The Crillon's flagship is the Hotel de Crillon in Paris, located on Place de la Concorde and one of only six Palace hotels (six-star) in that city. Housed in a historic building commissioned in 1758 by Louis XV, the 147-room de Crillon is considered a true Paris institution and has been a favorite of luminaries, including heads of state and celebrities, since it opened as a hotel in 1909. Starwood Capital expects that the Crillon Paris will undergo continuing upgrades in the near future.
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Hotel De Crillon 10 Place De La Concorde Paris

Each Crillon hotel, like its Paris flagship, will be designed to reflect the unique spirit and soul of its location, providing guests a one-of-a-kind luxury experience. The hotels and residences will include a full complement of top-line amenities, including premier shopping and dining options, world-class personalized unique service, spa and fitness facilities, and in some instances, a residential component.   Starwood Capital intends to enhance the dining experience in each Crillon by utilizing the expert services of its affiliated world class chefs.  Exquisite dining is perhaps the hallmark signature of French culture.  These chefs include Jean-Francois Piege, who currently supervises Les Ambassadeurs, and Guy Martin, Chef of the Grand Vefour and one of only a handful of three-star chefs in Paris.  In addition, each Crillon may include a Baccarat inspired Bar and a "Taittinger Champagne Lounge", two companies with global luxury brand status that are now part of the Societe du Louvre family of brands acquired by Starwood Capital.

"When Starwood Hotels & Resorts acquired ITT in 1998, there was only one St. Regis Hotel.  In my 10 year tenure as CEO, we were able to grow the brand to a dozen hotels open or under construction and a significant pipeline under development, including the recently completed St. Regis San Francisco.  At my departure from Starwood Hotels & Resorts, we had successfully moved St. Regis into the resort market in places like Anguilla and Punta Mita, Mexico," said Barry Sternlicht, Starwood Capital's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.

"Starwood Capital intends to pursue a brand growth strategy behind one of the European and global icons of the luxury hotel market.  Utilizing the backing of the $2.4 billion raised by Starwood Capital in its two recent funds last year, we will build and partner with global developers to expand this brand into the world's most important travel markets.  With the travel industry experiencing tremendous growth in many regions of the world, the time is right to launch a new, premium luxury hotel brand like the Crillon. The luxury travel market is one of the fastest growing segments in the industry and none of the existing luxury hotel brands are offering the style of European luxury and class that we have envisioned and that the Hotel de Crillon in Paris has been providing for nearly a century."

In 2005, Starwood Capital raised over $3.0 billion of equity capital and invested more than $1.7 billion in the hospitality area on behalf of its investors.  In early January, Starwood Capital completed the $3.2 billion acquisition of Societe du Louvre, Hotel de Crillon's parent company, whose controlled affiliates include Taittinger Champagne, Baccarat and Annick Goutal, a luxury fragrance brand.  Societe du Louvre's assets also include the world famous Hotel Martinez in Cannes, the Hotel Lutetia in Paris and Europe's second largest budget hotel chain with 805 hotels in six countries.

STARWOOD CAPITAL GROUP

Starwood Capital Group is a privately held investment management firm that specializes in real estate related investments on behalf of select private and institutional investment partners. Founded in 1991, Starwood Capital is one of the nation's most active and successful real estate investment firms, having acquired a highly diversified portfolio totaling more than $14.0 billion in real estate assets. During the past fifteen years, Starwood Capital has closed and/or advised on over 380 transactions ranging in size up to $14.6 billion, and has acquired equity interests in residential lots, multifamily and condominium units, hotels, office, retail and industrial space, golf and leisure-related properties. Starwood Capital has led the formation and growth of several market leading companies including iStar Financial (NYSE: SFI), the leading publicly traded finance company specializing in commercial real estate mortgage, mezzanine and net lease financing, and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide (NYSE: HOT), a leading global owner/operator of hotels, with ownership of brands such as Sheraton, Westin, St. Regis, Luxury Collection, Four Points and W Hotels. Starwood Capital (with its affiliates) maintains offices in Greenwich, Atlanta, San Francisco, Washington D.C., London and Tokyo.

Starwood Capital Group
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