# More good news from HCC... Friends & Family fee waived...



## Bourne (Feb 13, 2008)

http://www.highcountryclub.com/membership/Family_and_Friends.asp


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## pwrshift (Feb 13, 2008)

Why is this a good thing ... and what would that cost be? Example...if you send your best friend and his wife to an HCC for the 3 night weekend, do you pay a big bump for the whole year's dues in order to do it? Wouldn't a $39 'guest fee' like Interval be enough?


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## capjak (Feb 13, 2008)

I agree why such a high cost 20% in fees because a friend/family member is using the week owned by a member.  

Guess I better start charging when my parents come and stay at my house when I'm not there, you know extra snacks/heat etc..


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## m61376 (Feb 14, 2008)

This whole policy was one of the things that bothered me about HCC. In reality, now they are giving you the "privelege" of being able to take freinds and family along with you on a trip; shouldn't that be one of the inherent benefits in having bigger accomodations to begin with? Also, if I want to gift a family member or friend a week I have already paid for and otherwise would be entitled to use, why should it cost me 20% more in annual dues? Maybe I am missing something here, but I just don't get it....


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## vivalour (Feb 14, 2008)

Some viewpoints from another forum:

<<Destination Clubs, by definition, are exclusive and private. Just like private golf clubs, they are not generally open to the public (family or not) without a member being present. If HCC wants to open it up to family and friends (for an extra fee) it may cause certain buyers to join this club over another club.>> 

From LTTravel :
<<I may be in the minority but I think it is a mistake not to charge a premium for family and friends. Let's face it, family and friends are less likely to "respect" the properties as the members do. This may not always be the case but just look at timeshares, those overrun by rentals are much more rundown than those occupied by owners (just check out pwrshts description of Marriott Ft. Lauderdale) Availabilty will decrease significantly as now members can book more freely. 
I think it is a mistake and think they should keep the extra fee. The 20% yearly annual dues premium should definately stay.>>

IMO, 20% of HCC annual dues (lowest in the DC industry) are not significant for this "bonus" feature.


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## pwrshift (Feb 14, 2008)

vivalour said:


> ...IMO, 20% of HCC annual dues (lowest in the DC industry) are not significant for this "bonus" feature.


 
Approximately how much does it amount to? Is it based only on the dues paid for period of time 'used' by friends or the entire annual dues total? 

Interval permits 'guests' to use your deposits for $39 for a week. Marriott doesn't charge anything.

Brian


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## pwrshift (Feb 14, 2008)

capjak said:


> I agree why such a high cost 20% in fees because a friend/family member is using the week owned by a member.
> 
> Guess I better start charging when my parents come and stay at my house when I'm not there, you know extra snacks/heat etc..


 
The DC companies actually 'own' the locations and the membership fee gives the member permission to 'use' available locations up to their annual total number of nights of their membership level.  They often equate it to a golf membership - where you can take guests to play but can't let them use your membership card on their own.  Some DC clubs have an equity based membership (BelleHavens) but I don't know if they permit guests to go on their own.  

Timeshares are different, where in most cases you 'own' your week and have a deed for it -- and can rent it or permit a friend to use it without you being there.  You can also exchange it with Interval or RCI but with a DC if you don't use your nights you lose them.

In either case, the DC member and the TS owner is responsible for any damage the 'guest' does to the suite, so the additional 20% fee (and the $10,000 former fee) is just an extra way for a DC club to make money IMO.


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## NeilGoBlue (Feb 14, 2008)

m61376 said:


> This whole policy was one of the things that bothered me about HCC. In reality, now they are giving you the "privelege" of being able to take freinds and family along with you on a trip; shouldn't that be one of the inherent benefits in having bigger accomodations to begin with? Also, if I want to gift a family member or friend a week I have already paid for and otherwise would be entitled to use, why should it cost me 20% more in annual dues? Maybe I am missing something here, but I just don't get it....



You are allowed to bring as many people as the house will support, and there is no fee for that.. but most clubs restrict the 'gifting, renting, or otherwise' without a member staying in the house.


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## vineyarder (Feb 14, 2008)

pwrshift said:


> The DC companies actually 'own' the locations and the membership fee gives the member permission to 'use' available locations up to their annual total number of nights of their membership level.  They often equate it to a golf membership - where you can take guests to play but can't let them use your membership card on their own... the additional 20% fee (and the $10,000 former fee) is just an extra way for a DC club to make money IMO.



As I understand it, the average DC member doesn't use all of the nights that they are entitled to, generally on the order of 75 - 80%.  If every member was allowed to 'gift' the unused nights, that percentage would increase significantly, and the result would be that availability would decrease for all members.  By charging for the ability to allow unaccompanied usage, the DCs are preserving availability for all members.  As an extreme example, consider the case of a DC with unlimited usage (PE is one but I believe that there are others with unlimited usage); clearly one couldn't allow members to let all their friends, cousins, neighbors and business associates use the properties, or they would need a 1:1 member to property ratio!  

In addition, since most DCs with fixed 'nights per year' plans charge incrementally less per night for larger memberships, allowing 'free' family and friend usage would mean that no one would buy the 14 or 21 night plans; they would join together with others and together purchase a 'corporate' or 'extended family' 42 night plan... and this would also make it more difficult to monitor 'reselling' of membership snights; people could buy a 60 night membership at $500 per night, then sell of weeks at a premium...

Just another difference between the TS and DC business models...


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## pwrshift (Feb 14, 2008)

It kinda bothers me that the 'DC rules are *use em or lose em* and don't expect a refund as our other members want what you don't use so we can get paid twice for the overlap'.  Doesn't seem fair to me.  Why can 't the DC offer a refund for non-use nights, especially if some other member gobbles them up and still has to pay for them ... that's double revenue for the DC company.

And regarding *'unlimited use'* ... how does that work?  What's to stop a retired couple from booking every week of the year at a variety of that DC's locations so they virtually live out of a suitcase all around the world in some pretty nice accommodations?

Brian




vineyarder said:


> ...As I understand it, the average DC member doesn't use all of the nights that they are entitled to, generally on the order of 75 - 80%. If every member was allowed to 'gift' the unused nights, that percentage would increase significantly, *and the result would be that availability would decrease for all members*.
> 
> ...As an extreme example, consider the case of a DC with *unlimited usage* (PE is one but I believe that there are others with unlimited usage); clearly one couldn't allow members to let all their friends, cousins, neighbors and business associates use the properties, or they would need a 1:1 member to property ratio!
> 
> ...


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## saluki (Feb 14, 2008)

pwrshift said:


> Why can 't the DC offer a refund for non-use nights, especially if some other member gobbles them up and still has to pay for them ... that's double revenue for the DC company.
> Brian



If they give the first party a refund & the second party pays a fee, how exactly is that "double revenue"? Is that some kind of Canadian exchange-rate math?


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## pwrshift (Feb 14, 2008)

Saluki, you seem to be worried that the Canadian dollar went up 40% over the last year or so, but I don't see the relationship to the content of my comments.

Read my post again ... and please don't fuzzy my statements. There's no free lunch here. As I see it, if the DC company gets dues for any non-use days from one member and when another member picks up those days with his dues, the DC company gets paid twice for the same nights. Clear now?  That's why I said the DC company should 'refund' the original non-use member, but they don't.

I don't think you'll get a refund from any DC company for a member's non-use - if your expert opinion knows differently, please say so. It becomes a hidden profit for the DC company -- outside of the profit they'll make selling the locations paid for by membership fees. A fun biz ... get rich on other peoples money, and hope the members don't use the nights they've paid for.

Brian


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## saluki (Feb 14, 2008)

My fault, I see your point but it was not clear to me the way you originally wrote it. I was responding to the sentence I quoted. 

Anyway, bottom line...the DC business model is not some big mystery. The terms that you agree to when you sign up are pretty straight-forward. And yes...I am sure the DC's assume that 100% of the members will not use 100% of their nights. And yes...they are in business to make money (!) but I don't see anything shady in HCC's practices as you seem to imply.

You pay your money and you enjoy your trips, then repeat.

By the way, which HCC membership level did you sign up for?


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## NeilGoBlue (Feb 14, 2008)

pwrshift said:


> Saluki, you seem to be worried that the Canadian dollar went up 40% over the last year or so, but I don't see the relationship to the content of my comments.
> 
> Read my post again ... and please don't fuzzy my statements. There's no free lunch here. As I see it, if the DC company gets dues for any non-use days from one member and when another member picks up those days with his dues, the DC company gets paid twice for the same nights. Clear now?  That's why I said the DC company should 'refund' the original non-use member, but they don't.
> 
> ...



I don't know that they get to keep extra profit as much as it keeps the dues and inital fees down...but, i'm an optimist... i don't think the destination are awash in profits right now.. maybe 5 years from now.. but not right now..


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## pwrshift (Feb 15, 2008)

Saluki ... again you write words into my statements that are not there. I did not and would not 'imply' that HCC's (or any other DC's) business practice is shady. In fact, other than my first post in this thread I didn't even mention any DC company name, as you well know. 

I believe every DC company should revisit their policy of _'use it or lose it'_ in fairness to all their members. Especially, if _vineyarder_ is correct that the average DC member doesn't use as much as 25% of their 'prepaid' nights. That is a huge hidden profit. Good business perhaps for the DC company shareholders, but hardly a benefit to their members on whom they depend.

If a DC member must cancel his week for some unfortunate family circumstance, he still pays for the time ... and if another member grabs those days from the DC company it appears that both members pay dues for those same nights. Double billing for single use. Again, a benefit to shareholders, not members at large. If nobody else takes those nights, it may require a different solution. But, _where is the member incentive to give prime days back to the DC company if he can't use them and still has to pay?_

If something happens to a Timeshare owner's bookings, he can rent his week, gift it, or bank it and use if for an exchange over then next two years. The DC member does not have that benefit ... he just loses what he paid for. 

Severe restrictions on member use, or additional fees to gift some prepaid time at a DC location, is more money for the DC shareholders, not the members. When the 'rules' say the member will be billed for any damages why shouldn't they be able to gift it and not be forced to be there to chaperone or pay large extra fees?

My comments are not a slap at the way a DC company does business - it's just a suggestion for improved member relations. This is a relatively new business and nobody marches to the same drum ... which makes it very difficult to make direct comparisons. The best DC of tomorrow is the one that listens to potential customers today, and rules may have to change to see member growth. 

Brian


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## vivalour (Feb 15, 2008)

pwrshift said:


> Severe restrictions on member use, or additional fees to gift some prepaid time at a DC location, is more money for the DC shareholders, not the members. When the 'rules' say the member will be billed for any damages why shouldn't they be able to gift it and not be forced to be there to chaperone or pay large extra fees?
> 
> My comments are not a slap at the way a DC company does business - it's just a suggestion for improved member relations. This is a relatively new business and nobody marches to the same drum ... which makes it very difficult to make direct comparisons. The best DC of tomorrow is the one that listens to potential customers today, and rules may have to change to see member growth.
> 
> Brian



Good observations; the industry is still evolving, and rules will change to some extent -- and will have to, to keep the customer flow. Of course, not every DC follows exactly the same model, and why should they? 
For example, I believe that DHH did/does allow members to carry unused days to the next year. 

As someone who is not very familiar with the TS world, I see the TS as more of a commodity (you can buy and sell on ebay) with features that are very unappealing to me, personally. However, since the TS product has been around for decades, it's easier to expose the "tricks of the trade" -- and there appear to be lots of them, if TUG forums are any evidence.

So it goes. You can decide to buy into either model, or none, and imo it's great to have all these choices.


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## vineyarder (Feb 15, 2008)

pwrshift said:


> regarding *'unlimited use'* ... how does that work?  What's to stop a retired couple from booking every week of the year at a variety of that DC's locations so they virtually live out of a suitcase all around the world in some pretty nice accommodations?
> 
> Brian



Nothing to stop someone from doing that, as unlimited really does mean unlimited... Logistically, however, they would be somewhat limited by the cap on reservation nights; at any point in time, you can only have 28 nights reserved, so if they have the next 4 weeks reserved, then they can keep reserving the week four weeks from now, but would always be limited to whatever was available on 28 days notice... So they would likely spend almost all year at off-season properties, such as Outer banks & Kiawah in the winter, etc.  In addition, due to the unlimited usage model, PE keeps annual dues much lower than other comparable DCs, but charges a nightly fee, so the couple that lived out of their suitcase would pay much more per year than the family that travels 6 or 7 weeks a year.


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## vineyarder (Feb 15, 2008)

pwrshift said:


> It kinda bothers me that the 'DC rules are *use em or lose em* and don't expect a refund as our other members want what you don't use so we can get paid twice for the overlap'.  Doesn't seem fair to me.  Why can 't the DC offer a refund for non-use nights, especially if some other member gobbles them up and still has to pay for them ... that's double revenue for the DC company.
> 
> Brian



As I see it, that factor is already built-in to the pricing structure, so the member who doesn't use all his/her nights isn't really paying for all of them, whereas the member that uses all their alloted nights is getting 'more than they paid for'... Of course, the DCs could raise their dues by 25%, and then give a refund for unused nights (some do this), but that would make them less competitive...

This pricing model isn't limited to DCs...

Last week I stayed at a Ritz Carlton on business, and due to an early flight, I had to check out at 4am, even though check-out time was noon, giving up 8 hours of occupancy... but another guest, who was arriving on a red-eye from India, had to pay for an extra night in order to guarantee an early check-in; 'double revenue' for the hotel...

Then I went to breakfast, and ordered an omlette, which came with toast and potatos, neither of which I wanted, yet I was still charged for them... yet at the next table, a man asked for toast with his oatmeal, and was charged extra, even though I was entitled to toast but didn't use it... 'double revenue' for the restaurant.

Later I went to the dentist for a cleaning... because it was less than 6 months since my last cleaning, I had to pay cash as insurance wouldn't cover it, yet my own brother, who has the same dental insurance, hadn't used either of his allotted cleanings... 'double revenue' for the dental insurance company.

etc., etc., etc.


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## NeilGoBlue (Feb 15, 2008)

vineyarder said:


> As I see it, that factor is already built-in to the pricing structure, so the member who doesn't use all his/her nights isn't really paying for all of them, whereas the member that uses all their alloted nights is getting 'more than they paid for'... Of course, the DCs could raise their dues by 25%, and then give a refund for unused nights (some do this), but that would make them less competitive...
> 
> This pricing model isn't limited to DCs...
> 
> ...



Well said!


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## pwrshift (Feb 15, 2008)

I agree with your thoughts, Neil and vineyarder, but don't think it's directly related. 

Hotels that rent out your guaranteed reservation when you are late and they 'assume' you are not coming bug me too, and it's often done. Once, when that happened to me, they had discussions behind closed doors about what to do with me -- and I ended up with the Prime Minister's suite, (a very interesting experience to see how our politician's get treated -- dining room, kitchen, 2 bedrooms, living room, games room, etc.). Quite obvious they rented out my room and expected double revenues for it that night. Marriott won't even give you Marriott Reward points if you get charged for a no-show but don't actually stay in the room! Airlines overbook all the time and it does nothing for good will.

However, I don't pay a $400,000 membership fee and $40,000 in annual dues to become my dentist's customer and use his services ... or to be able to book a hotel room or eat their toast. If I did, I would expect a greater flexibiity about any extra charges. 

IMO, if a DC builds in an assumed 'no show' factor into their fees and dues, it is a recipe for disaster at some point. Shame on them for not doing everything they can to encourage their members to get the full benefit of their membership and dues, even if it means 'gifting' a stay to a good friend that might want to join the DC as well.

Brian


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## Steamboat Bill (Feb 15, 2008)

pwrshift said:


> IMO, if a DC builds in an assumed 'no show' factor into their fees and dues, it is a recipe for disaster at some point. Shame on them for not doing everything they can to encourage their members to get the full benefit of their membership and dues, even if it means 'gifting' a stay to a good friend that might want to join the DC as well.



I don;t think any DC builds this into their fees like an airline overbooks assuming 10% will be a no-show. I just think that the "unused days" are left unused or some other member grabs it during the flex period. I am sure many ski properties go unused during the mud season.

DC members that join at a 30-45 night plan regularly do NOT use all their nights. However HCC has a 1 week plan, 15 night plan and even a 25 night plan. I would assume that there will be 90-100 usage of the shorter member plans.

That is why I am NOT in favor of the 1-2 week membership plans as it only benefits the DC and not the members with 3-6 week plans.

Clubs like Lusso have lots of availability and timeshares like Hawaii have very low availability....it is all about the competition.


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## vineyarder (Feb 15, 2008)

pwrshift said:


> I agree with your thoughts, Neil and vineyarder, but don't think it's directly related.


 
It seems exactly related; examples of many industries that 'double charge'...



> However, I don't pay a $400,000 membership fee and $40,000 in annual dues to become my dentist's customer and use his services ... or to be able to book a hotel room or eat their toast. If I did, I would expect a greater flexibiity about any extra charges.



No, but as a percent of what you do pay, the numbers are essentially the same...




> IMO, if a DC builds in an assumed 'no show' factor into their fees and dues, it is a recipe for disaster at some point. Shame on them for not doing everything they can to encourage their members to get the full benefit of their membership and dues, even if it means 'gifting' a stay to a good friend that might want to join the DC as well.



Let's say that 60% of people use 75% of their allocation, and 40% of people use 100%.  *If the 75% usage load is built into the pricing*, then 60% are 'getting exactly what they paid for' and 40% are getting *more* than they paid for; no one is getting less than they paid for.  Let's say the DC based their pricing on 100% usage instead of 75%; every member would pay higher dues, yet would still use the same number of nights... so every member loses, and the DC gains.  As a DC member, I would greater prefer the DC use a reasonable forfieture estimate (so long as they build that into their pricing).  As long as they build that into the pricing, it is to the members advantage to operate this way!  If, at some point, usage per member increases, then they will need to build that into the dues structure at that time. 

Brian


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## pwrshift (Feb 15, 2008)

When I want to check Bill Marriott's income, or any of his key execs, I just have to refer to Marriott's annual statement as a shareholder.  It is all very transparent how they are doing their business.

This is not the case of any DC company, to my limited knowledge.  Before we give them our $400,000 to play with and build their corporate asset base, we don't really know how profitable these companies are ... or where they have their most success.  In fact, the financial data available is pretty sketchy at best on these private companies ... and certainly doesn't offset the risk.

It would be very interesting to get actual financial data on a DC company, without having to sign a non-disclosure agreement, as it should be more informative than 'promotional' literature now provided with some fancy 'join now' DVD.

Brian


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## vineyarder (Feb 15, 2008)

pwrshift said:


> When I want to check Bill Marriott's income, or any of his key execs, I just have to refer to Marriott's annual statement as a shareholder.  It is all very transparent how they are doing their business.
> 
> This is not the case of any DC company, to my limited knowledge.  Before we give them our $400,000 to play with and build their corporate asset base, we don't really know how profitable these companies are ... or where they have their most success.  In fact, the financial data available is pretty sketchy at best on these private companies ... and certainly doesn't offset the risk.
> 
> It would be very interesting to get actual financial data on a DC company, without having to sign a non-disclosure agreement, as it should be more informative than 'promotional' literature now provided with some fancy 'join now' DVD.



Perry - I must be missing something here - does this have anything whatsoever to do with the topic of this thread?  Also, maybe I was napping, but when did HCC's deposit soar up to $400,000?


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## vivalour (Feb 15, 2008)

vineyarder said:


> Perry - I must be missing something here - does this have anything whatsoever to do with the topic of this thread?  Also, maybe I was napping, but when did HCC's deposit soar up to $400,000?



No, you didn't miss anything -- the topic moves like a little black cloud with pwrposter from thread to thread -- "rain on those DCers wherever you find 'em".


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## travelguy (Feb 15, 2008)

*MORE than 1:1*



vineyarder said:


> As an extreme example, consider the case of a DC with unlimited usage; clearly one couldn't allow members to let all their friends, cousins, neighbors and business associates use the properties, or they would need a 1:1 member to property ratio!



Vine,

I would have to be higher than 1:1 member to property to ratio.  I'm pretty sure I could use more then 52 weeks a year if I put my mind to it.  Last year, I had a week in Beaver Creek and then took 3 days at Snowmass (last minute) in the middle of that week to hit Aspen during the X-games.

I could foresee putting up the family at Beaver Creek, the rowdy friends at Copper Mountain and basing myself at the Breckenridge Lodge, all at the same time.  I could then move daily from mountain to mountain based on the snow report.


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## travelguy (Feb 15, 2008)

*"Limited knowledge"*



pwrshift said:


> When I want to check Bill Marriott's income, or any of his key execs, I just have to refer to Marriott's annual statement as a shareholder.  It is all very transparent how they are doing their business.
> 
> This is not the case of any DC company, to my limited knowledge.  Before we give them our $400,000 to play with and build their corporate asset base, we don't really know how profitable these companies are ... or where they have their most success.  In fact, the financial data available is pretty sketchy at best on these private companies ... and certainly doesn't offset the risk.
> 
> It would be very interesting to get actual financial data on a DC company, without having to sign a non-disclosure agreement, as it should be more informative than 'promotional' literature now provided with some fancy 'join now' DVD.



LauderShift,

The financial functioning of a DC is not sketchy at all to those of us who have done any due diligence.  I've seen an incredibly detailed biz plan, financials, ten year projections, property reports, etc. etc. etc.  I talked to the High Country Club CFO more than I used to talk to my own companies' CFOs.  Not only is the DC business model "interesting", it's fascinating for any of us entrepreneurs to see a whole new type of business in phase one growth mode.

With all due respect, if you don't have the fiduciary sense to fully investigate the financials and biz plan of a DC before joining, this type of membership may be over your head and not for you.  Many members of this board have fully vetted their DC prior to membership and seem to have a full understanding of most/all aspects of the DC, the associated risks and benefits.  Posts of facts that are not accurate from the uninformed only cloud the facts for those who come to this forum for insight into possible DC memberships.

Oh, by the way ... if you can’t use one of your six Marriott Hooters weeks at the last minute, does Bill Marriott send you a refund check?


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## travelguy (Feb 15, 2008)

*Friends & Family redux ...*

_*Getting back*_ to the issue of High Country Club eliminating the “Friends and Family” upgrade and if it’s the best thing since free Hanna Montana tickets or a sure sign of the Apocalypse:

I am of two minds on this issue. I like to call it Biz vs. Bum.

*It’s CUSTOMER ORIENTED!!:*

As a former entrepreneur who owned retail stores and really believed that the customer was always right, I appreciate that HCC is doing the right thing for their customers. It used to be that your only escape from a shabby Ft. Lauderdale Marriott timeshare was to ante-up for a 45 day Private membership to join HCC. Otherwise, back to the timeshare. HCC now offers four different membership types. This evolution happened because HCC listened and adapted to the travel needs and patterns of its members and consumers evaluating the destination club industry. You can guess that most customers (the lucid ones at least) do not want to pay for days they are not going to use. If they only have 2 weeks vacation, they purchase the Associate membership (not surprisingly a 2 week membership plan). If they have 3 weeks vacation, they buy the Affiliate membership (guess how many weeks), and so on. In addition, my understanding is that HCC has NOT sold one Friends & Family upgrade to date. In other words, consumers are not buying memberships to HCC to give time away to F&F. In simple terms … HCC members are buying the membership level they feel precisely fits their lifestyle.

With that said, the brilliant marketing minds at HCC (I’m not kidding about the “brilliant” part) determined that the $10k Friends & Family addition was simply not applicable to their current offering. In addition, it created more confusion and put HCC at a competitive disadvantage to the other DCs who either do not charge for this feature as well, or charge a very minimal amount. The fact that the F&F upgrade program resulted in no additional income probably made it easy to axe this program. I believe they kept the 20% increase in annual dues if members decide to give time away, to make sure this option is not misused.

So lets review what we have so far:
A) HCC has many membership options so a member buys just the right amount of time.
B) No one was buying the Friends & Family upgrade anyway.
C) HCC is now more competitive with other DCs.
D) Marriott timeshares in Lauderdale are shabby.

_(As a side note - in my post-entrepreneur life I now believe that customers are almost never right and are their own worst enemy in buying decisions. Many examples of this phenomenon exist from pet-rocks to the sub-prime mortgage mess …but I digress…)_


*WHO MOVED MY CHEESE , er, MY WEEK!?!?:*

These days I am a combination ski-bum/beach-bum and take my vacationing very seriously. You’ll have to pry the HCC concierge check-in instructions from my cold, dead fingers before I’m giving any of my vacation time to anyone!! And WHY would I PAY to give my vacation time to anyone??? Needless to say, the HCC Friends & Family upgrade was not for me.

Anyway, as others have said, I have concerns about the effect that customizing membership plans AND encouraging use will have on availability. On one hand, I want other HCC members to be happy with their memberships so they recruit other members and stay in the DC (which means more properties for me to bum-out at). However, it would be great if these other HCC members would not use their vacation time. This would insure that I would have total availability of vacation property without having to worry about increased fees or the continued growth of HCC. This would be the best plan for me. _(Note to the HCC execs – please stop encouraging members to use their weeks. Maybe make a few members disgruntled so they will not use their vacation time?)  _

Allowing a less restricted F&F upgrade has a potential impact on availability, and not in a good way. I’m also concerned about the additional wear and tear on properties and furnishings by people who don’t have a vested interest in the properties. This could affect members with increased annual dues. I’ve been impressed that the HCC properties and furnishings are holding up well with three years of use. It’s apparent to me that HCC members are taking much better care of the properties than traditional timeshare users. (and no, I’m not rippin on timeshare owners as I’m one of you. Check out your standard Wyndham and then check out a HCC property and you’ll see what I’m talkin’ about!)

More review, quiz at the end ..:
A) I would be great if HCC members would stop using their vacation time so I’d have total availability.
B) Customizing the membership plans and the F&F program will hurt availability.
C) YOUR reckless friends and family could make MY annual fees go up .
D) The Marriott Lauderdale timeshare got even shabbier in the time it took you to read this.


*BIZ vs. BUM, Who’s Right?*

These days, I tend to side with my inner-Bum instead of the straight thinking Biz part of the brain. However, here’s a biz related thought about the win/win relationship of HCC to it’s members. The interesting thing about the DC biz plan is that current members gain amenities as the DC’s membership increases (more properties) and members don’t have to pay additional fees to have access to those amenities (funded by new members). Also, the DC and it’s investors make their profit by increasing the property portfolio and increased economies of scale. Therefore, both members and the DC have the same goal – to increase membership and increase the property portfolio.

High Country Club is very aware that the two main issues that affect membership growth are clarity of the HCC business plan to potential members and the ability of HCC members to have availability to use the vacation properties. _(Obviously, we here at TUG are working hard to make the HCC biz plan as clear as mud!)_ The execs at HCC closely monitor the availability of their properties to members. As the DC industry develops, the HCC execs will continue to search for ways to adapt their offering to reach and better serve the travel desires of potential members while keeping current members happy with services and availability. They need both new and current members to make their biz plan work. 

In summary:
A) We’ve been really spoiled by availability of HCC properties. I believe availability will be tighter but still manageable.
B) My Biz side trusts the HCC execs have the same business interest as me and will make decisions based upon the win/win biz plan.
C) My Bum side is counting the days till the next ski trip @ the HCC Breckenridge Golf Home!.
D) The Marriott Lauderdale timeshare just charged a huge special assessment for the replacement of shag carpet and to construct a direct skyway to the Hooters.


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