WESTIN INTRODUCES NEW GLOBAL PARTNERSHIPS AND WELL-BEING COUNCIL MEMBER TO HELP TRAVELERS ‘EAT WELL’ ON THE ROAD

• More than Half of Travelers Crave Healthy Food Options while traveling and 41% are Afraid of Putting on the Pounds, Inspiring Starwood’s Wellness Brand to Partner with SuperChefs and The Juicery
• Renowned Dietician Ashley Koff Joins Westin Well-Being Council

Westin Hotels & Resorts unveiled the next stage of its year-long Westin Well-Being Movement with the announcement of two new nutrition-focused partnerships with SuperChefs™ and The Juicery and the newest member of the brand’s Well-Being Council, dietician Ashley Koff RD.

As an advocate for wellness and healthy eating, Westin teamed up with SuperChefs, a group of doctors, dentists, dieticians, chefs and other experts dedicated to educating kids on the importance and the fun of eating smart, to create The Westin Eat Well Menu for Kids. The extensive new menu, which has rolled out to properties worldwide, includes eight signature dishes created and tested by kids, receiving a stamp of approval from notoriously finicky eaters.

A new, dedicated fresh juice and smoothie offering, Westin Fresh by The Juicery, is currently rolling out to hotels worldwide. The program was created with leaders in nutrition, featuring juices and smoothies designed for business and leisure travelers seeking healthy options while traveling.

“As we continue to roll-out innovative wellness options for our guests as part of the Westin Well-Being Movement, we saw this as a perfect opportunity to introduce two new programs that are carefully customized to help guests continue their healthy eating habits while traveling,” said Brian Povinelli, Global Brand Leader for Westin & Le Méridien Hotels. “Both SuperChefs and The Juicery have made great strides in making it easier to help maintain a healthier life while promoting the importance of good nutrition.”

Kid-Tested Menus Puts the Fun into Healthy Eating
Westin’s partnership with SuperChefs demonstrates the brand’s dedication to the well-being of its guests – big and small – by now offering a menu fully dedicated to healthy options for kids at its hotels around the world. The Westin Eat Well Menu for Kids engages children through a colorful, playful menu placemat filled with inventive dishes like Build Your Own Fruit Crepes that allow kids to actually play with their food, providing a sense of discovery while imparting the value of healthy eating.

The new kids’ menu features a vibrant array of healthful, tasty dishes such as Build Your Own Salmon Niçoise Salad that were created and tested by SuperChefs kids. Each menu placemat is complete with games like “word scrambles” for kids to solve while enjoying their Baby Spinach & Cheese Omelet and educational tidbits on what makes certain foods “super.” In partnership with SuperChefs Creator and Founder Dr. Greg Chang, SuperChefs Advisory Board member and Yale Wellness Manager Lisa Kimmel, and their staff of professional chefs and educators, the new menus were developed to help teach the essentials of balanced nutrition and food preparation.

More Than 50% of Parents Concerned about Healthy Food Options on the Road
Increasingly, guests are concerned not only for their own well-being but that of their children as well. According to the brand’s well-being survey conducted earlier this year, when it comes to food options while traveling, more than half of respondents are most concerned about the limited access to healthy food options and 41% of parents are concerned about gaining weight while on the road due to the limited healthy food options. And how do parents get their little ones to eat their veggies? One third of those surveyed bribe their children by giving them access to TV or smartphones and 30% offer a special sweet treat in exchange for eating a healthy meal. The Westin Eat Well Menu for Kids was designed to combat the challenges parents face, arming them with a seamless way to provide kids with a wholesome, delicious meal.

Westin Gets Fresh with The Juicery
Westin and The Juicery worked with a leading nutritionist to develop an assortment of energizing juices and smoothies designed to enhance well-being and provide fuel for the day. Did you know that 95% of the vitamins and enzymes our bodies need are found in the juice from raw fruits and vegetables? Westin Fresh by The Juicery juices and smoothies are designed to nourish the body and mind with nutrition rich ingredients including beetroot, açai, kale, pomegranate, mint, spinach and blueberries. The new menu will be featured at all Westin hotels worldwide by early 2015.

The Business of Eating Well
In addition to the new partnerships and programming with SuperChefs and The Juicery, Westin has also appointed its next expert to the Westin Well-Being Council. Leading the charge of providing insightful and informational content surrounding the brand’s “Eat Well” pillar is Ashley Koff, RD.

An internationally-renowned dietician, Koff is dedicated to imparting the value of quality nutrition choices in achieving optimal health. The Westin Well-being Council is a diverse advisory board composed of renowned thought leaders, each of whom aligns with a specific wellness brand pillar. Ashley joins Council members Andy Puddicombe, Headspace Co-Founder and mediation expert, and media mogul Arianna Huffington in guiding and inspiring new initiatives, leveraging proprietary research to inform and introduce new programs throughout the year.

“Westin is the first global hotel brand I have encountered that takes such a thorough approach to the well-being of its guests,” said Ashley Koff RD. “I look forward to contributing my experience and knowledge to the Westin Well-being Movement to further inspire others to pursue and enjoy a balanced, healthy life.”

With a brand positioning rooted in wellness for more than a decade, Westin Hotels & Resorts is dedicated to ensuring that guests leave feeling better than when they arrived. Earlier this year the brand launched The Westin Well-Being Movement – a year-long global initiative designed to enhance the well-being of guests and associates with the introduction of a string of innovative partnerships and programs across the brand’s six pillars of well-being: Feel Well, Work Well, Move Well, Eat Well, Sleep Well and Play Well.

Building upon its existing healthy SuperFoodsRx™ menus, Westin recently introduced new delicious and nutrient-rich offerings including Westin Fresh by The Juicery, featuring energizing juices and smoothies, and kid-tested nourishing dishes developed in partnership with SuperChefs on the Westin Eat Well Menu for Kids (Eat Well).

The brand also recently announced a partnership with the mindful meditation app, Headspace (Feel Well), in which guests have exclusive access to customized content through the Westin website, designed to spread healthy benefits including decreasing stress, improving mood and increasing creativity.

The inspiration for Westin’s wellness strategy, the iconic Heavenly® Bed (Sleep Well) is beloved by guests and lauded as one of hospitality’s great innovations. WestinWORKOUT®, RunWESTIN™ and Westin Gear Lending with New Balance® (Move Well) together pack a formidable punch, offering guests a holistic fitness solution.

The brand’s nature-inspired design, signature sensory welcome, Heavenly Bath and Heavenly Spa (Feel Well) offer a relaxing respite from the rigors of travel. Tangent (Work Well), an innovative workspace concept for small groups modeled to support today’s mobile traveler, is receiving rave reviews and high usage from guests in locations where available.

Westin Weekend (Play Well) signature experiences are designed to let guests escape, discover and relax and the brand’s digital destination guide, Westin Finds from AFAR, provides guests with uniquely curated travel experiences.