ABSTRACT
Kimpton Hotels built a portfolio of unique properties in the upscale segment of the industry, and they are credited with inventing the "boutique" hotel segment in 1981. The distinctive value proposition associated with the Kimpton brand guaranteed the customer a unique and satisfying experience along five different dimensions, what the company referred to as Care, Comfort, Style, Flavor, and Fun. The program had been field tested at Kimpton hotels in San Francisco, a singular city in one of the most environmentally progressive states in the US. The US hotel industry with its 4.5 million rooms, common areas and lobbies, conventions, restaurants, laundry facilities and back offices have a significant environmental impact. In contrast to the US, hotels in Canada and Europe seemed to be embracing the hotel greening process, as exemplified by the Fairmont Hotel & Resorts effort to institutionalize innovative approaches to reducing their environmental footprint throughout their operations.
