The 41-room Centerstone Inn & Suites, owned and managed by Kamla Shivan & Manju Corp is located at 1371 William Road in Carlyle, Illinois.

“We are very happy for our hotel to become part of the Centerstone brand.   They have the best fee structure in the industry and excellent personal and professional support,” said Jay Desai of Kamla Shivan & Manju Corp.

The Centerstone Inn & Suites is located near the West Access Marina, Governor’s Run Golf Course, Clinton County Fairgrounds and the Belleville MidAmerica-St. Louis Airport.

Other amenities of this pet-friendly property include free breakfast and a swimming pool.

“This property is a great new addition to the Centerstone brand and we are glad to welcome Mr. Desai to the Vimana family,” said Steve Belmonte, CEO and Co-Owner of Centerstone’s Vimana Franchise Systems.

Centerstone Hotels, one of two brands franchised under Vimana Franchise Systems is known for their franchise friendly agreements including one of the lowest fee structures in the industry and short-term agreements.  Centerstone has been rapidly gaining in popularity with recent hotel openings in Iowa, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Alabama and Minnesota with several more agreements in the works.

The 98-room Centerstone Suites, managed by Badger Hotel Development Company, LLC is located at 10580 Baltimore Street NE in Blaine, MN.

“Choosing to become a Centerstone was an easy decision because they are quite simply the most franchise friendly brand. We appreciate Centerstone’s flexibility and assistance with capital improvement projects, along with their low cost franchise fee structure. We are also very impressed with the level of personal and professional support they provide,” said the Rehm Family, Managing Members of Badger Hotel Development Company, LLC.

The Centerstone Suites hotel is ideally located near the National Sports Center, the TPC (Tournament Players Club), Twin Cities Golf Club and Northtown Mall. Only minutes from Blaine, MN, hotel guests have access to the Target Center arena, Metrodome and the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities.

The National Sports Center hosts many events and activities in its facilities, including meetings in the Schwan Center convention complex, Ice sports in the Schwan Super Rink and bicycle racing in the National Sports Center Velodrome so the Centerstone Suites is a great property choice for visitors to the area.

Additional points of interest, located minutes away, include the annual Minnesota State Fair, Xcel Energy Center and the Mall of America.  The Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport also provides full carrier service to the area.

“This beautiful all-suite property is a wonderful new addition to Centerstone. It has a great location and fantastic amenities and we are happy to be working with the Rehm family from Badger Hotel Development Company,” said Steve Belmonte, CEO and Co-Owner of Centerstone’s Vimana Franchise Systems.

Hotel Amenities include free hot continental breakfast, indoor pool with separate adult pool, kid pool and whirlpool, fitness center, game room, business center, meeting room space and a hotel shuttle.

Brenda Yearley, General Manager of the Centerstone Suites said, “We are very happy to be joining the Centerstone family. This is without a doubt the most franchise friendly company out there. Their favorable franchise model, along with their great support and guest programs made it an obvious and easy decision.”

Centerstone Hotels, one of two brands franchised under Vimana Franchise Systems is known for their franchise friendly agreements including one of the lowest fee structures in the industry as well as short-term agreements.  Centerstone has been rapidly gaining in popularity with recent hotel openings in Iowa, Missouri, Pennsylvania and Alabama with several more agreements in the works.

CEO and Co-Founder Steve Belmonte made the announcement this month that Vimana’s unique franchise friendly hotel brands have teamed up with Interessant Hospitality and will now be available to hoteliers in India.

“Our industry is very much a global market and I’m excited to be able to offer our brands to hotel owners in India.  Jan Gautam and Interessant Hospitality are perfect partners as they have an established base in India in which to propel our brands,” stated Belmonte.

Interessant Hospitality is a full service hotel management company specializing in Asset Management, Revenue Management, Internet & SEO Marketing, Receivership, and Sales & Marketing.  Currently, Interessant is overseeing over 30 properties in Asset Management, over 40 properties in Revenue Management and over 300 in Internet & SEO Marketing.

Jan Gautam, President & CEO of Interessant Hospitality began working with Belmonte in 2012 to develop a plan extend Vimana’s reach overseas.  With over 20 years of proven success in the hospitality industry, Gautam has big goals for the development of the Vimana brands.

“Over the next three years our goal is to have at least 30 Centerstone/Key West Hotels open and operating.  We plan to make the Centerstone and Key West brands a well-known brand throughout India,” said Gautam.

There are plans for properties in some of India’s major key cities like Mumbai, Delhi and Jairpur as well as many others.

Gautam said, “I have known Steve Belmonte since he was President of Ramada and he has always had a great respect toward his franchisees and has gone above and beyond to help them. He’s been persistent in fair franchising and has worked hard in order to accomplish great results for his clients. Now it’s time to introduce a Fair Franchising brand and Steve has done just that. With Vimana Franchise Systems there is up front fairness and no reading between the lines. No other franchise company has offered what Steve has brought to this industry and I am looking forward to working with him in this venture. “

Vimana has several other countries targeted and future announcements are expected to be made later this year.

About Interessant Hospitality

 Interessant Hospitality is a full service Hotel Management Company specializing in Asset Management, Revenue Management, Internet & SEO Marketing, Receivership and Sales & Marketing.  Interessant was founded in Orlando, FL and currently successfully manages more than 50 properties worldwide.  For more information please visit www.ihrmc.com.

The 60-room Centerstone Inn continues to be owned by Eagle Ridge Hospitalities, LLC and is located at 1701 Oak Street in Canton, MO – Jct US 61 & Route P.

“Choosing to become a Centerstone was an easy decision for us because they are quite simply, the most franchise friendly brand available.  Not only that, but the level of personal and professional support they give you is just unlike any other brand out there,” said Bob Rehm Sr., Managing Member of Eagle Ridge Hospitalities.

Canton is home to Culver-Stockton College and the Centerstone Inn is centrally located just minutes from several big area attractions like Mark Twain Casino, Lock& Dam #20 with a new levee view-walk, and the Canton Ferry.  Canton is located on the banks of the Mississippi River providing many other recreational activities and a great view of bald eagles during the winter months.  There are also several challenging golf courses in the area.  Hotel amenities include a heated indoor pool & hot tub, free hot breakfast, fitness center and game room.

“We are thrilled to have this property in our system.   Not only is it a beautiful hotel but it is also in an awesome location where there is a ton to do.  Our continued growth is because of our franchise friendly model featuring the best deal terms in the industry coupled with a great reservations system and revenue generating programs,” said Steve Belmonte, CEO of Centerstone’s Vimana Franchise Systems.

Centerstone plans to announce the opening of 2-3 more properties by the end of February2013.

Amanda, daughter-in-law of Vimana’s CEO and founder, Steve Belmonte has been working by his side for the last two years, since the inception of Centerstone Hotels and Vimana Franchise Systems. Amanda hails from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and received her bachelor’s degree from Cabrini College. She will be based in Orlando and will continue to work closely with Steve Belmonte as well as company President, Neal Jackson.

“Amanda has truly deserved this opportunity. She has been a key and instrumental player in expanding our franchise brands and has gained valuable experience working in just about every department.  Additionally, as Vimana Franchise Systems continues to grow (we’ve added three new Centerstone’s in the month of January alone) it is important for us to make sure that there is an individual who is looking out for each of our individual owners and general managers,” said Steve Belmonte.

In her new position, Amanda will be working closely with owners and managers helping them focus on key revenue generating programs and ideas so that they may maximize the value of their franchise affiliation.

“I’m excited to be in this new position and for the future growth of Vimana.  I really want to focus on the performance of hotels under the Centerstone and Key West flags in terms of customer loyalty and satisfaction as well as brand awareness,” said Amanda.

The 64-room Centerstone Inn & Suites, owned by Troy Thede is located 1910 Nairn Drive S in Maquoketa, IA.

“We are very happy to be joining the Centerstone family.  This is without a doubt the most franchise friendly company out there.  Their favorable franchise model, along with their great support and revenue generating programs made it an obvious and easy decision for us,” said Owner Troy Thede.

This beautiful new property features a fitness center, an indoor swimming pool, as well as free breakfast.

Steve Belmonte, CEO of Vimana Franchise System’s Centerstone Hotels said, “This Centerstone Inn & Suites is a great addition for us.  It’s a beautiful property built with high quality throughout and we are happy to have them on board.”

Centerstone is gearing up for a busy year with several more properties converting to Centerstone in the next few months.

“You can expect to hear a lot more about Vimana Franchise System’s two brands, Centerstone Inns, Hotels and Plaza Hotels and Key West Inns, Hotels and Resorts in 2013.  We have some exciting announcements coming up in regards to international agreements as well as a new senior management appointment to our team,” said Belmonte.

Centerstone and Key West are attracting owners with their 3% franchise fees and contracts as short at 36 months. We talked to CEO Steven J. Belmonte to learn more about the new brands and their advantages.

Belmonte comes to the franchise business with more than four decades of experience, starting as desk clerk making $2.25 per hour when he wasn’t quite 16 years old. At 18, he was the youngest general manager in the Holiday Inn system, handling the Holiday Inn O’Hare Airport. He came to run other Holiday Inns in the Midwest and eventually became president and CEO of Ramada Worldwide.

Belmonte has managed hotels. He’s bought and sold hotels. And, as an owner of Hospitality Solutions, he’s helped hotel owners resolve issues with their franchise companies. As such, he’s uniquely qualified to launch his ambitious franchise company offering two brands.

Tell me about the brands.

Key West is a themed leisure brand with three tiers: two-diamond inns, three-diamond hotels and four-diamond resorts. When someone walks in they get the feeling they’re in Key West. The ice bucket is a coconut, the light switch a palm tree. We have a lot of little things like lemonade key-lime cookies. The whole experience is well-themed. The brand applies to a multitude of areas, not just coastal properties. It has a leisure, kicked-back feeling that’s good anywhere.

The Centerstone brand is more of conventional brand, designed to serve a balance of leisure and business travelers. It’s also divided into three levels: two-diamond inns, three-diamond hotels and four-diamond plaza hotels.

I created them primarily as conversion brands. Currently, we’re nursing 29 deals in various stages. With the exception of two new-construction properties, they’re all conversions right now.

Why did you create the brands?
I’ve owned, managed, franchised. I’ve done everything relative to hotels. In my old equity days I bought and sold close to 30 hotels. We would renovate, reposition and sell. I’ve done every aspect of the hotel industry and always loved what I’ve done.

I’ve always dreamt of a better franchise model, a real franchise company that is franchise-friendly in everything it does.

What makes this model different?

We offer all the support mechanisms you’d expect from a brand—signage, a cutting-edge reservation system, quality assurance, field assistance, marketing and Internet. All the services of any hotel franchise company. We just do it under unusual terms. Our fees are 3%. That’s a huge difference. We don’t make people sign 15- to 20-year agreements. We have as little as 36-month agreements.

We avoid mandates that don’t provide return on investment. The difference is, if you look at some of the big franchise companies that are public, many CEOs weren’t in the hotel business. I have been.

Will I ever be Wyndham profitable or Choice profitable? No, and that’s OK because we’re not a public company. We don’t have to worry about satisfying our shareholders first and our franchisees second.

How do you compete with these larger, established brands?

Ten years ago that mattered. With the advent of the Internet, the shopping and buying habits of the consumer have changed. Guests are making decisions based on the Internet site, quality of photos, overall appeal of the hotel. If they don’t book online, they shop online. If your Internet presence is solid, you’ll do just as well as the big brands.

A new name is a good thing. If your quality and presentation are good, the new brand will draw more business. Everyone wants to try something new. A lot of the mature brands have kept their baggage. A new brand doesn’t carry that baggage.

From the franchisee side, there’s an emergence of new hoteliers who want to do it their way. They don’t want to live in the vanilla box mandated by their franchise company. We think the public is a little tired of cookie cutter. If the overall quality is in place, we embrace it.

Where are Centerstone and Key West hotels concentrated?

They’re all over, heavier throughout the South. For the future, we’re really focusing on major gateway cities.

How is the economy affecting your success?

I thought I was smart to launch this at the beginning of a recovery period. I still have serious questions about whether we’re in a recovery or not. Until lenders get back in the business, I have questions about it. I don’t see anything on the near horizon that tells me things are going to change for the better. We’ll continue to do business, but we’re all going to lose a lot of great deals because of lack of financing.

I’ve got 14 projects that could absolutely happen—either new construction or acquisition-and-rehab—but they can’t get financing. It’s an all-too-common story. And yet most of the banks are sitting on record hoards of cash. I don’t think anything is going to trickle down to our industry for a while.

What’s going on with your brands right now?

As a new brand I think it’s important that we keep the ship nice and clean and shiny. We actually deny more properties than we take. People mean well, but they can’t get the renovation loans and I can’t just bring them in because they’ll kill the brand in the interim.

In early August, one of our franchisees opened the Centerstone Warner Hotel in West Chester, PA. It’s in an area outside of Philadelphia with chic restaurants and boutiques. It’s all new construction on the site of the original Warner Brother’s Theater. The original theater is where the lobby is now.

We have another new construction, a Centerstone Hotel being built near Revere Beach in the Boston area. We expect that will move along fairly quickly.

Source: http://lhonline.com/topstory/franchising_Vimana_Centerstone_KeyWest_Belmonte_development_conversions_financing_0907/

On June 1st, the Centerstone Inn in Tuscaloosa, Alabama was opened for business. This former award winning Comfort Inn is located near the University of Alabama and the Mercedes-Benz manufacturing plant. The hotel features 59 rooms, HDTV’s and an amazing hot breakfast and an outdoor pool.

Ben Koopman, Managing Director of the Tuscaloosa Centerstone Inn said, “Centerstone is the perfect fit for this property. The low fees and revenue generating marketing programs will drive bottom line profits like never before. The folks at Centerstone are focused on my hotel’s success and I like that.”

Coming in September 2012, Centerstone is scheduled to open their first new construction property in historic downtown West Chester, PA. The Centerstone Hotel Warner Centerstone has been built on the site of the original 1930’s Warner Brothers theater and is considered an historical landmark.

Additionally, Centerstone has several other projects that are going to be announced including their international debut. Their success is attributed to their unique franchise friendly model and deal terms.

About Vimana Franchise Systems LLC

Vimana Franchise Systems LLC is a hotel franchise company owned by CEO Steve Belmonte, President Neal Jackson and Vice President Cory Jackson Jr. In May 2011, Vimana Franchise Systems launched the Centerstone brand as a three-segment franchise designed to create a fair and cost effective model for the hospitality industry. In November 2011, Key West Inns was re-launched under the Vimana Franchise ownership umbrella as a fun and uniquely themed leisure brand. For more information on Vimana Franchise Systems LLC, contact Steve Belmonte at (407) 654-5540 steve@vimanafs.com. Visit Vimana Franchise Systems online at www.VimanaFS.com.

Visit Centerstone online at www.centerstonehotels.com, on Twitter at @Centerstonehtls, or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Centerstonehotels. Visit Key West Inns online at www.staykeywesthotels.com, on Twitter at @StayKeyWest, or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/staykeywest.

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