Hotels, Fairmont Hotel Management link up By Deidre Stark Princess hotels' names to change; New career prospects for employees; Expanded marketing opportunities A prestigious new global empire of luxury resorts is set to run and market Bermuda's two Princess hotels, in a management deal made public yesterday.

Months of secret planning led to the announcement that Canadian Pacific Hotels and the owners of Fairmont Hotel Management -- Kingdom Hotels (USA) Ltd. and Maritz Wolff & Co. -- are to form the new Fairmont Hotels & Resorts Inc.

But the partnership will also bring another name change for two of the Island's best-known hotels, less than a year after they began operating under the Canadian Pacific banner.

Fairmont Hotels will be the global brand used by the group to expand internationally while the Canadian Pacific Hotels name will remain on Canadian products.

Southampton Princess general manager Norman Mastalir said yesterday that the hotel names would change to become the Fairmont Southampton Princess and the Fairmont Hamilton Princess once the deal was finalised in mid-1999.

He played down any possible negative impact for employees in Bermuda but said Fairmont's global reach would provide "exciting new career and training opportunities'' for the workers.

"We have formed a new management group which will operate the Canadian Pacific Hotels but Canadian Pacific is still the controlling partner of that partnership. We will still report to the same people.'' And the deal also meant vastly expanded marketing opportunities.

Research showed eight out of ten Americans were familiar with the Fairmont name and the high-quality of hotels with which it was linked, he said.

"For us in Bermuda this is a tremendous marketing advantage in our biggest market which is the US,'' he said.

"For eight out of ten people in the US Fairmont means luxury, first-rate hotels like The Plaza in New York or the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco -- very high-profile properties.'' "This is a great opportunity for Bermuda because it is going to affiliate us with a chain of hotels well known to our primary market.'' Fairmont's seven landmark hotels in US gateway cities will be combined with Canadian Pacific Hotel's portfolio of 28 properties in Canada, Bermuda, Barbados, Mexico, the US and Acapulco.

New partnership to run hotels Canadian Pacific Hotels will hold a 67 percent interest in Fairmont and will bring management contracts for its hotels to the union.

Fairmont Hotel Management is to contribute the management contracts of their properties as well as the well-known Fairmont brand name.

The deal does not affect real estate ownership of the properties.

Canadian Pacific Hotels chairman and CEO, Bill Fatt, said the company was proud to link icon hotels like The Plaza in New York and the Copley Plaza in Boston with other historic properties like the Hamilton Princess or the Royal York.

"We anticipate that guests who are used to the Fairmont style of service and accommodations will be delighted to discover our Canadian hotels or our warm weather resorts and vice versa.

"Marketing and sales efforts will be facilitated by the fact that our hotels have so much in common in terms of customer base and culture.'' Waterside view: The Princess Hotel in Pembroke, known by many as the Hamilton Princess.

Prime location: The Southampton Princess, built in the early 70s.