LOS ANGELES — Key partnerships across the globe will continue to fuel BWH Hotel Group's expansion, according to President and CEO Larry Cuculic.
Speaking with Hotel News Now during the Americas Lodging Investment Summit, Cuculic said relationships with investors across Europe and Asia continue to spark "tremendous growth."
"Like in Scandinavia, we have an international partner who's doing terrific work right now," he said. "They just announced ... plans to grow the Aiden brand drastically in the next several years, and they're partnering with a Danish hotel group called Small Danish Hotels, so they'll be the largest hotel brand in Denmark."
In Asia, BWH Hotel Group's most rapid expansion is in Japan and Vietnam. Cuculic said that might be surprising to some since those are not viewed universally as rapid growth markets, and Japan in particular is dealing with "inflationary pressure."
"But all of a sudden, we sign a deal with a huge hotelier in Japan. You have to take a look everywhere and find those opportunities and let people know the kind of value we could add at Best Western to their portfolio," Cuculic said.
In terms of the company's 18 brands, Cuculic reiterated that Aiden, a boutique soft brand, will be a key part of growth plans going forward.
"Aiden is a huge growth opportunity for us," he said. "It's the perfect fit for a hotelier who is looking to reposition his or her hotel upward by investing in the hotel and having a comp set that will allow that hotelier to elevate their average daily rate."
For more from Hotel News Now's conversation with Larry Cuculic, watch the video above.