Finally about a month and a half after the aloft Hotels website was launched (www.alofthotels.com), Starwood finally launched the Element website (www.elementhotels.com). Once again Starwood has done wonders with the branding – instead of the website being the same exact design and look as their other brands (like Hilton, or Marriott often do) the website extends the brand’s feel to the web. Element’s site feels airy, and well – like a softer, smaller version of Westin – which is exactly the approach Starwood is trying to achieve.

The only hotel that is currently available to be booked is the Element Lexington (which is located right next to aloft Lexington) although the opening date has been moved from changed July 2008, to Oct 1st 2008. After looking at the aloft Lexington’s site – that opening date has been changed as well to September 2008 from July 2008. On a side note – the W Hotel Hoboken is now scheduled to open on December 15th 2008, rather than Oct 31st.

There is also a glaring difference in the number of elements scheduled to be opened in the next year or two vs the number of alofts. According to the “our hotels” page, only 2 elements besides the Lexington are scheduled to open in 2008, and another 12 are to open in 2009 – aloft on the other hand has at least 40 hotels scheduled to open in the next three years. I’m very curious to know if the disparity is due to element not being a big draw for developers, or if it’s just the nature of element being an extended-stay product which would not have as much of a draw as a regular select-service hotel. Starwood is an extremely smart company though – I know they would make changes if developers are not responding that well to the new brand.

Also on the our hotels page, element is encouraging you to tell them where you would like to see new elements be built. It seems like Starwood will be using that information to encourage developers to build by demonstrating a need for the product in specific locations, but it’s a big difference from aloft which is just advertising that aloft’s will simply be opening everywhere.

Element’s site is now showing some new renderings of their rooms and public spaces – which are a huge improvement compared to the initial renderings. Simply they are a matter of just adding different wall coverings, adding a little more to the actual look and feel to the spaces – but it’s very welcome as the initial renderings were a little to minimalist and just looked bare. I’m very curious to see if the exterior of the hotel will be changing from the initial renderings as well.

New Breakfast Area Rendering

Old Breakfast Area Rendering

New Lobby Rendering

Old Lobby Rendering

New Studio Room Rendering

Old Studio Room Rendering

I’m still highly highly impressed with the room designs – the beds are very luxurious looking with a cushioned leather headboard, and subtle design elements which add a lot to the feel of the room, such as the bed being recessed slightly into the wall and a wrap-around couch. The bathrooms are another great design with raised sinks and a glass walled shower – something you wouldn’t expect in a non-luxury chain hotel.

It’s a little disappointing to see the low number of Elements that are scheduled to open compared to the aloft pipeline, but it is way too early to count the brand out. With the Starwood branding machine and the great reputation that Starwood has, I think once a few locations open and word gets out, more and more locations will quickly pop up.

andrew@alconic-inc.com

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