Holiday Inn Sells New Showers with $10 Million Campaign

NEW YORK—Holiday Inn Express is kicking off a $10 million plus ad and promotional campaign Friday to get the word out about its new multi-million dollar bathroom makeover.

Chet talks with a dolphin after showering at a Holiday Inn Express

The SimplySmart shower program will let consumers know about the $20 million upgrade that includes a multi-function showerhead by Kohler, upgraded towels, hookless shower curtains with curved rods and a new line of bath amenities.

In addition to a $10 million television ad campaign, the hotel chain will spend an undisclosed amount to promote the upgrades on billboards, the Internet and by direct mail, Holiday Inn Express senior VP-brand manager Jenifer Zeigler said yesterday. The ad campaign includes three characters, Chet, Lance and Roger, who use the new showerheads. The company will also promote the changes with in-room signage on the showerheads.

Zeigler added that Holiday Inn is also planning to distribute Holiday Inn Express-branded rally-towels at World Series games for fans to waive. A sweepstakes is also on the horizon, most likely after the rollout to all 13,500 hotels is completed in early 2005, Zeigler said.

The campaign is a follow up to Holiday Inn Express's 2003 breakfast bar initiative, in which each property began offering the same coffee and cinnamon buns on a daily basis, and incorporates its "Stay Smart" movement, in which average people gain extraordinary knowledge because they stayed at a Holiday Inn Express.