreira, Principal at Blue Hawk Investments.
"Visitors can have the luxury amenities of a city hotel with the convenient location of the suburbs."
Hotel Indigo is located off of Route 128 at Exit 22 (Grove Street) in Newton and directly adjacent to
the Riverside MBTA Green Line station. It will serve as a convenient option for business travelers
needing access to the Massachusetts Turnpike, as well as the Route 128/I-95 belt that is part of
America's Technology Highway. The hotel is also well situated for weekend travelers to the Boston
area, be they parents visiting children at one of the local colleges or Red Sox fans looking to
stay within a few miles of Fenway Park. Less than ten miles from Downtown Boston, the property
is also easily accessible to Boston's Logan Airport.
"We believe this location is perfect for the first Hotel Indigo in New England," says Justin Krebs, Principal at
Normandy Real Estate Partners. "There is nothing else in the market that offers a boutique hotel experience so
close to the city and convenient for weekend and business travelers."
The Golden Mean
The Daily News Tribune
January 27, 2008
NEWTON - The Hotel Indigo does have the bare essentials - a bed, running water and sheets.
But don't kid yourself, this is not an ordinary hotel.
The newly built facility on Grove Street features flat-panel TVs in every room, a unique design
and even a lobby scent that differs depending on the season. This season's scent is peppermint.
Owners, designers and developers of the boutique hotel held a ribbon-cutting ceremony Friday,
introducing the first hotel of its kind in Massachusetts.
"Quite honestly, it's unique," said Justin Krebs, principal with New Jersey-based Normandy Real
Estate Partners, the co-owner of the new hotel. "We're really thrilled with the brand."
The hotel is also owned by Paul Ferreira, of Blue Hawk Investments, which is located in Newton.
Hotel Indigo is part of InterContinental Hotels Group, which has built 10 "brand" hotels around
the country, and have another 60 on the way, according to a press release.
The idea behind Hotel Indigo is that unlike most chain hotels, no two locations will look alike.
For example, Krebs said, the property in Florida won't look exactly like the ones in the Northeast.
"I'm just excited to be here," Ferreira said. "This brand is allowing the owners to do their own
thing."
The hotel is located right off Exit 22 on Rte. 128, near the Riverside T stop. Before Continental
Hotels took over the location, it was home to a Holiday Inn.
The 191 rooms in Hotel Indigo have hardwood floors and colors that designers say are custom-matched
to New England. Large glass windows and shower doors, rather than curtains, are also some of the
highlights.
One of the more distinctive aspects of the hotel is its design, which is inspired by an ancient
design scheme called "the Golden Mean," according to a press release.
The Golden Mean is basically a ratio that is pleasing to the eye and has been used since 1200 AD,
states the press release. For example, the headboard of Hotel Indigo's beds were designed in
accordance with the Golden Mean, also known as the Fibonacci Sequence or Phi.
"Phi and the Fibonacci Sequence describe a pattern of numbers that increases by adding two previous
numbers until it reaches the fixed value of 1.618034," according to the press release.
The Phi design is located in many parts of the hotel, and hotel guests are invited to try and
identify them throughout the building.
"It's a ratio that's pleasing to the human mind," said James Anhunt, senior vice president of
Brand Development at InterContinental Hotels Group. Hotel Indigo's logo, a nautilus shell, is
an example of how Phi is also located in nature.
Over the next few months, Indigo will be adding two features to its building. The first is a
restaurant, which is in the process of being built. The other is a heated outdoor pool, which
will include a hot tub and LCD flat-panel TVs, according to Dianne Falaguerra, account executive
for Solomon McCown & Company, Inc. She said the pool is set to open in the summer.
Hotel Brings New Look to Old Holiday Inn
The Boston Globe
January 25, 2008
The Hotel Indigo Riverside, opening today in Newton between the MBTA station and Route 128, has 191 rooms,
about the same as the old Holiday Inn had in the same building.
The similarities end there.
Indigo, the 12th to open in North America, is a hybrid - one of a new ''boutique brand'' being rolled out by
InterContinental Hotels Group.
The Newton hotel, owned by Normandy Real Estate Partners of Morristown, N.J., and Bluehawk Investments LLC of
Newton, is the first Indigo in New England.
Other than the concrete floors and walls and the wine-red brick of the 43-year-old structure, little of the
old hotel exists.
A year of renovation included replacement of kitchen, heating, and air-conditioning systems, and installation
of energy-saving cogeneration equipment. Bathtubs have glass doors and teak benches; floors are of dark wood;
windows that were once floor-to-ceiling and later partially blocked off have been replaced with full-length
insulated glass.
There's WiFi throughout the hotel, and rooms have 32-inch flat-screen TVs, MP3 docking stations, Indigo's Curl
Up brand bed furnishings, and wall murals that are rotated with the seasons. Phi Bistro is there for a quick bite,
and a large fitness center overlooks the pool area, which will be outfitted with fire pits and wind protection.
''We recognize Newton will never be South Beach,'' said Justin Krebs, a principal of Normandy Real Estate
Partners, ''but why have to go to Boston to get a high-quality experience?''
The hotel's design has a sophisticated look that appeals to an academically oriented clientele, said Jacqueline
McGee, senior associate at CBT Architects of Boston, which redesigned the building.
The rooms are small, and an average rate for one with a king-size bed on a weekend night is $229, a little lower
than business folks will pay during the week.
InterContinental, with almost 4,000 hotels worldwide, also owns the Holiday Inn brand.
(By Thomas C. Palmer Jr., Globe staff)
First Hotel Indigo in New England opens in Newton, MA
Travel Daily News
January 30, 2008
After the completion of a substantial, year long, renovation and conversion, the Hotel Indigo in
Newton opened Jan. 15 as the first in New England. A new offering from InterContinental Hotels Group
(IHG), Hotel Indigo is the industry's first branded boutique hotel.
The seven-story, 191-room Hotel Indigo property was redeveloped and is owned by a joint venture
between Normandy Real Estate Partners and Blue Hawk Investments, under a license agreement with a
company in the InterContinental Hotels Group. It is managed by Peabody Hotel Group.
"We are excited to bring an innovative, new hotel concept to Newton," said David V. Shamoian,
President of the Peabody Hotel Group Brand Management Division. "Travelers are looking for
something more than the typical 'cookie cutter' hotel and restaurant experience. Hotel Indigo
will provide guests with the tranquility and renewal the brand is known for."
"Hotel Indigo Newton is our first hotel to open in 2008, and we are proud to add it to brand's
growing portfolio of hotels. This ownership group has done an excellent job of elevating an already
distinctive brand concept and making this a hotel a showpiece in the marketplace," said Jim Anhut,
senior vice president, Brand Management, Hotel Indigo. "I have no doubt that the Boston community
will embrace this hotel and their unique interpretation of the Hotel Indigo concept."
"The unique amenities and design features make the Hotel Indigo a perfect destination for travelers
who want a boutique hotel experience," says Paul A. Ferreira, Principal at Blue Hawk Investments.
"Visitors can have the luxury amenities of a city hotel with the convenient location of the suburbs."
"We believe this location is perfect for the first Hotel Indigo in New England," says Justin Krebs,
Principal at Normandy Real Estate Partners. "There is nothing else in the market that offers a
boutique hotel experience so close to the city and convenient for weekend and business travelers."
Rania Deimezi - Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Hotel Indigo Opens In Newton, MA
HotelBusiness.com
January 29, 2008
NEWTON, MA- InterContinental Hotels Group's Hotel Indigo brand has opened its first property in
New England, the Hotel Indigo Newton here. The hotel is opening after a year-long renovation and
conversion project.
The seven-story, 191-room Hotel Indigo Newton is owned by a joint venture between Normandy Real
Estate Partners and Blue Hawk Investments and is managed by Peabody Hotel Group. The property
features an open-floor layout, a vivid color palette, oversized lobby chairs, hardwood-style
flooring, spa-inspired showers and a fitness center. Guestrooms offer LCD flat-screen televisions,
mp3 docking stations and wired and wireless Internet access.
Hotel Indigo Opens Near Boston
Hospitality Design
January 16, 2008
The 191-room Hotel Indigo Boston-Newton Riverside has opened, marking the brand's first property in New England.
InterContinental spent more than $35 million upgrading the former Holiday Inn. The hotel features revamped guestrooms,
a fitness center, and a serviced business center with two meeting rooms. The hotel also offers an upscale cafe and a New York-style steakhouse.
|
