Tag: Hard Rock

  • Hard Rock Bedding and Bath range planned

    Hard Rock Bedding and Bath range planned

    Restaurant and accommodation chain Hard Rock International is to partner with textiles firm Sobel Westex to produce a manchester range.

    The Hard Rock at Home collaboration is intended to give music fans around the globe the opportunity to fine-tune their living spaces with home goods inspired by music – including bedding, bath textiles, window treatments and beach towels.

    The Hard Rock at Home collection features luxurious bedding, including comforters, sheet sets, throws and decorative accent pillows with a variety of designs. Through the collection, fans can add country, rock and alternative music touches, as well as hip hop trends and pop accents.

    “We are excited to collaborate with Sobel Westex to bring these trendy bedding, bath and beach products to consumers worldwide,” said director of licensing for Hard Rock International Mark Linduski. “This fresh, unique collection of musically-inspired, designer textiles will appeal to customers of virtually every age range, music genre and lifestyle while aiding in our strategic initiative to expand retail distribution of the Hard Rock brand outside of our own retail properties.”

    The designer textile collection will debut at the New York City Spring Textile Market from March 18 through March 21, before launching to consumers this autumn.

  • Hard Rock Asia CEO comes from Sands China

    Hard Rock Asia CEO comes from Sands China

    As Hard Rock International (HRI) ramps up expansion in Asia, it has a new CEO for the region, Edward Tracy, formerly CEO of Sands China.

    Owned by the Seminole tribe of Florida, HRI has international hotel/casino locations including Bali, and has just opened the Hard Rock Hotel Shenzhen in China. Other projects by Hard Rock Asia are slated for Dalian and Haikou, while upcoming Hard Rock Cafe locations include Chengdu and Phnom Penh.

    Meanwhile, Tracy is working with Hard Rock Japan toward opening a signature integrated resort. The company will be bidding for a resort licence following the government passing an Integrated Resorts Promotion Bill. Hard Rock Cafe outlets have been in Japan for 30 years.

    “As the former CEO of Sands China and CEO of the Trump Organization, Tracy brings more than 30 years of proven gaming, hospitality and integrated-resort experience to Hard Rock Asia,” says HRI chairman Jim Allen.

    Tracy joined Sands China, a subsidiary of Las Vegas Sands Corp, in July 2010 as its president and COO, becoming CEO 12 months later. He was responsible for overseeing China’s largest integrated-resort company by revenue, capacity and content, with 13,000 hotel rooms and 30,000 team members. It develops, owns and runs integrated resorts and casinos in Macau.

    Before Sands, Tracy was president/CEO of Capital Gaming, a multi-jurisdictional manager of regional casinos in the US, and also served as president/CEO of the Trump Organization, where he was responsible for managing more than 12,500 employees, 3000 luxury hotel rooms and 240,000sqft (22,300sqm) of casino space.

    HRI has venues in 73 countries including 178 cafes, 24 hotels and 11 casinos. Starting with an Eric Clapton guitar, Hard Rock owns a collection of music memorabilia displayed at its global locations. It is also known for its collectible fashion and music-related merchandise, Hard Rock Live performance venues and an award-winning website.

  • Hard Rock Japan plan

    Hard Rock Japan plan

    Hard Rock International has launched Hard Rock Japan with former Sands China senior executive Edward Tracy as its CEO.

    His appointment is “a strategic move designed to support the company’s growth plans in the region”, says the company.

    The new division follows Japan’s legislature approving the Integrated Resorts Promotion Bill, marking the first step toward legalising gaming in a market that investment bank CLSA gaming analysts estimate to be worth US$40 billion.

    With 30 years’ experience in the Japanese market, where it has six Hard Rock Cafe locations, the company plans to expand its portfolio by becoming a contender for Japanese resort licences.

    Tracy has held several positions within the gaming and hospitality industry. He joined Sands China, a subsidiary of Las Vegas Sands Corporation, in July 2010 as president and COO. He became its CEO one year later, responsible for the oversight of about 13,000 hotel rooms and 30,000 employees, reports the Macau Daily Times.

    Before Sands, Tracy was president and CEO of Capital Gaming, which runs regional casinos, and held similar positions at the Trump Organization, where he was responsible for managing 12,500 employees, 3000 hotel rooms and 240,000 sqft (22,296 sqm) of casino space.

    In 2014, Harvard Business Review named Tracy as one of the “Best-Performing CEOs in the World” in its annual top-100 ranking in 2014.

  • Smith & Wollensky restaurants going global

    Smith & Wollensky restaurants going global

    US steakhouse Smith & Wollensky, famously described by the New York Times as “the steakhouse to end all arguments”, is expanding its global presence, setting its sights initially on such cities as Bangkok, Hong Kong, Seoul, Singapore, Taipei and Tokyo, as well as Dubai and Mexico City.

    This follows Irish investment company Danu Partners acquiring Smith & Wollensky Restaurant Group (SWRG) from Bunker Hill Capital this year. Its first overseas restaurant was opened in London.

    “Our teams in the US and London have worked closely together to build a robust infrastructure, and this is a perfect platform on which to build a global business,” says Leonard Ryan of Danu Partners. Joining the team will be international development executive Oliver Munday, who in the past 20 years has worked at growing US restaurant brands internationally.

    “Having completed transactions in more than 30 countries with multiple restaurant brands including Hard Rock, Margaritaville and Planet Hollywood, Oliver brings the contacts and expertise needed to allow us to reach our full potential on the international stage,” says SWRG president/CEO Michael Feighery .

    “Smith & Wollensky occupies a special place among the great US fine-dining restaurant brands, and there is global demand for such a classic American steakhouse experience,” says Munday. “We will be entertaining only a handful of select markets … but interest is already strong.”

    Since Danu Partners bought Smith & Wollensky it has embarked upon a program of reinvestment, which as well as expansion includes upgrades of its restaurants in the US.

    Established in 1977 with its headquarters in Boston, Smith & Wollensky Restaurant Group has seven locations in the US. The restaurant has received such accolades as the Grand Award of Excellence from Wine Spectator and an Award of Excellence from Distinguished Restaurants of North America.

    An investment holding company based in Dublin, Danu Investment Partners was founded in 2009 and covers a range of business sectors, with a focus on the hospitality sector.