Jack DeBoer, a serial brand builder, is at it again. A report in today's Wichita newspaper says the octogenarian creator of at least four lodging brands wants to start another one, a boutique brand built largely from the carcasses of first-generation Residence Inns. DeBoer launched that chain in 1975 and sold it 12 years later to Marriott.
Next month, the Hotel at Waterwalk opens in a mixed-use commercial development in downtown Wichita in the first of 103 Residence Inns DeBoer developed. DeBoer believes he can create similar apartment-style boutiques in other urban and suburban areas. The new properties will feature 500-square-foot rooms that cater to business and leisure travelers and rent for about $100 a night.
For the record, DeBoer's other product launches were Summerfield Suites in 1988 (later sold to Hyatt), Candlewood Hotels in 1995 (sold to IHG) and ValuePlace in 2002, which he still runs.