VENTURA COUNTY BUSINESS : VENTRUA COUNTY REVIEW : Changes at Area Hotels Seek to Accommodate Special Market

On the outside, modifications at three Ventura County hotels are barely noticeable--just subtle name changes on business signs. On the inside, the million-dollar renovations at each site are much more telling.

Formerly Country Inns, the trio of hotels--located in Camarillo, Ventura and Port Hueneme--are now Country Inns & Suites by Carlson. They are the newest affiliates of Carlson Hospitality Worldwide, a Minneapolis firm whose name is on more than 1,100 Country Inns & Suites, Radisson Hotels and Regent Hotels internationally.

The local properties also are among the most recent acquisitions of the Rim Corp., a Modesto-based hotel and property management firm trying to make a dent in the Southern California hospitality market.

“We have been wanting to get a presence in the Southern California area, so we were glad when this opportunity came along,� said Mark Burden, chief executive of the Rim Corp. “We like the area--it’s an expanding area.�

Burden’s company purchased the Ventura County hotel properties in August 1998 from Tiger Real Estate Partners, a New York investment firm that two years earlier had acquired the inns from real estate developer Martin V. Smith.

After months of remodeling, the Rim Corp. began opening the inns earlier this year.

In March, the company unveiled its 100-room Camarillo site, followed by the 120-room Ventura site in July and the 135-room Port Hueneme inn last week. In April the company also opened a 122-room Country Inns & Suites in Calabasas.

In the several months the Camarillo and Calabasas locations have been operating, Burden said, they already have had a substantial impact on the Rim Corp.’s bottom line.

“They’ve contributed significantly to our revenues,� he said. “I look at it strictly from occupancy. In Camarillo last month we were running about 80%, and we’re over that this month. It’s a nice, pleasant surprise.�

In part, Burden credits the early success of the hotels to their association with Carlson Hospitality Worldwide, part of Carlson Cos. Inc. Along with its hotel sites, Carlson holdings include the Carlson Marketing Group, which has marketing operations in 17 countries, and Carlson Wagonlit Travel, which operates 5,300 travel agencies in 140 countries.

“Before the Country Inns were independent, not associated with a national franchise,� Burden said. “When we converted these hotels, we wanted a high-quality brand name. Carlson has a really good international network.�

For its part, the Carlson group is using the Ventura County sites to introduce its Country Inns & Suites to the California market.

“We have 200 Country Inns & Suites in the country, but we’re most heavily developed in the Midwest and Southeast,� said Paul Kirwin, president of the hotel chain. “That’s one of the reasons we’re excited to work with the Rim Corp. We were attracted to Ventura County because of its proximity to L.A. and because it has a lot of commercial business travelers.�

Kirwin said Ventura County offers a major-market suburban location that suits the commercial and midmarket leisure travelers attracted to the $65-a-night average room rate at Country Inns & Suites.

“Economy travelers are more seen in rural interstate areas, and upscale travelers are more frequently seen in urban settings, like downtown L.A.,� he said. “You’re not as likely to see a Country Inn in downtown L.A. as you would a Radisson or a Regent. Conversely, you wouldn’t see a Regent or a Radisson in Calabasas or Camarillo.�

Putting three Ventura County hotels within 15 miles of one another is part of the business strategy, Kirwin said.

“What happens today in America is travelers, especially business travelers, are very location-focused--if you’re doing business in Camarillo, you’re not going to stay overnight in Calabasas,� he said.

Kirwin said within the next 10 years another 100 Country Inns & Suites could open throughout California.

Carol Lavender, executive director of the Greater Oxnard & Harbor Visitors Bureau, said the remodeling and name change of the Port Hueneme inn should have a strong impact in overnight stays at the site.

“Now they’ve got the recognition of being a Carlson product,� she said. “Any time a hotel joins with a franchise that’s well known, the occupancy climbs. With their 800 number they have a much larger audience than before.�

Likewise, Kathy Janega-Dykes, executive director of the Ventura Visitors & Convention Bureau, said the Ventura hotel fits nicely with the bureau’s goal of attracting new tourists and encouraging them to stay in town several nights.

“The hotel product is really a critical component to our overall marketing efforts,� Janega-Dykes said. “Carlson is an international company that will provide opportunities for tourists to book nationally and internationally. A good deal of our marketing is targeting international visitors.�