Starwood's Aggressive China Expansion Hits 100 Hotels

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide has announced its 100th hotel in Greater China with the signing of the Sheraton Beijing Dongcheng Hotel.

"We expect healthy expansion as we launch aloft throughout China and continue to expand our established upper upscale and luxury brands in various Chinese cities where we are currently under penetrated," commented Miguel Ko, president of Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Asia Pacific. "Starwood continues to win many new hotel projects in China and this is largely due to the confidence the development community has in our lifestyle brands, noted innovations and consistently strong delivery of results in the region."

Starwood continues to grow aggressively throughout Asia Pacific, with over 80 hotels under construction. China continues to fuel growth in the region, and more than half of Starwood's pipeline in Asia Pacific is in Greater China, where the company expects to double its portfolio by 2011. In addition to the 43 hotels Starwood currently operates in China, Starwood has 57 new properties scheduled to open. These include 22 Sheratons, 12 Four Points by Sheratons, eight Westins, five W hotels, four St Regis, three Le Meridien hotels, two aloft hotels and one Luxury Collection hotel.

Globally, Starwood will mark a milestone this year with the opening of its 900th hotel, and expects to increase its portfolio by 50% over the next five years, driven by aggressive global expansion across all its brands and the unprecedented growth of its two new brands, aloft and Element which launched earlier this year. Starwood's global pipeline includes 500 hotels and 120,000 rooms. Approximately half of Starwood's new hotels are expected to open outside of North America, reflecting the company's impressive growth in dynamic international markets.

As one of the first international hotel chains to enter China when the Great Wall Beijing Sheraton Hotel opened in 1985, Starwood today is the largest international upscale hotel company in China and continues to grow its footprint there with the expansion of its brands including Sheraton, Westin, Le Meridien, St. Regis, Luxury Collection, aloft, Four Points by Sheraton and W hotels in established and emerging cities as well as resort destinations.