Evolution & W Hotels to Develop W Panama

Panama City (Panama) – September 13, 2012 – W Hotels Worldwide today announced it has signed an agreement with Evolution Tower Corp, a joint venture between F & F Properties and EFC Group Inc., to debut the W Hotels brand in Central America. Slated to open in early 2016, W Panama will be part of the 50-floor Evolution Tower, a mixed-use building, including premium office space, located in the heart of the city’s financial district. W Panama will be built on Calle 50, just steps away from Uruguay Street, which is known as the Zona Rosa of Panama and is bustling with stylish restaurants and nightclubs.

“Panama continues to see strong growth in both business and tourism development given its strategic location between North and South America and ease of access from around the world,” said Osvaldo Librizzi, Co-President of the Americas, Starwood Hotels & Resorts. “We are excited to partner with Evolution Tower Corp, who has a strong presence in high-end construction and iconic developments. We are confident that this first W in Central America will become a new landmark in the city.”

“As part of Starwood’s overall growth strategy, we continue to focus on expanding our nine leading brands into vibrant cities around the world, such as Panama City,” said Ricardo Suarez, Vice President of Latin America Acquisitions and Development for Starwood Hotels & Resorts. “This hotel will mark our ninth in Panama, and we are very pleased to add a new brand to Starwood’s growing presence in the region.”

“It has been a dream of ours to bring the W brand to a growing cosmopolitan city such as Panama,” said Saul Faskha, President, Evolution Tower Corp. “We are very excited to be working on this new project.”

In a perfect combination of sophistication and style, W Panama will reveal surprising elements layer by layer throughout the hotel. Panamanian architect Saul Bassan has created an exclusive design façade for the building, and Krause & Sawyer have been brought on board to lead interior design work for the hotel.

“As W Hotels continues to transform into a global design powerhouse, we are proud to bring W to Central America,” said Vincent Gillet, Global Brand Leader, W Hotels and Le Méridien. “W Panama, set in one of the capital city’s premier districts, will offer a completely new and distinctive experience to the hotel market in Panama City, providing a stylish escape and innovative design for both guests and locals alike.”

W Panama will offer a fully integrated, contemporary lifestyle experience, including 203 stylish guest rooms, with 24 suites, three Wow suites, and one Extreme Wow suite (the W brand’s take on the Presidential Suite), two signature restaurants, the W Living Room experience (reinterpretation of the traditional hotel lobby), destination nightclub, WET pool deck, spa and 8,400 square foot WORKOUT fitness facility.

An ideal venue, W Panama will feature more than 21,900 square feet of meeting and events space, including a Great Room and six meeting rooms. Guests will also be treated to the W brand’s iconic Whatever/Whenever service philosophy, providing guests with whatever they want, whenever they want it.

With excellent access to the airport as well as to other areas of interest within the city, the planned Evolution Tower will provide an impressive impact on the Panama City skyline, offering superb views of the city, and on high floors, the bay and Panama Canal. W Panama will mark Starwood’s ninth hotel in Panama.

About W Hotels Worldwide
W Hotels is a contemporary, design-led lifestyle brand and the industry innovator with 42 hotels and retreats, including 14 W-branded residences, in the most vibrant cities and exotic destinations around the world. Inspiring, iconic, innovative and influential, W Hotels provides the ultimate in insider access, offering a unique mix of cutting-edge design and passions around fashion, music and entertainment. W Hotels offers a holistic lifestyle experience that is integrated into the brand’s sensibility through contemporary restaurant concepts, glamorous entertainment experiences, stylish retail concepts, signature spas and inspiring residences. With more than 12 years of proven success, W Hotels is on track to reach more than 50 hotels by the end of 2012. W Hotels have been announced for Guangzhou, Milan, Shanghai, Singapore, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Bangkok, Muscat, Mumbai, and Santa Fe, Mexico, while upcoming W Retreats include Verbier and Mexico’s Riviera Maya. For more information, visit www.whotels.com. To live the W Hotels lifestyle 24/7/365, visit www.wresidences.com.

About Starwood Hotels & Resorts
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE:HOT) is one of the leading hotel and leisure companies in the world with 1,112 properties in 100 countries and territories with 154,000 employees at its owned and managed properties. Starwood Hotels is a fully integrated owner, operator and franchisor of hotels, resorts and residences with the following internationally renowned brands: St. Regis(R), The Luxury Collection(R), W(R), Westin(R), Le Méridien(R), Sheraton(R), Four Points(R) by Sheraton, and the recently launched Aloft(R), and Element SM. Starwood Hotels also owns Starwood Vacation Ownership, Inc., one of the premier developers and operators of high quality vacation interval ownership resorts. For more information, please visit www.starwoodhotels.com

Media Contact:
Gina Carriazo
Gina.carriazo@starwoodhotels.com
+1 786-999-6307