Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT) announced that its
global powerhouse Sheraton Hotels opened its first hotel in Agoura
Hills, California today. The opening of Sheraton Agoura Hills Hotel
advances the Sheraton brand's strategic expansion plan that will add
more than 65 new hotels and over 23,000 rooms to the Sheraton portfolio
over the next two years. The hotel was acquired by an affiliate of
Wheelock Street Capital and is managed by Davidson Hotels & Resorts. The
former Renaissance will undergo a comprehensive renovation to all guest
rooms and public areas to meet Sheraton's new brand standards.
Located in the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains, Sheraton Agoura
Hills Hotel serves the Conejo Valley communities of Agoura Hills,
Thousand Oaks, Westlake Village and Calabasas. Less than half an hour
from Malibu and approximately 40 minutes from Los Angeles, the hotel is
convenient to the 101 Business Corridor, the headquarter offices of
Amgen, Farmer's Insurance, Dole Foods, The Cheesecake Factory and J.D.
Power and Associates, as well as regional offices for Bank of America,
Wellpoint and Alcatel-Lucent. Also nearby are world-famous Malibu
beaches, Pepperdine University, several upscale shopping areas and a
choice of premium golf courses.
"We are delighted to add Agoura Hills to our robust portfolio in
California," said Hoyt Harper, Senior Vice President, Sheraton Hotels &
Resorts. "Sheraton is leading Starwood's global market share growth and
due to the success of our recent rebranding effort is one of the most
sought-after brands for conversion opportunities in key markets
throughout the United States. This hotel will truly embody the new look
and feel of Sheraton and will feature our newest brand initiatives
designed to create community and make it easy to stay connected."
Boasting sweeping mountain views, the hotel's 280 guest rooms are
equipped with an oversized work desk, custom-designed ergonomic chair,
high-speed Internet, LCD flat panel television, MP3 docking station and
will feature the all-white Sheraton Sweet Sleeper® bed, designed to meet
AAA's Five Diamond Award® criteria.
Sheraton Agoura Hills Hotel is ideal for business meetings and social
functions of all sizes and features nearly 17,000 square feet of
flexible meeting space with the latest in meetings technology.
Additional amenities include a full-service restaurant, hotel lounge and
outdoor swimming pool. The fully equipped fitness facility will offer
the brand's revolutionary new health and fitness program, Sheraton
Fitness, Programmed by Core Performance, designed exclusively for
Sheraton guests through its partner Core Performance.
Starwood has spent the last few years renovating and rebuilding one of
the hotel industry's most iconic brands and Sheraton now stands stronger
than ever with the strongest portfolio in its history. The brand is
gaining market share, RevPAR continues to rise, guest satisfaction
scores are the highest in the brand's history and likelihood to return,
likelihood to recommend and meeting planner and associate engagement
scores are also at all-time highs - signaling that guests are taking
notice and rediscovering the new Sheraton.
"We are proud to fly the Sheraton flag at our hotel and are impressed by
the considerable improvements to the brand," said Merrick R. Kleeman, a
Managing Partner of Wheelock Street Capital. As the operator John
Belden, President & CEO, Davidson Hotels & Resorts added. "By joining
Sheraton, we can also tap into the powerful Starwood system and reach
even more travelers via the award-winning Starwood Preferred Guest
program."
Sheraton Hotels & Resorts, like all brands within Starwood's robust
portfolio, is proud to offer the Starwood Preferred Guest® program,
which made headlines when it launched in 1999 with a breakthrough policy
of no blackout dates on Free Night Awards. SPG® offers members the
ability to redeem awards at more resorts, more luxury properties, more
European hotels and more golf properties than any other hotel program.
About Wheelock Street Capital
Wheelock Street Capital, L.L.C. is a real estate private equity firm
founded in 2008 by Merrick R. Kleeman and Jonathan H. Paul. Wheelock
Street pursues a highly focused, fundamentally driven investment
strategy. Backed by established institutional capital, the Company is
currently pursuing acquisitions and recapitalizations of real estate
assets and operating platforms in the hospitality, multifamily and
residential land/homebuilding sectors. http://www.wheelockst.com/
About Davidson Hotels & Resorts
Headquartered in Memphis, Tenn., Davidson Hotels & Resorts is an
award-winning, full-service hotel management company that provides
management, development/renovation, acquisition, consulting and
accounting expertise for the hospitality industry. The company's
portfolio encompasses 48 upscale, full-service independent and branded
hotels with more than 13,600 rooms across the United States. Additional
information on Davidson may be found at www.davidsonhotels.com.
About Starwood Hotels & Resorts
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. is one of the leading hotel
and leisure companies in the world with 1025 properties in 100 countries
and territories with 145,000 employees at its owned and managed
properties. Starwood Hotels is a fully integrated owner, operator and
franchisor of hotels, resorts and residences with the following
internationally renowned brands: St. Regis®, The Luxury Collection®, W®,
Westin®, Le Méridien®, Sheraton®, Four Points® by Sheraton, and the
recently launched Aloft®, and Element SM. Starwood Hotels
also owns Starwood Vacation Ownership, Inc., one of the premier
developers and operators of high quality vacation interval ownership
resorts. For more information, please visit www.starwoodhotels.com.
(Note: This press release contains forward-looking statements within the
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are not guarantees of future performance or events and involve risks and
uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events
to differ materially from those anticipated at the time the
forward-looking statements are made. These risks and uncertainties are
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give no assurance that our expectations will be attained or that results
and events will not materially differ. We undertake no obligation to
publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a
result of new information, future events or otherwise.) The names of
actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of
their respective owners.

Media:
Starwood Hotels & Resorts
Nadeen Ayala, 914-640-8259