Luxury-operator Ritz-Carlton is moving into the boutique segment with a new brand called "the Reserve," the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday. The first will be a 125-room property on the island of West Caicos in the Caribbean, which should open sometime next year. Ritz-Carlton's vice president of public relations, Vivian Deuschl, says the new brand will focus on underdeveloped areas of the world, unlike current Ritz-Carlton properties located primarily in gateway cities. Since the new hotels will be situated in less-traveled areas, they will cater more to leisure travel than to corporate and group-meeting business, which is a large chunk of Ritz-Carlton's guest roll. Though the company refers to "the Reserve" brand as boutique, it says that it will still maintain the same excellence in service that is a hallmark of the luxury brand. Company officials say they will look to open more Reserve properties in the Caribbean and Asia.
