Choice Hotels International (nyse: CHH) is a hospitality holding corporation which owns several hotel brands and is based in Silver Spring, Maryland.

History

The company was started in 1939 in Maryland as Quality Courts United, a referral chain consisting of about seven motel owners. Later, the motel chain operated simply under the name Quality Motels (1969-71) and Quality Inns (since 1972). Quality Courts United accepted franchise hotels without strict norms or guidelines from the company. This is different from Holiday Inn which from their early beginnings implemented numerous mandatory standards and guidelines (e.g. room size and amenities) at every one of their locations. Also, Quality Inn accepted franchisees with existing hotels.

During its early years, Quality Courts' operations were entirely in areas of the U.S. east of the Mississippi River and portions of Canada. From 1946 to 1964, Quality had a marketing partnership with Best Western, whose properties were located mostly west of the Mississippi River, and thus not in direct competition with Quality. While this partnership made sense geographically, it did not go over well in the long run, and was abandoned in 1964 as Best Western expanded into the Eastern U.S. with its Best Eastern operation (which was replaced by a nationwide Best Western operation in 1967). Quality Courts began its efforts toward national coverage in 1966 when it opened a motel in St. Louis, Missouri and two in Texas at Houston and Arlington.

The company became Quality International as the company switched to franchising in 1972. A few years later, the franchising well on its way, about 300 hotels were independently owned and only about 38 were still company-owned.

In 1982, Quality Inns pioneered segmentation in the lodging industry by introducing Comfort Inns and Quality Royale. Comfort Inn competes with such chains such as AmericInn Hotels; Baymont Inn and Fairfield Inn by Marriott; Quality Royale was meant to compete with upper midpriced chains like Red Lion and Four Points by Sheraton. Comfort Inn experienced impressive growth in the 1980s and 1990s. Quality Royale was converted to Clarion in 1987 and all-suite divisions, Comfort Suites and Quality Suites were introduced as the first mid-market all-suite chains. The original Quality Inn brand competes with Holiday Inn, Best Western, and Ramada.

In 1989, the company introduced Sleep Inn, a revolutionary economy brand utilizing a consistent interior corridor design prototype and all-new construction, designed by Rob Spurr. The company bought the three economy-oriented chains known as Friendship Inns, Rodeway Inn, and Econo Lodge in the early 1990s, while changing the corporate name to Choice Hotels International. Friendship Inns would later be absorbed into the Rodeway and Econo Lodge chains; no Friendship Inns exist today.

In the late 1990s the company would introduce the extended-stay Mainstay Suites brand and the Choice Privileges frequent guest loyalty program.