Starwood Announces New Vacation Ownership Division
Thursday, February 12, 2015
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. has announced that they will create a separate publicly traded company for its vacation ownership subsidiary, Starwood Vacation Ownership (SVO).
The new SVO division will be lead by a seasoned management team and will continue to be based in Orlando, FL. The company has already made it clear that they will continue to maintain their affiliation with Sheraton, Westin, and Starwood Preferred Guest resorts.
Starwood also announced that former President of Starwood’s Hotel Group, Matthew Avril, will lead the new spin-off company as Chief Executive Officer. Stephen Williams will stay with the organization as Chief Operating Officer.
President and CEO of Starwood, Frits van Paasschen said,
“This is the right time for us to spin off our vacation ownership business and move Starwood forward in its asset light strategy. Not only does SVO continue to have a great outlook for growth, but valuations for timeshare companies are at attractive levels. Separating this distinct part of our business will allow Starwood to continue participating in this growth industry through a fee-based business model, as we do with our managed and franchised hotel business. This transaction puts us in a position to build on the strength of our brands to fuel growth and create shareholder value for both companies.”
Over the past 30 years, Starwood has sold more than $6 billion in timeshare intervals. In 2014, Starwood Vacation Ownership reported revenues of $640 million. Currently, there are 220,000 SVO owners around the world.
SVO will continue to develop new properties, in addition to the 22 existing Starwood timeshare resorts. The group also has plans to add new units to their Westin Cancun, Westin Los Cabos, Westin Puerto Vallarta, Sheraton Steamboat, and Sheraton Kauai properties.
Van Paasschen continued, “As a standalone business, the new company will have ready access to capital to invest in both existing and potential new properties. Likewise, it will provide an opportunity for shareholders to invest in two pure-play companies with complementary investment propositions.”
Stay tuned to TheTimeshareAuthority.com to find out more about the new Starwood Vacation Ownership. To learn more about vacation ownership opportunities, visit SellMyTimeshareNow.com/Starwood_Timeshare.
