Unicorp Development this week confirmed that St. Regis will provide the flag for a luxury resort at the long-shuttered site for The Colony. “What was once a dilapidated eye-sore,” announced Unicorp on Facebook, “will soon be home to a five-star St. Regis Resort.” 

The arrival of the luxury brand looks to introduce the key to a new market of wealthy travelers. “St. Regis is known as a highly desirable, exclusive brand that I think will cement Longboat’s reputation as an elegant destination,” says Virginia Haley, president of Visit Sarasota County. 

Unicorp last week submitted plans for a 166-room hotel with 102 residential units, two restaurants, a 15,700-square-foot spa and a new ballroom. The new plans will require approval from the Town of Longboat Key.

It’s a different approach for a luxury resort than the storied Colony. Having a flag like St. Regis in some ways may overshadow the destination and won’t allow the same sort of independence of resorts that operate independent of any major flag. But St. Regis brings with it enough marketing and prestige based on the known standards in quality for the Starwood Hotels & Resorts-owned brand. Haley said that while The Colony would frequent international trade shows and invest heavily in marketing on its own, the St. Regis brings with it an existing reputation and consumer incentives to bring people to the Gulf Coast.

“When you are a non-flagged brand, you really have to ramp up your marketing,” Haley says. “The advantage of a Ritz-Carlton or a St. Regis is you get the benefit of overall brand recognition and whatever consumer loyalty points they bring. You get national brand advertising, and usually a national and international sales team.” Sarasota enjoyed that boost in the post-9/11 economic slowdown when the newly opened Ritz-Carlton still had people around the globe calling Sarasota leaders to ask about the posh property.