Draft:Ascend Collection

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  • Comment: The prose remains turgid. A conspicuous example is at the very start: The Ascend Collection is an upper upscale brand owned by Choice Hotels International. Established in 2008, hotels in the collection consist of historic and boutique hotels. Does this mean something other than The Ascend Collection is a brand used by Choice Hotels International since 2008 for higher-priced historic and boutique hotels? -- Hoary (talk) 23:01, 13 August 2025 (UTC)
  • Comment: To show that this meets WP:NCORP, I think you'd want to be able to show some mainstream coverage (not just industry publications). But I'm not really sure why you wouldn't just significantly condense this information and add it to Choice Hotels. Since you have a COI, you'd want to use WP:EDITCOI guidelines to do so. asilvering (talk) 03:59, 13 August 2025 (UTC)
  • Comment: The prose is tortured. Sample: building upon its existing portfolio of 20+ non-U.S. presence that included six locations in Sweden. I guess that this means "adding more hotels outside the U.S., including six in Sweden". If this is indeed what it means, how about using this easily understandable prose? If on the other hand it means something else, then what does it mean? Hoary (talk) 11:31, 11 August 2025 (UTC)
  • Comment: In accordance with the Wikimedia Foundation's Terms of Use, I disclose that I have been paid by my employer for my contributions to this article. Wikisschrift (talk) 00:09, 5 August 2025 (UTC)



Ascend Collection
IndustryHospitality
Founded2008[1]
Area served
Worldwide[2]
ParentChoice Hotels International
Websitewww.choicehotels.com/ascend

The Ascend Collection is a brand launched by Choice Hotels International[3][4] in 2008 for higher-priced historic and boutique hotels.[5][1][6] Competing brands include Best Western’s Signature and Premier Collections, Wyndham’s Trademark collection, and IHG’s voco collection.[2]

History

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The Ascend Hotel Collection was launched during the recession of 2008. It was an early example of "soft branding" in the hotel industry.[1][7][8] While the meaning of "soft brand" varies, a simple definition by Robert Rauch is "a hotel that is backed by a leading brand whose name does not appear on the building".[7] Soft branded hotels may sometimes be newly constructed properties, but they typically already have an established presence.[9]

Ascend Collection properties are independently operated, leading to wide variation in theme and design.[5][10][11][12] Early Ascend Collection locations included the Golden Hotel in Golden, Colorado, the Kress Inn in De Pere, Wisconsin, and Hotel Bothwell in Sedalia, Missouri.[13] While primarily a group of pre-existing boutique hotels that signed onto the Ascend brand, Choice Hotels undertook some new construction initiatives in the mid-2010s, signing contracts in 2014 for 11 newly built Ascend Collection hotels.[14]

In 2016, the brand announced a three-year expansion in Europe, adding up to 10 properties in the U.K., and 80 across the mainland. This built upon the brand's existing portfolio of 20+ hotels outside the U.S., which included six locations in Sweden, two each in Ireland and Norway, and one in Denmark.[15]

Corporate Affairs

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The Ascend Collection is widely considered to be the hotel industry's first soft brand.[1][6][16][17] By the end of 2024, the Ascend Collection had more than 400 locations across the Americas, Europe, Middle-East, and the Asia-Pacific region, with over half of its properties in the U.S.[2] A new logo for the Ascend Collection brand was introduced in 2025.[18]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d Ivanova, Maya (2019). Rafailova, Genka; Marinov, Stoyan (eds.). Tourism and Intercultural Communication and Innovations. Newcastle upon Tyne, U.K.: Cambridge Scholars Publishing. pp. 85–99. ISBN 978-1-5275-3317-2.
  2. ^ a b c "10-Q for 1Q2025". www.sec.gov. Retrieved June 20, 2025.
  3. ^ Levere, Jane L. (April 4, 2011). "The Rush to Boutique". The New York Times. Retrieved September 18, 2025.
  4. ^ Weed, Julie (May 8, 2017). "A Hotel for Every Traveler, Sometimes Several Under One Roof". The New York Times. Retrieved September 18, 2025.
  5. ^ a b Beanland, Chris (August 30, 2017). "Hotel Harry review: The Sydney saloon with a taste of the Wild West". The Independent. Retrieved September 18, 2025.
  6. ^ a b Vinod, Ben (2022). Revenue Management in the Lodging Industry: Origins to the Last Frontier. Grapevine, Tx: Springer. p. 56. ISBN 978-3-031-14301-4.
  7. ^ a b Hoisington, Alicia (July 18, 2019). "Soft-brand collections: The new norm?". Hotel Management. Retrieved August 4, 2025.
  8. ^ Baker, Terence (September 25, 2025). "Timeline: The Beginnings, Explosion of Soft Brands". CoStar. Retrieved June 26, 2025.
  9. ^ Oladipo, Doyinsola; Jain, Aishwarya (March 25, 2024). "Big hotel chains and unbranded-hotel owners find they need each other". Reuters. Retrieved September 9, 2025.
  10. ^ Alexander, David (October 24, 2011). "Muskegon's Shoreline Inn now part of Choice Hotel's 'Ascend Collection'". MLive. Retrieved September 18, 2025.
  11. ^ Mala, Elisa (January 17, 2014). "Hotel Review: The Thief in Oslo". The New York Times. Retrieved September 18, 2025.
  12. ^ Harris, Rachel (November 7, 2013). "In Oslo, an Art Rock Hotel". The New York Times. Retrieved September 18, 2025.
  13. ^ Perkowsky, Adam (April 24, 2023). "Choice marks 15 years since launching soft-brand segment". Hotel Business. Retrieved June 26, 2025.
  14. ^ Ricca, Stephanie (February 23, 2015). "New Construction Fuels Choice's Growth". CoStar. Retrieved June 26, 2025.
  15. ^ Baker, Terence (January 25, 2016). "Choice Debuts Ascend Collection in UK". CoStar. Retrieved June 26, 2025.
  16. ^ Isenberg, Gary (July 13, 2016). "Soft Branding: A Smart Option for Independent Hoteliers". CoStar. Retrieved September 18, 2025.
  17. ^ Powell, Laura (May 14, 2024). "Hard facts about soft brands". Hotel Management. Retrieved June 26, 2025.
  18. ^ Lodging staff (May 7, 2025). "Choice Hotels International Concludes Its 69th Annual Convention". Lodging. Retrieved June 26, 2025.
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Media related to Ascend Collection at Wikimedia Commons