Cambria has signed several franchise agreements since the beginning of the year, adding to its pipeline in major markets such as Jacksonville and Tampa, Florida; Nashville, Tennessee; and Atlanta, Georgia. The brand also broke ground on three new hotels in Austin, Texas; downtown Minneapolis; and Somerville, Massachusetts, which join 26 other Cambria hotels currently under construction.
"Downturns can present opportunity, and Cambria's dedicated development team has been working around the clock to identify and create opportunities for our development partners during these unprecedented times," said Mark Shalala, senior vice president of development, upscale brands, Choice Hotels. "Cambria persevered during the 2008 recession in part by providing developers with balance sheet support and filling equity gaps in projects. Similarly, we entered the COVID-19 pandemic with an extremely strong balance sheet, which has allowed us to continue to invest in the brand's growth and help drive new projects forward with incentives and capital support. We believe Cambria's robust pipeline and strong investment potential help position the brand to emerge from the current crisis even stronger than before."
"Cambria's continued growth, in today's challenging environment, showcases how the brand's strategic locations and locally inspired designs truly resonate with developers and consumers," said Janis Cannon, senior vice president of upscale brands, Choice Hotels. "Cambria hotels are designed to help guests make the most of their trips, and as guests are ready to travel again, Cambria will be there to provide the experience they've come to know and love, with a heightened focus on health and wellness – helping people feel at their best."
Cambria hotels are participating in Commitment to Clean, which is Choice Hotels' holistic approach to supplying franchisees and their employees with the tools they need to help Choice-branded hotels achieve superior levels of cleanliness and addressing health and safety concerns associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. The initiative enhances existing best practice guidance for deep cleaning, disinfecting, hygiene and social distancing. Additionally, Cambria guests can limit their interactions with hotel staff by using the Cambria Contactless Concierge Service, a text messaging service for housekeeping requests, to-go food orders, meeting room requests and more.
There are over 50 Cambria hotels open across the U.S. in popular cities such as Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, New Orleans, Phoenix and Washington, D.C., with over 80 hotels in the pipeline.