Kojo Worldwide Begins On-Site Hotel Renovation Service
January 13, 2003
San Diego, Calif. (USA) - Kojo Worldwide, the contract specialist whose annual sales have grown from $5 million to $46 million in 12 years, has begun an on-site re-upholstering and fabric repair service for hotels, the first of its kind in the industry. Kojo has also added 20 sales people to its staff and broken ground in the expansion of its manufacturing base in Mexico. The moves come as Kojo strives to boost its annual sales to $200 million and heads toward an IPO.
The reupholstering service will be undertaken by a team of about 40 Kojo employees who will be based at the hotel. ''It's like a swat team,'' said an industry source. ''They set up shop in a hotel. They do the furniture on the spot.''
The team will work on one room at a time, an approach that is successful in the cruise industry, thus enabling the hotel to remain open and lucrative during renovation. The new sales staff, who will be based at the company's headquarters here, are local residents with no background in the industry and no knowledge of bed covers or window treatments.
''We may be out of the box in this concept, but we believe that good people who are hungry and committed will provide us with more potential than the experience in the industry,'' said Kojo president and co-founder Koni Kim. ''It is also more important to us to find people who can believe in our unique culture. We put them through one month of intensive training, learning about Kojo, its culture, value system, its products, services, solutions, customers and the hotel industry. This way, we have the opportunity to create a bond as a Kojo team.''
Meanwhile, the company announced plans to roll out stand-alone Kojo Worldwide service centers in the near future. Services such as pool maintenance, carpet replacement, drycleaning and floral arrangements will be available to all hotels in communities with a service center. ''Wherever there are 20,000 hotel rooms, the place warrants a Kojo Service Center,'' Kim said. ''A lot of hotel operators would be thrilled to have a local service bureau.''
Kojo also plans to export more custom-made products through these service centers. Currently the company focuses marketing and sales to the Americas and Spain. Originally, the company hoped to hold an IPO in 2001 when revenues exceeded $100 million. When that proved too ambitious, Kojo set its sights on becoming a $200 million company by 2007. In the meantime, Kojo has set a ''trigger revenue number that will begin the IPO process,'' according to director of creative services Phillip Hanes.
The new services continue the momentum for the 14-year-old company which has made an important mark on the industry already.
In 1999, Kojo pioneered the duvet ensemble, which instantly became one of the most successful programs in the hospitality industry in recent years. The project started when Barry Sternlicht, CEO of Starwood Hotels and Resorts, announced that all the Westin Hotels beds would have white duvets. Kojo's R&D team was given an opportunity to develop the product to fulfill his vision of the ''Heavenly Bed,'' Kojo provided white duvet covers made with micro denier polyester fabric that looked and felt like combed cotton, but were easy to maintain and resisted stain and shrinkage. Today, more than 35,000 Westin beds are covered with these duvets, and their success inspired duvet programs for Sheraton Hotels, Omni Hotels and Wyndam Hotels.
The latest product to roll off the R&D line are room-darkening draperies for hotels called ''Kojo Light Seal,'' Kim said research shows that darker rooms lead to more restful sleep. Kojo has also brought to market a drapery hardware system called ''Duo Trio Tracks'' and a wide-width bedcovering fabric program called ''Clean Seam.''
Also in 1999, Kojo moved its manufacturing operation south of the border to Rosarito, Mexico to capitalize on lower wages and trade agreements. The move cost $12 million and raised concerns among customers that Kojo's service would suffer. However Kim claims the quality of Kojo's products and services have improved.
''My partner stayed in Mexico for two and half years, teaching the workers and emphasizing to them the importance of quality and integrity,'' said Kim. ''We realized it would be impossible for us to become a global company if our manufacturing facilities stayed in the U.S. because of the cost of doing business here. In addition to lower wages, Mexico offers the benefits of NAFTA to North America plus free treaties with South America, Latin America, Europe and the Far East, making the export business easy for Kojo.''
In September, three years after relocating to the 200,000 square-foot facility that overlooks the Pacific Ocean on a Rosarito Beach mountaintop, Kojo secured capital financing and began construction of a new building. It has carved a one million square-foot platform in the mountain for additional facilities. Amenities on the site for employees will include space for childcare, a library and a full-time nurse. The added manufacturing capacity will help the company in its effort to reach markets in healthcare, cruise and the timeshare industry, which Kojo has ranked an important area for growth.
Kojo began in 1990 when Kim and her partner Joe Robertson Sr. merged their separate companies. Kim owned Koniart, which designed and converted fabric, and Robertson owned Southwest Quilted Products, which manufactured bedspreads and draperies and aimed to provide the hospitality industry with one-stop service from fabric manufacturing to installation.
Kojo has landed projects with major hotel chains like Westin, Sheraton, W, Hilton, Omni, Holiday Inn, Marriott, Hyatt, Radisson, and La Quinta Inns, and recently earned ''Supplier of the Year'' honors from Starwood Hotels and Resorts and Carlson Hospitality.
''Years ago, the industry said, 'You're not going to make it,''' Kim said. F&FI
The reupholstering service will be undertaken by a team of about 40 Kojo employees who will be based at the hotel. ''It's like a swat team,'' said an industry source. ''They set up shop in a hotel. They do the furniture on the spot.''
The team will work on one room at a time, an approach that is successful in the cruise industry, thus enabling the hotel to remain open and lucrative during renovation. The new sales staff, who will be based at the company's headquarters here, are local residents with no background in the industry and no knowledge of bed covers or window treatments.
''We may be out of the box in this concept, but we believe that good people who are hungry and committed will provide us with more potential than the experience in the industry,'' said Kojo president and co-founder Koni Kim. ''It is also more important to us to find people who can believe in our unique culture. We put them through one month of intensive training, learning about Kojo, its culture, value system, its products, services, solutions, customers and the hotel industry. This way, we have the opportunity to create a bond as a Kojo team.''
Meanwhile, the company announced plans to roll out stand-alone Kojo Worldwide service centers in the near future. Services such as pool maintenance, carpet replacement, drycleaning and floral arrangements will be available to all hotels in communities with a service center. ''Wherever there are 20,000 hotel rooms, the place warrants a Kojo Service Center,'' Kim said. ''A lot of hotel operators would be thrilled to have a local service bureau.''
Kojo also plans to export more custom-made products through these service centers. Currently the company focuses marketing and sales to the Americas and Spain. Originally, the company hoped to hold an IPO in 2001 when revenues exceeded $100 million. When that proved too ambitious, Kojo set its sights on becoming a $200 million company by 2007. In the meantime, Kojo has set a ''trigger revenue number that will begin the IPO process,'' according to director of creative services Phillip Hanes.
The new services continue the momentum for the 14-year-old company which has made an important mark on the industry already.
In 1999, Kojo pioneered the duvet ensemble, which instantly became one of the most successful programs in the hospitality industry in recent years. The project started when Barry Sternlicht, CEO of Starwood Hotels and Resorts, announced that all the Westin Hotels beds would have white duvets. Kojo's R&D team was given an opportunity to develop the product to fulfill his vision of the ''Heavenly Bed,'' Kojo provided white duvet covers made with micro denier polyester fabric that looked and felt like combed cotton, but were easy to maintain and resisted stain and shrinkage. Today, more than 35,000 Westin beds are covered with these duvets, and their success inspired duvet programs for Sheraton Hotels, Omni Hotels and Wyndam Hotels.
The latest product to roll off the R&D line are room-darkening draperies for hotels called ''Kojo Light Seal,'' Kim said research shows that darker rooms lead to more restful sleep. Kojo has also brought to market a drapery hardware system called ''Duo Trio Tracks'' and a wide-width bedcovering fabric program called ''Clean Seam.''
Also in 1999, Kojo moved its manufacturing operation south of the border to Rosarito, Mexico to capitalize on lower wages and trade agreements. The move cost $12 million and raised concerns among customers that Kojo's service would suffer. However Kim claims the quality of Kojo's products and services have improved.
''My partner stayed in Mexico for two and half years, teaching the workers and emphasizing to them the importance of quality and integrity,'' said Kim. ''We realized it would be impossible for us to become a global company if our manufacturing facilities stayed in the U.S. because of the cost of doing business here. In addition to lower wages, Mexico offers the benefits of NAFTA to North America plus free treaties with South America, Latin America, Europe and the Far East, making the export business easy for Kojo.''
In September, three years after relocating to the 200,000 square-foot facility that overlooks the Pacific Ocean on a Rosarito Beach mountaintop, Kojo secured capital financing and began construction of a new building. It has carved a one million square-foot platform in the mountain for additional facilities. Amenities on the site for employees will include space for childcare, a library and a full-time nurse. The added manufacturing capacity will help the company in its effort to reach markets in healthcare, cruise and the timeshare industry, which Kojo has ranked an important area for growth.
Kojo began in 1990 when Kim and her partner Joe Robertson Sr. merged their separate companies. Kim owned Koniart, which designed and converted fabric, and Robertson owned Southwest Quilted Products, which manufactured bedspreads and draperies and aimed to provide the hospitality industry with one-stop service from fabric manufacturing to installation.
Kojo has landed projects with major hotel chains like Westin, Sheraton, W, Hilton, Omni, Holiday Inn, Marriott, Hyatt, Radisson, and La Quinta Inns, and recently earned ''Supplier of the Year'' honors from Starwood Hotels and Resorts and Carlson Hospitality.
''Years ago, the industry said, 'You're not going to make it,''' Kim said. F&FI
