The $1 billion overhaul of Holiday Inns -- an effort to "contemporize" the 57-year-old brand and weed out laggards -- began two years ago, and about 1,400
outlets have already completed the process. About 300 of the remaining 1,300 have yet to begin the renovations, according to Kevin Kowalski, IHG's svp of brand management for Holiday Inn.
Speaking to franchisees in Washington, D.C., yesterday, Kowalski was adamant that the company would stick to its timetable and standards. "We're not changing the components of this process, and we're not changing the timing," he said, adding that hotels that don't meet the deadline "will get a failure letter and so will their banks."
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