The 1 Hotels brand has existed for a decade, but its concept stretches back further than that, with roots in the Pacific Northwest.
Back in 2008, Starwood Hotels & Resorts founder Barry Sternlicht wanted to build the first 1 Hotels property in Seattle. Those plans were put on hold due to the Great Recession, and the 1 Hotels brand idea was sidelined for another seven years.
Fast-forward to present day, and 1 Hotels is now an established brand with 10 properties open, with another one set to debut next month: the 1 Hotel Seattle. The hotel was formerly the Pan Pacific Seattle and has been operating as the Denny Park Hotel.
Rob Brandenberg, general manager of the 1 Hotel Seattle, said on the latest Hotel News Now podcast that the market is perfect for the sustainability and wellness pillars that the brand upholds itself to.
"We're going to be No. 11 in the lineup, 17 years late to the party, but it's going to be amazing what the hotel, what the brand brings to the market," he said. "... Seattle as a whole, as a metropolitan area of the Pacific Northwest as a whole, has been waiting for something like this for years."
Last week, hotel brand management company SH Hotels & Resorts — which consists of the 1 Hotels, Baccarat Hotels and Treehouse Hotels brands — rebranded itself as Starwood Hotels.
The name change was a return to form of sorts, as Sternlicht founded the original Starwood Hotels & Resorts nearly 30 years ago. That company was acquired by Marriott International in 2016, and Sternlicht launched SH Hotels & Resorts in 2015.
Brandenberg previously served as director of food and beverage at Starwood Hotels & Resorts from 2006 to 2014, so the rebrand occurring just as the 1 Hotel Seattle prepares to open is "emotional," he said.
"It's one of those moments where it brought tears to my eyes, because Starwood Hotels & Resorts back in the days was everything that I ever wanted to be part of," he said. "Now, being in that second chapter, I think a lot of it will be different, a lot of it will be more purposeful.
"Quality over quantity is definitely something that attracts me now more than ever, not just growing footprint and earnings per share at the forefront, but actually, really purposely opening properties at the right destination with the attention to detail."
For all of HNN's discussion with 1 Hotel Seattle's Rob Brandenberg, listen to the podcast above.