Press Room
Joie de Vivre Looks To Grow By Growing Up
San Francisco- Chip Conley, the 44-year-old founder and CEO of San Francisco-based Joie de Vivre Hospitality, is "post-hip," and he is certain he is not alone. So certain that he has developed a new hotel for those like him. "I feel strongly based on what I've seen in the marketplace that there is a customer who is 35 to 55 and psychographically active, adventurous and creative – a post-W, pre-Four Seasons guest," he says, "I am the market."
Conley is the person who has outgrown the hip boutique hotels but isn't ready for the formal and ultra-expensive 5-star brands, and is looking for something in between. Conley has been creating hotels for himself for 18 years, but his newest project, the 4-star Hotel Vitale on San Francisco's Embarcadero Waterfront, is different. This could be the concept that takes him beyond northern California – from off-Broadway, as he puts it, to the big show.
"Vitale as a brand has the potential to be in other urban markets in the country," Conley says. He sums up the concept as "luxury, naturally." What exactly does that mean? Jerusalem limestone in the lobby, old wood planks on walls, and spa-styled bathrooms with rain forest showerheads. "There is a customer out there more interested in being nurtured in an urban hotel experience than in being entertained," Conley says. "This person is more interested in having a spa in the hotel than a bar in the hotel."
That's especially true for female travelers, Conley notes. But for any road warrior, traveling can put the person out of sync with his or her habits, he says. "There are things that these people usually do that they don't get to do (on the road), like working out, getting a massage, doing yoga or stretching or eating well, " Conley says. Vitale has a solution for each of these: a fitness club in the hotel, a spa on the top floor, a yoga studio on the top floor (with free classes every day for guests), an end-of-the-day happy hour with free neck and shoulder massages and a modern Italian restaurant offering light, regional cuisine.
The hotel, opening this month, is Joie de Vivre's first new-build high-rise. The Vitale concept is well-suited for future new builds, Conley says, but new builds are expensive, and Conley's pockets are not that deep, he notes. "We'll probably partner with developers on (Vitale)," he says. Joie de Vivre already has been approached by a handful of companies in different markets, including San Diego and Austin, Texas. At least on was interested in doing a condo hotel, Conley says, "I could see that being an opportunity," he adds.
A Vision for the Future Joie de Vivre's pans for 2005 include four strategic directions, one of which is the launch and potential expansion of Vitale. "This is a hot hotel in what has been a cool market," Conley says. "I think that will make the phones ring."
Another opportunity for growth will be management contracts for InterContinental's Indigo brand, for which Joie de Vivre is serving as a consultant. For franchises without a management company, or whose company is not qualified to manage the brand, Joie de Vivre will be the preferred management company. Depending how far Indigo goes, that could be an indredible vehicle for growth, Conley says. The first Indigo is already open in Atlanta, a Chicago property is set to open this month and development of a Sarasota, Florida location was recently announced.
Closer to home, Joie de Vivre is in negotiations to take over and reposition a hotel in Los Angles, and is likely to expand into the Southern California market, Conley says. "Los Angeles, San Diego, Orange County – those would be good markets for us."
Finally, Joie de Vivre has been hired by a large San Francisco developer to be the brand for its 24-story, 250-unit condo complex development. "The developer came to us and said, 'You know how computers have the Intel inside? We want that with Joie de Vivre – and inside for a condo complex.' They want us to create a lifestyle experience, with the look, design, services and amenities all ours... If that does well, the idea that we could merge into helping create condo complexes that are hotel influenced is a really interesting opportunity."
Conley believes his company is "ripe for becoming a really big national player," thanks to an infrastructure that is well-suited to grow in many ways, "THere are very few boutique hotel companies who have what we have, which is the internal ability to create, concept, market and do [public relations] for in-house hotels and [those for which we are third-party management," Conley says.
