Timbers Company’s recently-launched Soleil Hotels & Resorts brand had been a concept “kicking around” for the past few years, according to company CEO Greg Spencer, but it was thrown into high gear by the ongoing pandemic.
“COVID has had a profound impact across the world, but one good thing to come from what we’ve all been through is the re-prioritization of family and friends to come together and truly appreciate one another,” said Spencer. “This is the core of what we do as a company. For more than two decades, we have been designing environments for families and friends to come together and create lasting memories in some of the most special places on Earth.
“The idea for Soleil started with our desire to broaden the Timbers Company and the opportunities we pursue. As a real estate development company for the past two decades, we’ve been asked to consider a lot of locations that were not the right fit for the Timbers Resorts site selection criteria of A+ markets and A+ locations. We felt that many of these opportunities we were seeing still had great potential, so we decided to create Soleil as a sister brand. It allows us to say ‘yes’ to more locations at a more accessible price point.”
Soleil Hotels & Resorts will feature traditional hotels and private residences. In response to the increasing interest in second home ownership, Spencer said Timbers decided to launch the first Soleil with whole-ownership residences at Soleil Kauai, located in Kauai, HI. Located within the 450-acre development of Hōkūala and offering views of the Pacific Ocean and the verdant Ha’upu mountain range, Soleil Kauai features 72 condominium-style residences.
“Hawaii is hot and one of the top travel destinations following the pandemic when travelers couldn’t access international markets,” said Spencer. “Our first resort within Hōkūala was Timbers Kaua‘i—and we have had great success. As we develop new and different opportunities in Hōkūala, we knew that Soleil would be the perfect next offering. The market in Kaua‘i has been strong, and the demand from our Owners has been growing, so we are thrilled with the new Soleil product first in Hōkūala.”
Timbers Company is a leading developer and operator of luxury hotels, private residence clubs, master planned resorts and boutique properties in the world’s most exclusive ski, golf, leisure and beach destinations. Timbers Company brands now include Timbers Resort, as well as Soleil Hotels & Resorts.
Timbers Owners have access to properties in such locations as Aspen, Beaver Creek, Steamboat and Vail, CO; Jupiter, FL; Kauai, and Maui, HI; Kiawah Island, SC; Scottsdale, AZ; Sonoma, Napa and Southern California; Tuscany; Cabo San Lucas and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
“Timbers Resorts has been successful in creating amazing ultra-luxury resorts in some of the world’s most sought-after locations,” said Spencer. “But as the luxury market continues to expand and personal wealth diversifies to a larger audience, we felt there was room within the widening luxury category for two brands.
“Soleil is an exciting growth opportunity for Timbers Company overall and we feel that it is different enough that it will not impact the Timbers Resorts brand. We are in a hyper-growth mode, and we are actively pursuing opportunities for both brands. Each brand will have its own location strategy and site selection criteria. Soleil Hotels & Resorts growth will be entirely separate from Timbers Resorts growth.”
Overall, however, Spencer said Soleil is going to feel a lot more like Timbers than different.
“Soleil will be about taking what we have already successfully achieved with Timbers Resorts and translating that to a broader, more diverse market. Soleil will perfectly fit into the Timbers culture as it follows the same formula for creating multi-generational, family-focused, authentic experiences in incredible destinations.”
The key word there for Spencer? “Multi-generational.”
“Our definition of the ‘multi-generational’ traveler is about appealing to every member of our owners and guests’ extended families. Our owners are very affluent and can buy whatever they want. But what they can’t buy is time. They want more time to reconnect with family and friends and we create amazing destinations for families to come together to make memories.
“We want our resorts to be a place grandparents and parents are comfortable bringing their children and grandchildren. Multi-generational speaks to parents, grandparents and children all being comfortable traveling together. At Soleil, we will offer spaces that make everyone comfortable, amenities and services that appeal to all, and programming designed to bring the family together.”
Although Timbers has only announced Soleil Kaua‘i, Spencer said the company has “several other projects” in the pipeline and expects to make more property announcements later this year. Soleil properties will predominantly be in the U.S., in easily accessible, drive-to markets.
“We are currently looking at opportunities in beach, ski, golf, and leisure location—and more specifically in coastal Florida,” he said.
