Meetings & Conventions: Newsline
Conrad Comes to U.S.
Hilton’s Huckestein Plots Brand
Growth
Dieter Huckestein
In November 2000, Beverly Hills,
Calif.-based Hilton Hotels Corp. initiated plans to grow its
five-star Conrad brand in the United States; in January 2004, the
brand’s second U.S. hotel, the 203-room Conrad Miami, will open.
(New York City’s Waldorf Towers became the first Conrad property in
2001.)
To learn more, M&C spoke with Dieter Huckestein,
president of Hilton-owned and -managed hotels.
M&C: Why bring Conrad to the United
States?
Huckestein: It’s important to have a brand in
every price point that we want to be in, plus we want to grow the
five-star brand. M&C: What groups will the Conrad
Miami target? Huckestein: With 10,000 square feet of meeting space,
special emphasis will be given to the small meetings market.
M&C: Where else will the Conrad brand
expand?
Huckestein: Indianapolis is proceeding quite
nicely, and the new Conrad in San Diego will be near the convention
center. We also are in negotiations in Las Vegas, Seattle and
Washington, D.C.
M&C: What does your expansion timeline look
like?
Huckestein: We would like to have 10 Conrad hotels
in the United States in the next few years.
• JONATHAN VATNER
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