Desties

One of the more intriguing pitches behind the reverse IPO in the works at Ultimate Escapes is that the club plans to eventually offer an equity club and a points-based system.

Am I the only thinking that this can all be interchangeable? UE is already three distinct clubs, with reciprocity between them.

Why can’t UE launch an equity club that allows travel between the equity club and the three existing UE clubs? It would make it an easier sell in the beginning, so it can add new wholly-owned properties at the dictated membership growth pace, yet still offer the portfolio of Premiere, Signature, and Elite for immediate travel? The three non-equity club members can also benefit from the equity additions through similar reciprocity.

A points-based club can also be used as an overlay. I imagine that a points-based club may be a more value-conscious offering, but it too could benefit from having well over a hundred properties at its disposal from the beginning.

There may be some legal loopholes to make it all happen, but it would be an easy way for UE to scale quickly. There are only a handful of players in the equity niche. Abercrombie & Kent is the leader. Equity Estates is the hungry secondary player. Clearly there is room for yet another meaty foe, so why Ultimate Escapes? And why not sooner rather than later?