FORT LAUDERDALE, December 10, 1998 � Despite economic uncertainty
in certain South American markets, fast-growing hotel company Choice Atlantica
Hotels is wrapping up a year punctuated by rapid growth and marked by impressive
investor commitment. And executives are predicting an even more aggressive
hotel development rate in 1999.
The company was formed in 1995 as Barrington International Hotels &
Restaurants, Inc. and renamed
Choice Atlantica Hotels in 1998 to reflect its exclusive commitment to
South American hotel development. The company holds the master franchise
agreement to develop Choice hotel brands � Comfort Inns, Hotels and
Suites; Quality Inns, Hotels and Suites; Clarion Inns, Hotels, Suites and
Resorts; and Sleep Inns � in the South American countries of Brazil,
Argentina, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Uruguay, Paraguay and Bolivia.
The group forms partnerships with individual and institutional investors
to develop, franchise and operate these hotels which are recognized internationally
for high standards of quality and service.
The young firm garnered a number of noteworthy achievements in 1998.
Among them:
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The company expanded its master franchise agreement with Choice Hotels
International to include Chile, Peru, Ecuador and Bolivia. Its original
agreement � signed in 1995 � covered the countries of Brazil, Argentina,
Uruguay and Paraguay.
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Choice Atlantica Hotels formed a major partnership agreement with Darby
Overseas Investments, Inc., a Latin American private equity fund headed
by Nicholas F. Brady, former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury. Through the
partnership, Choice Atlantica Hotels plans to develop 140 hotels in South
America over the next five years.
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Choice Atlantica Hotels opened a toll-free reservations center in Santiago;
centers in Buenos Aires and Sao Paulo are scheduled to early in 1999. The
reservations centers can book Choice hotels throughout the Mercosur and
around the world.
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The company�s portfolio of operating hotels includes two in Brazil,
one in Argentina and five in Chile. The company will add at least six hotels
in 1999, eight in 2000 and five in 2001. Many projects are presently under
construction.
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Among the most prominent projects is the construction � presently underway
� of a $25 million Clarion Hotel at the Guarulhos International Airport
in Sao Paulo. It is expected to open in November 2001.
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In order to fully focus on its activities in South America, Choice Atlantica
Hotels sold its 34-property hotel group, Croatian Hotels & Resorts.
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Among the most prominent projects in 1998, the company assumed management
of the Comfort Hotel & Suites - Trianon Park in Sao Paulo and the Quality
Suites Mykonos in the coastal resort town of Renaca, Chile. The Comfort
Inn & Suites in Buenos Aires was added as a franchise hotel in November,
the first of an estimated 30 hotels slated for this country.
�We believe that Latin America will command increasing attention from international
investors,� said Paul J. Sistare, president and CEO of Choice Atlantica
Hotels. �By developing these business-traveler-friendly, internationally
known hotels, we are well-positioned to successfully serve the travelers
who are coming in increasing numbers from around the world.�
Based in Sao Paulo, Choice Atlantica Hotels is the fastest growing
hotel management company in South America. It also has offices in Fort
Lauderdale, Buenos Aires and Santiago, Chile. |