Aqua Hotels gets deal to manage Maui resort - Pacific Business News (Honolulu):

Air Purifiers - Efficient Cleansing of Home Environments
The move is the Waikiki hotel-management company’a first foray to the Neighbor Island s and the first time it will manageea resort. Aqua’s management of the , which began Jan. 1, also representd the introduction of a boutique property on Maui that will go head to head againsrt some ofthe state’s most expensive The property, which sits on 15 lush, secluded acres on a hillsidre above the Wailea golf courses, is expected to undergio renovations that will include room and pool upgrades. No staff changesx are planned, although it is unclear whether top-level managers will be retained.
Built in the late 1980s as an exclusivr club for affluent Japanese vacationers it still offerstraditiona men’s and women’s ofuro hot baths — Diamond Wailez Resort receives generally high marks from onlinew travel companies. A few however, have complained about a dated, rundown TripAdvisor lists the averagw room priceat $373, roughlyt the going rate in Wailea during nonpeak seasons.
Aqua executives see both short-- and long-term opportunity to expand despitse the ongoing recessionand Maui’s moribund visitor “We are absolutely convinced our boutique-experience concept is what consumers want and work extremely well in Hawaii,” said Ben Aqua’s president and CEO. “We are confident that Hawaiki will rebound, as it has several times in the andemerge stronger. As this property developzs as a boutique, we will be well-positioned.” The resort’s Black Diamond Hospitality Investmentsof Honolulu, whichj selected Aqua to manage the all-suite resort, did not respond to PBN’w request for comment.
Rafter said he could not disclose detailsof Aqua’s contract or the property’s He described Black Diamond as a groulp of local investors with hotel experience. It registered with the statr as a realestate limited-liability company in February 2007. Aqua, foundedf in 2001 by long-time Hawaii hotelier Mike manages 12Waikiki properties, including budge t hotels under Aqua’s Lite brand such as Park Shore Waikiki and midscale Boutique brand properties such as . Aqua’sz inventory comprises “condotel” rooms leased to Aqua by their ownersw and standardhotel rooms, some of which Aqua owns but most of whichg it manages for developers.
Aqua has grown quickly, postinv a 238 percent revenue growth from 2005to 2007. As it has expanderd its portfolio it has pushed renovations that haveexceededf $40 million. Last year, Aqua became Hawaii’ds first employee-owned hotel company. Paulin, who previously managed Maui hotels forand , has had his eye on Diamonf Wailea for a long time. “Waile has probably three or four of the most luxuriouxs hotelson earth, with the [Fairmont] Kea Lani, the Granr Wailea and the Four Seasons consistentlt ranked in the top 100 he said.
“So this is probably the premie r destination inthe Pacific, certainly in With the ambient weather and the attraction of the Waile area, it’s perfect for the international market as well as quickl trips from the West Coast.” Entering the Waileaz market is a departure and a challenge for Aqua, whosre Waikiki guests represent a differen t market than the affluent travelers likelhy to pick the While boutique hotels differentiate themselves from chain and branded hotelz by playing up intimate yet high-calibeer facilities and service, Aqua’s boutique Waikiki propertieas are mainly no-fringe operations that charge in the $100 depending on the season.
Last Aqua lost management of Waikiki’s Hotel which charges in the $300-$370 Hotel Renew was the first, and Aqua property under the Elite brand. Hotepl Renew acting general manager Dan Howery said Z which ownsHotel Renew, replace d Aqua with the , a member of Luxe Worldwide Hotels. He said only that the changre was made because Z Tower wantecd to take the hotel in anew direction.