Atlanta is set to become a luxury haven and luxury hotels are banking on people needing luxury places to stay. However, there is one major problem and it is a big one. According to Atlanta Business Journals, hospitality insiders predict that the credit collapse could delay proposed luxury hotel developments for months for those developers who don’t already have their cash in hand.
Debbie Cannon, the director of the Cecil B. Day School of Hospitality at Georgia State University is citing that “The financial turmoil might lead to significant delays — possibly six to 18 months — for some of Atlanta’s highly anticipated hotel projects as developers look for new sources of capital.”
Cannon stresses, “There’s going to be more hurdles to jump but that doesn’t mean they can’t jump them, Hotels that are already out of the ground, such as the W Atlanta Downtown, St. Regis Hotel Atlanta, Loews Atlanta Hotel and Hotel Palomar Atlanta, will still move forward.”
A key point Cannon reveals is that, “Developers will have to put up more equity and have stronger plans to get deals through.” She feels that, construction likely will still happen, though brands, development plans and hotel concepts might change.
The biggest factor I feel will be emphasis on branding approach. Specifically, developments will have to understand how to communicate with their target audiences. How to market Atlanta as a luxury destination, this will take a strategic plan and approach.
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