StepStone Hospitality leads Twin Cities Hotel from foreclosure to top of the Marriott brand.
MINNEAPOLIS – The Minneapolis Marriott Northwest has been named “Hotel of the Year” for the Americas by Marriott International, continuing its strong run under the Marriott brand. The recent recognition is a crowning achievement in a turnaround that began nearly five years ago.
StepStone Hospitality took over management of the hotel in October 2010 after it went into foreclosure a year earlier. Formerly known as the Northland Inn, the hotel completed an extensive $24 million renovation prior to converting to the Marriott brand in July 2012. At the time, StepStone committed to making the hotel a cornerstone property in the Marriott family.
“This great hotel has become just the kind of successful and locally involved property that we knew it had the potential to be,” said Thomas Russo, chief executive officer, StepStone Hospitality. “The team really deserves this recognition and we appreciate the way our guests have embraced the changes we’ve made.”
“We’re proud of our staff and their extraordinary efforts on behalf of this hotel,” said General Manager Bob Schrader. “They’ve really gone above and beyond to be of service not only to the hotel and our guests, but also to the local community.”
The hotel was also recently recognized for “Property Sales Team of the Year,” gaining recognition for effective sales and marketing combined with a commitment to serving the community. The team is credited with quickly ramping up the hotel’s revenues, both rooms and food & beverage following the renovation, through both regional and local initiatives, while at the same time giving back to the community.
The awards are based on a number of criteria including customer service, community service, and RevPAR (revenue per available room) penetration. In recent years the property also received the Marriott Renovation Excellence Award and the Marriott Service Excellence Award for finishing #1 out of all full-service Marriott hotels in guest satisfaction.
The hotel has more than 50,000 square feet of meeting and event space that can handle up to 850 guests, making it one of the top conference hotels in the Twin Cities area. The facility hosts more than 1,000 events annually for local and national corporations and associations, community organizations and family events, such as weddings.
The all-suite hotel offers some of the most spacious guest rooms in the Upper Midwest. Its 230 two and three-room guest suites are designed with a living room and a separate bedroom.
The lobby includes a massive natural stone fireplace with casual seating areas, an extensive fitness center, a business center, an event planning office, and a private reception dining area. Wadsworth’s Bar & Grill is open for breakfast, lunch, dinner and drinks.
Vicky is the co-founder of TravelDailyNews Media Network where she is the Editor-in Chief. She is also responsible for the daily operation and the financial policy. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Business Administration from the Technical University of Athens and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales.
She has many years of both academic and industrial experience within the travel industry. She has written/edited numerous articles in various tourism magazines.
