ER
This seems to be pretty significant news for the industry. Brent Handler is no longer with ER and has started his own company.
"Members pay a one-time initiation fee, currently priced at $9,500, to access the Inspirato portfolio. They then pay a variable per night cost based on the properties they visit and a $2,500 annual renewal fee for every year they remain with the club. Unlike the more traditional destination club model where properties are owned by the club, Inspirato leases properties for multi-year terms. The per night market rates for the properties are dynamic, determined by how far in advance the residence is reserved, travel dates, and the length of the stay. On average, Inspirato properties will be available for roughly $1,000 per night but with some value season rates at just a few hundred dollars."
http://www.destinationclubnews.com/...Resorts_Founder_Brent_Handler_at_the_Helm.php
From Andre Agassi's Foundation website, for which he's on the advisory board:
http://www.agassifoundation.org/exclusive-resorts/
"Brent Handler founded Exclusive Resorts with his brother and a friend in 2002, offering families the comfort and privacy of a home in the world's most desirable locations, along with the services and amenities found in five-star resorts. Under Handler's leadership, Exclusive Resorts has become widely recognized as the market leader of the new luxury destination club industry. In 2003, he attracted the investment of AOL co-founder Steve Case, who presently serves as the company's chairman and is its largest shareholder.
A Colorado native, Handler graduated from the University of Colorado-Boulder with a bachelor's degree in business. He lives in the Denver area with his wife and three children."
So what's the skinny on his departure (and some others) from ER?
Seems to me that the trend in the industry is either equity ownership models or lease no ownership models. It's interesting that a founder of the world's largest non-equity club is starting up a new club that will not be a non-equity club.