????萬豪酒店(Marriott Hotels)終于調整至最佳狀態。該連鎖酒店由前摩門教傳教士創立，現在仍由其79歲的兒子比爾?馬瑞特（首席執行官）執掌。多年來，酒店一直秉承堅實可靠的企業信譽（如果不是因循守舊的話），如今開始入主時尚的精品酒店市場，以吸引年輕、新潮的顧客。

????萬豪(MAR，財富500強)聯袂酒店業者伊恩?施拉格推出全新時尚連鎖酒店品牌EDITION——直接瞄準當前喜達屋酒店集團旗下W酒店占主要地位的細分市場。五月份，EDITION酒店正式亮相伊斯坦布爾商業區，W酒店也是在這個東西方交匯的城市開始了其歐洲攻勢。隨后幾家EDITION酒店預計將于明年推出，并且超出當前W酒店所在的范圍：巴塞羅那、墨西哥城、南海灘以及倫敦——W酒店于二月份在倫敦萊斯特廣場（Leicester Square）正式開業。

????“這意味著我們能夠進軍至今還未觸及的市場，”總經理斯達特?內姆里在伊斯坦布爾EDITION酒店告訴筆者， 酒店大堂里充滿了紅茶的香味。電梯中的馬賽克地板、圓頂天花板大廳以及客房中懸掛的銅燈造型優美，用現代手法完美詮釋了拜占庭風格?！拔覀兿Ｍ脽ㄈ灰恍碌拿婷渤尸F一個全的新品牌，這既是挑戰，又是機遇，”他說。

????為確保持續增長，萬豪熱切希望能夠吸引更為年輕的顧客，并彌補其損失，因為在經濟衰退期間，商旅人士放棄了萬豪旗下高端的麗思卡爾頓酒店（Ritz-Carlton）。萬豪的股價依然徘徊在其2007年頂峰時的65%左右，盡管在很大程度上萬豪已從2009年初的低谷中得以恢復。

萬豪酒店：最佳雇主

????首家EDITION酒店去年秋天登陸夏威夷威基基海灘，但這一嘗試并不成功。五月份，威基基EDITION酒店的所有者和開發商起訴萬豪和施拉格，稱他們必須對“酒店極低的入住率和房費”負責。（酒店為特許經營。）訴訟中稱酒店每日房價為220美元，入住率不及30%。（伊斯坦布爾EDITION酒店的每日房價為425美元至600美元。）施拉格在一份聲明中稱該訴訟“無聊可笑”，并將越來越不景氣的旅游歸咎于重要市場日本的萎縮——該國在今年年初遭遇地震和海嘯的襲擊。他還提到威基基EDITION酒店開業時獲得的熱烈反響，其中包括《旅游與休閑》雜志（Travel + Leisure）的評論。

????現在斷言EDITION酒店在伊斯坦布爾的表現還為時尚早，但首批游客在旅游點評網站TripAdvisor上對酒店裝潢時尚、服務周到以及ESPA水療中心贊不絕口。伊斯坦布爾當地居民也對該酒店興趣頗濃，原因之一是該酒店取代并復建了這座城市著名的地標性建筑之一——匯豐銀行（HSBC）駐土耳其總部，該建筑在2003年的一次自殺式炸彈襲擊中毀于一旦。銀行三名員工喪生，基地組織宣稱對這一事件負責。

????但所有這一切都已成為久遠的歷史。5月2日，土耳其名流政要出席了伊斯坦布爾EDITION酒店的開業典禮。就在前一天，美國出人意料地宣布其特種部隊已經成功擊斃了本?拉登。

????伊斯坦布爾W酒店的入住率依然很高，不像EDITION酒店那樣低調的布置，W酒店傾向于奧斯曼帝國式的富麗堂皇。喜達屋酒店首席執行官Frits van Paasschen說：“我們已經占領先機。”在近期與《財富》雜志（Fortune）編輯的交談中，他表示W酒店擁有強大的擁躉并歡迎競爭：“這正是資本主義美好的一面?！?/p>

????Marriott Hotels is finally getting its groove on. After years of riding a solid-if-not-stodgy corporate reputation, the chain founded by a former Mormon missionary and still run by his 79-year-old CEO son, Bill Marriott, is going after the chic boutique hotel market in an attempt to lure younger, hipper customers.

????Marriott (MAR, Fortune 500) has linked with hot hotelier Ian Schrager to launch a new chain called EDITION hotels -- aiming squarely at the segment currently dominated by W Hotels owned by Starwood. In May, an EDITION hotel officially debuted in its first corporate location in a business district of Istanbul, the East-meets-West city where W launched its European push. The next several EDITIONs are scheduled to launch next year and beyond in locales where W Hotels are present: Barcelona, Mexico City, South Beach, and London -- where a W opened in Leicester Square in February.

????"It means being able to tap into a market that we weren't present in until now," says Sedat Nemli, general manager at the Istanbul EDITION, where the lobby and amenities are scented of black tea. Mosaic tile floors in the elevator bank, domed ceiling lobby, and hanging bronze lamps in the rooms evoke a sleek, modernist interpretation of Byzantium. "We have a challenge and opportunity to present a new brand in a new setting," he says.

????In order to keep growth moving forward, Marriott has been keen to lure a younger clientele and to make up for the losses it took during the recession when business travelers turned away from the high-end Ritz-Carlton chain, which it also owns. Marriott's stock price remains roughly 35% below its 2007 peak, though it has largely recovered from its depths in early 2009.

Marriott: Best Companies to Work For

????A first EDITION hotel had opened on Waikiki Beach in Hawaii last fall, but that foray isn't going so well. The Waikiki EDITION's owner and developer filed a lawsuit against Marriott and Schrager in late May alleging that they were to blame for "outrageously low occupancy levels and average daily room rates." (The hotels are franchise operations.) The suit said that occupancy was less than 30% with average daily room rates of $220. (Rooms at the Istanbul EDITION start at $425 to $600.) Schrager, in a statement, called the suit "frivolous" and blamed decreased tourism from the important market of Japan, which was hit by an earthquake and tsunami earlier this year. He also pointed to glowing design reviews the Waikiki EDITION received when it opened, including one in Travel + Leisure magazine.

????It's too early to tell how the EDITION in Istanbul is doing, but initial traveler reviews on TripAdvisor have raved about the chic décor, attentive service, and ESPA spa. Interest is high among Istanbul locals as well, in part because the hotel took over and restored a famous site -- the former HSBC bank headquarters in Turkey, which was heavily damaged by a suicide bomber in 2003. Three bank employees were killed, and Al-Qaeda claimed responsibility.

????But all that is ancient history now. The opening ceremony of the EDITION Istanbul, attended by Turkish celebrities and government officials, came on May 2, the day after the surprise announcement that U.S. Navy Seals had killed Osama bin Laden.

????At the W Istanbul, meanwhile, occupancy remains high, and instead of the understated tones at the EDITION, the décor trends toward the Ottoman opulent. "We have been able to get the first-mover advantage," says Starwood CEO Frits van Paasschen, who noted in a recent conversation with Fortune editors that W Hotels have such a strong following that the competition is welcome: "That's the beauty of capitalism."