On the Road with Coleman – What Choice Hotels Owners Want to Tell Small Business Lenders

April 14, 2014

By Bob Coleman
Editor, Coleman Report

Listen to Bob Coleman’s short 1:45min interview with Chairman Rocky Pintozzi and Vice-Chairman Bobby Sheth at the 2014 Choice Hotels Owners Investment Conference in Tempe, AZ today, April 14, 2014.

Bob Coleman: I am talking with Rocky Pintozzi and Bobby Sheth from the Choice Hotel Owners Council. This is a great event, you have 300 people here. I spoke earlier to the audience about what lenders are looking for. What do the lenders want to know about Choice?

Bobby Sheth: At this event we have 300 owners here, but they actually represent 1200 hotels in our portfolio. Choice hotels is 10 brands. It includes Comfort Suites, Cambria, Comfort Inn, Quality, and a few others. As far as brand growth and brand development we are everywhere in the market. We are really focused on the business traveler. We already have the liesure market down pact but this year as we move forward, it’s really for the business traveler.

Bob Coleman: Rocky I was impressed, these hotel owners care about livelihoods, their employees, their personal investment. As a voice, what do they want small business lenders to know about them collectively?

Rocky Pintozzi: 60-70% of hotel owners are single unit operators. They live the operations of the business everyday. They are there talking to customers, they are making sales calls to sell their product. You are lending to a big family of friends here but really they own and operate it themselves. This is their livelihood, this is their savior. This pays for college and things like that. They really wear it on their sleeve, that is where most of us came from, we are second generation hotiliers ourself.

Bob Coleman: Rocky and Bobby I enjoyed being here, what a great story for your people being here and also thank you for telling the small business lending community.