New Hotels: Boutique Brands Go Bigger; Big Brands Open More Boutiques

We are seeing an interesting expansion trend in New York hotels for destination corporate meeting groups that goes beyond the projected 30% increase in rooms to 137,000 city-wide.

There is a hybrid approach that is making major luxury hotel brands bigger players in the boutique space, and popular (but smaller room-capacity) boutiques dramatically increasing their footprint in other neighborhoods and with larger or equally unique properties. For example, one of the city's hot "local-feel" Times Square boutiques is opening a new property in Manhattan's Bowery neighborhood with almost 50% more rooms. And major legacy brands that have opened boutique-style properties in New York neighborhoods like TriBeCa are opening second properties in nearby neighborhoods like Downtown Manhattan.

What does this mean for meeting planners? It shows that hotels are continuing to emphasize some of the key trends over the past 3 years: local experiences, farm-to-hospitality menus, and artistic decor throughout the properties.