Starwood Capital Group Unveils Baccarat Hotels and Resorts: The Ultimate Luxury Living Experience

    GREENWICH, Conn., July 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Starwood Capital Group, an
 international real estate investment and development firm led by Barry
 Sternlicht, announced today the creation of Baccarat Hotels and Resorts, a
 five-star luxury hotel brand inspired by Baccarat's global iconic status.
 Starwood Capital Group's controlled affiliate owns 86% of the shares of the
 Baccarat company. For more than 200 years, Baccarat has been synonymous
 with luxury, hand-crafted quality and the unending pursuit of perfection.
 Baccarat Hotels and Resorts will draw upon those same traits to deliver a
 distinctively personalized experience at the world's most sought-after
 locations.
     Each Baccarat Hotel will be unmistakably unique, designed to draw upon
 its surroundings while upholding the passionate attention to detail one
 would expect from the Baccarat name. From its impeccably high standards of
 service to its refined interior and exterior design, guests and residents
 will be instantly enveloped by Baccarat's world-renowned blend of culture
 and aesthetics from the moment they walk through the lobby doors. Every
 shimmering detail will radiate elegance, from luminous expansive rooms and
 residences, which will number from 80 to 250 per property, to luxurious
 furnishings, which will feature signature Baccarat chandeliers. Other
 features will include world-class dining options and exclusive services
 designed to shape personalized experiences for every guest.
     The first announced Baccarat Hotel project will be located in Wailea,
 Hawaii, expected to open in 2010, with several other locations to follow,
 including the Caribbean, Europe and the Far East. Baccarat Wailea will
 consist of 193 condominium homes ranging in size from one bedroom, 980
 square feet layouts to four-bedroom, 3,330 square feet residences.
     "Baccarat Hotels and Resorts will personify the pride and impeccable
 attention to detail that has made Baccarat one of the world's select few
 names that define and shape luxury," said Barry Sternlicht, who serves as
 Chairman and CEO of Starwood Capital and Chairman of Baccarat. "I am
 extremely excited for the opportunity to display Baccarat's extraordinary
 and distinctive pedigree in a new and unique way at some of the most
 breathtaking locations around the world. These hotels will serve as living
 innovation labs for the Baccarat brand as we move the parent company into
 today's fashion and design world."
     "For centuries Baccarat has built a reputation of providing elegant
 luxury products offering unparalleled beauty and flawless brilliance, and
 now we are thrilled to have the opportunity to produce these same elements
 on a much grander scale," said Marc Leclerc, Managing Director of Baccarat.
 "Building on our heritage as the provider of crystal to kings, we look
 forward to creating a new luxury living experience for sophisticated
 travelers that will be as unique and personal as each product we produce.
 We take great pride in Baccarat's legendary reputation for excellence, and
 look forward to working with Mr. Sternlicht, one of the hotel industry's
 great innovators, to create what we believe will truly be the preeminent
 name in luxury hotels."
     A Starwood Capital Group controlled affiliate acquired its majority
 interest in the Baccarat company as part of its acquisition in late 2005 of
 Societe Du Louvre. Mr. Sternlicht, who is widely known for revolutionizing
 the hospitality industry during his tenure at both Starwood Capital Group
 and previously as Chairman and CEO of Starwood Hotels and Resorts, also
 serves as Chairman of Societe Du Louvre.
     The Baccarat Hotels and Resorts will join two other international
 luxury hotel brands under development by Starwood Capital: Crillon and 1
 Hotels & Resorts.
     Starwood Capital Group
     Starwood Capital Group has been a leader in real estate investments
 since 1991. Its international investor base includes some of the United
 States' largest state and corporate pension funds, endowments and
 foundations and high-net worth families from around the world. During the
 past fifteen years, Starwood Capital and its affiliates have invested
 approximately $6 billion of equity capital in transactions representing
 over $30 billion of asset value. Starwood has closed and/or advised on over
 215 transactions ranging in size from $1 million to $14.6 billion, and has
 acquired equity interests in residential and multifamily, hotels, office,
 retail and industrial space, golf and leisure-related properties.
 Starwood's most recent transactions include the $3.2 billion acquisition of
 Groupe Taittinger and Societe du Louvre, Europe's second largest hotel
 network with a unique collection of 14 luxury hotels in Europe, including
 France and Switzerland, in addition to managing over 800 budget hotels
 throughout Europe plus the approximately $1 billion acquisition of 32 Le
 Meridien luxury, four/five star hotels located primarily across Europe but
 also in North America, Africa and South America. Starwood has led the
 formation and growth of several market leading companies including iStar
 Financial, the leading publicly traded finance company specializing in
 commercial real estate mortgage, mezzanine and net lease financing;
 Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, a leading global owner/operator of
 hotels, with ownership of brands such as Sheraton, Westin, The St. Regis
 Luxury Collection and the "W"; and National Golf Properties/American Golf
 Corporation, the largest owner/operator of golf courses and related
 facilities in the U.S. Starwood Capital Group no longer owns an equity
 stake in either iStar Financial or Starwood Hotels.
 
 

SOURCE Starwood Capital Group