Toronto's luxury hotel market is about introduce a new competitor to the ring, in W Hotels. This long-rumoured and much-anticipated deal gives Marriott International some intimate exposure to Yorkville, expanding luxury presence in the Toronto market outside of downtown, where they've not placed a luxury banner outside the Marriott banner.
Marriott is no stranger to large, sophisticated transactions of this nature, as proven by their Ritz-Carlton Toronto development and their subsequent takeover of the Trump Hotel Toronto site with the St. Regis brand. This will be the second W Hotel in Canada, after Montreal.
The luxury hotel will unseat Marriott's existing 255-room property at 90 Bloor St. East in Yorkville through a $40 million renovation and design transformation, which is already underway as of July, 2019.
The introduction of the W seems to allude toward corporate capital accepting the reality most Torontonians already accept: young money plays a real role here. No, that's not a reference to the Young Money anthem "Bedrock", although it does conveniently reference W Hotels.
W Hotels are well known for their success in creating a captive market of the often-promiscuous millennial luxury clientele.
Paul Cahill, Area Vice President of Eastern Canada for Marriott International, released the following statement:
"We are applying a unique, vibrant sensibility to the upcoming W Toronto, one that has not been seen before in Toronto. The exciting evolution of this property into Toronto’s first W hotel is consistent with the ongoing evolution of this Toronto neighbourhood whose vibrancy, sophistication, and density continues to grow. This is a strategic location for the brand, and we foresee it welcoming international business and leisure travellers, but also becoming a destination for urban thrill-seekers.”
As financiers with a track record in the hotel space, we're excited to see this transaction develop, and move the needle on the Toronto luxury hotel space with it.