Starwood Swot
SWOT Analysis:
Strengths:
Starwood has created a brand name for itself worldwide and has been able to gain a high number of loyal customers. The group has provided good service to customers and has received a number of positive feedbacks from the customers. The popularity of the group is seen clearly by its ranking in the Worldwide Top 10 hotels.
Starwood has over 897 hotels worldwide which shows the large operational scale. Starwood has grown by 3.0% in one year (in Rooms) and this shows how rapidly the company is expanding and now has almost half the number of rooms as its biggest competitor (Intercontinental HG - 556,246 rooms vs. Starwood -.265,598 rooms as per Table 1) (Hotel-Online, 2007).
The main assets of a hotel are the properties owned by it. Starwood puts a great deal of focus on ensuring they get very distinct properties and have built the hotels in locations that are very sophisticated and well placed for the most sophisticated travelers. They provide impeccable service with high style and high quality (Starwood, 2008).
Starwood has shown great returns on investments over the years and has been over market average in 2006 (Datamonitor, 2007). Good returns reflect assets being utilized in profitable avenues (Gillespie et al, 1997).
When compared to other groups, one major step that Starwood has taken is to venture into residential projects as well. The diversification is very beneficial not only monetarily but also for the brand name. Starwood has also ensured to keep in pace with time and has developed a fully functional website which is very informative as well.
Starwood has always tried to keep its long term debts to the minimum. They reduced the debt $3297 million in 2004 to $1827 million in 2006. It has managed to keep its debt to equity ratio lower than the market as well (Datamonitor, 2007). This allows the company to start off organic initiatives. The lower the gearing ratios, the easier it is to raise further capital for
Strengths:
Starwood has created a brand name for itself worldwide and has been able to gain a high number of loyal customers. The group has provided good service to customers and has received a number of positive feedbacks from the customers. The popularity of the group is seen clearly by its ranking in the Worldwide Top 10 hotels.
Starwood has over 897 hotels worldwide which shows the large operational scale. Starwood has grown by 3.0% in one year (in Rooms) and this shows how rapidly the company is expanding and now has almost half the number of rooms as its biggest competitor (Intercontinental HG - 556,246 rooms vs. Starwood -.265,598 rooms as per Table 1) (Hotel-Online, 2007).
The main assets of a hotel are the properties owned by it. Starwood puts a great deal of focus on ensuring they get very distinct properties and have built the hotels in locations that are very sophisticated and well placed for the most sophisticated travelers. They provide impeccable service with high style and high quality (Starwood, 2008).
Starwood has shown great returns on investments over the years and has been over market average in 2006 (Datamonitor, 2007). Good returns reflect assets being utilized in profitable avenues (Gillespie et al, 1997).
When compared to other groups, one major step that Starwood has taken is to venture into residential projects as well. The diversification is very beneficial not only monetarily but also for the brand name. Starwood has also ensured to keep in pace with time and has developed a fully functional website which is very informative as well.
Starwood has always tried to keep its long term debts to the minimum. They reduced the debt $3297 million in 2004 to $1827 million in 2006. It has managed to keep its debt to equity ratio lower than the market as well (Datamonitor, 2007). This allows the company to start off organic initiatives. The lower the gearing ratios, the easier it is to raise further capital for
Bibliography: Datamonitor, 2007, ‘SWOT on Starwood’, 15 October 2011, Accessed on 17 October 2011, Retrieved from http://www.datamonitor.com Evans, M. and Moutinho, L., 1999, Contemporary Issues in Marketing, Palgrave Macmillan, New York Ferguson, R. and Hlavinka, K., 2006, ‘Loyalty Trends 2006: Three Evolutionary Trends to transform your Loyalty Strategy’, Journal of Consumer Marketing, Nov 5, 2006, Vol. 23, p292-299 Fisk, R. P., Grove, S. J. and John, J., 2000, Interactive Services Marketing, Houghton Mifflin, Boston Gillespie, I., Lewis, R. and Hamilton, K., 1997, Principles of Financial Accounting, 1st edn, Prentice Hall, Europe Global Hotels, 2008, ‘Global Hotels, Resorts and Cruise Lines’, April 2010, Accessed on 22 October 2011, Retrieved from http://ebscohost.com/ehost Hilton, 2009, Accessed on 20 October 2011, Retrieved from http://worldwide1.hilton.com Pendlebury, M. and Groves, R., 2004, Company Accounts – Analysis, Interpretation and Understanding, 6th edn, Thomson Learning, London Starwood-Lobby, 2008, ‘Starwood Lobby’, Accessed on 24 October 2011, Retrieved from http://www.starwoodlobby.com/archives/2008/05/le_meridien_phu.html