Bluegreen Vacations Holding Profile
Bluegreen Vacations Holding Corporation (Bluegreen) operates as a vacation ownership company. The company markets and sells vacation ownership interest (VOIs) and manages resorts in popular leisure and urban destinations.
Bluegreen is a leading vacation ownership company that markets and sells VOIs and manages resorts in popular leisure and urban destinations. Bluegreen’s resort network includes 46 Club Resorts (resorts in which owners in the Bluegreen Vacation Club (Vacation Club) have the right to control and use most of the units in connection with their VOI ownership) and 23 Club Associate Resorts (resorts in which owners in the Vacation Club have the right to use only a limited number of units in connection with their VOI ownership). These Club Resorts and Club Associate Resorts are primarily located in high-volume, drive-to vacation locations, including Orlando, Las Vegas, Myrtle Beach, Charleston and New Orleans, among others. In addition, in October 2022 Bluegreen purchased a resort located in Panama City Beach, Florida. Bluegreen expects this resort to be available for use by Bluegreen Vacation Club owners in 2023. Through Bluegreen’s points-based system, the approximately 218,000 owners in the Vacation Club have the flexibility to stay at units available at any of Bluegreen’s resorts and have access to over 11,400 other hotels and resorts through partnerships and exchange networks. Bluegreen’s sales and marketing platform is supported by marketing relationships with nationally-recognized consumer brands, such as Bass Pro and Choice Hotels. The Vacation Club has grown from approximately 170,000 owners as of December 31, 2012, to approximately 218,000 owners as of December 31, 2022.
Products
Vacation Ownership Interests
Bluegreen has generated over 807,000 VOI sales transactions. Vacation Club owners receive an annual or biennial allotment of points in perpetuity (supported by an underlying deeded VOI held in trust for the owner) that may be used to stay at any of Bluegreen’s Club Resorts and Club Associate Resorts. Vacation Club owners can use their points to stay in resorts for varying lengths of time, starting at a minimum of two nights. The number of points required for a stay at a resort depends on a variety of factors, including resort location, size of the unit, vacation season and the days of the week. Under this system, Vacation Club owners can select vacations according to their schedules, space needs and available points.
The Vacation Club’s points-based platform offers owners significant flexibility. As reflected in the chart below, basic Vacation Club ownership entitles owners to use their points to stay at any of Bluegreen’s Club Resorts and Club.
Associate Resorts, as well as to access more than 4,200 resorts available through the Resort Condominiums International, LLC (RCI) exchange network. For a nominal annual fee and transaction fees, Vacation Club owners can join and utilize the Traveler Plus program, which enables them to use their points to access an additional 48 direct exchange resorts, and other vacation experiences. Traveler Plus members can also directly use their Vacation Club points for stays in Choice Hotels’ Ascend Hotel Collection properties and Cambria Hotels and other benefits. Overall, there are more than 7,000 hotels in the Choice Hotels network, located in over 40 countries and territories, and Choice Hotels’ brands include the Ascend Hotel Collection, Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality Inn, Sleep Inn, Clarion, Clarion Pointe, Cambria Hotels and Suites, MainStay Suites, Suburban Extended Stay Hotel, Econo Lodge, Rodeway Inn, WoodSpring Suites and Everhome Suites. In addition, Vacation Club owners can convert their Vacation Club points into Choice Privileges points, which can be used for stays in Choice Hotels’ properties. Bluegreen remains focused on providing value to its Vacation Club owners through enhanced product offerings, new resort locations, broader vacation experiences and technological improvements, all designed to increase guest satisfaction.
Vacation Club Resort Locations
Vacation Club resorts are primarily located on the U.S. East Coast and Midwest. The direct-exchange resorts available to Traveler Plus members are concentrated along the West Coast and Hawaii.
Vacation Club resorts are primarily drive-to resort destinations as approximately 88% of Bluegreen’s Vacation Club owners live within a four-hour drive of at least one resort. Bluegreen resorts are generally located in popular vacation destinations, such as Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Texas, Louisiana, and Nevada, and represent a diverse mix of resort and urban destinations, allowing Vacation Club owners the ability to customize their vacation experience. In addition, Bluegreen expects to offer Vacation Club owners access to the company’s new Panama City Beach resort in 2023.
Bluegreen’s resort network also offers a diverse mix of experiences and accommodations. Bluegreen resorts typically feature condominium-style accommodations with amenities, such as fully equipped kitchens, entertainment centers and in-room laundry appliances. Many resorts feature a clubhouse (including a pool, game room and lounge), hotel-type staff and concierge services.
Bluegreen also owns a 51% interest in Bluegreen/Big Cedar Vacations, which develops, markets and sells VOIs at three premier wilderness-themed resorts adjacent to Table Rock Lake near Branson, Missouri: The Bluegreen Wilderness Club at Big Cedar, The Cliffs at Long Creek and Paradise Point. The remaining 49% interest in Bluegreen/Big Cedar Vacations is held by Big Cedar, LLC, an affiliate of Bass Pro. As a result of Bluegreen’s controlling interest in Bluegreen/Big Cedar Vacations, the company’s consolidated financial statements include the results of operations and financial condition of Bluegreen/Big Cedar Vacations.
Marketing and Sale of Inventory
VOI sales are typically generated by attracting prospective customers (guests) to tour a resort and attend a sales presentation (a guest tour). Bluegreen’s sales and marketing platforms utilize a variety of methods to attract prospective customers, drive guest tour flow and sell VOIs in its Vacation Club. Bluegreen utilizes marketing alliances with nationally-recognized brands, which provide access to venues which target consumers generally matching Bluegreen’s core demographic. To a lesser extent, guests are also sourced through programs which generate leads at high-traffic venues and in high-density tourist locations and events, as well as through referrals from existing owners and other guests at Bluegreen’s properties.
Many of Bluegreen’s marketing programs intended to attract prospective customers involve the sale of a discounted vacation package that typically includes a two to three night stay in close proximity to one of Bluegreen’s sales offices and requires participation in a guest tour. Vacation packages may be sold either in retail brick and mortar establishments, such as Bass Pro and Cabela’s stores and malls, through Bluegreen’s call transfer program with Choice, or via telemarketing. During the year ended December 31, 2022, Bluegreen sold approximately 169,000 vacation packages and 25% of its VOI sales were made to guests who had previously purchased a vacation package and attended a guest tour. As of December 31, 2022, Bluegreen had a pipeline of over 165,000 vacation packages sold to new customers. While there is no assurance that this will continue to be the case, prior to the impact of COVID-19 on travel, historically approximately 40% to 42% of vacation packages resulted in guest tours at one of Bluegreen’s resorts with a sales center within twelve months of purchase. Bluegreen also sells vacation packages to customers who have already toured and purchased a VOI and have indicated they would tour again. As of December 31, 2022, the pipeline included approximately 16,000 of such packages. There is no assurance that such packages will convert to sales at historical or expected levels.
Bluegreen Vacations Unlimited (BVU), Bluegreen’s wholly-owned subsidiary, has an exclusive marketing agreement through 2024 with Bass Pro, a nationally-recognized retailer of fishing, marine, hunting, camping and sports gear, that provides BVU with the right to market and sell vacation packages at kiosks in Bass Pro’s and Cabela’s retail locations and through other means.
As of December 31, 2022, Bluegreen was operating marketing kiosks at Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s stores (new Bass Pro marketing location opened during 2022). In January 2023, as part of a reorganization of certain marketing programs, Bluegreen’s marketing kiosks at 23 Cabela’s stores were changed to unmanned virtual locations.
Bluegreen also has an exclusive strategic relationship with Choice Hotels that involves several areas of its business, including a sales and marketing alliance that enables Bluegreen to leverage Choice Hotels’ brands, customer relationships and marketing channels to sell vacation packages. Vacation packages are sold through customer reservation calls transferred to Bluegreen from Choice Hotels. Bluegreen’s strategic relationship with Choice Hotels began in 2013 and was extended in August 2017 for a 15 year term, with an additional 15-year renewal term thereafter unless either party elects not to renew the arrangement.
In addition to sales to new customers, Bluegreen seeks to sell additional VOI points to its existing Vacation Club owners. Bluegreen operates 24 sales centers, typically located at or adjacent to Bluegreen’s resorts. During the year ended December 31, 2022, 96% of Bluegreen’s sales were generated from 20 of Bluegreen’s sales centers which focus on both new customer and existing Vacation Club owner sales. Bluegreen’s remaining 4 sales centers are primarily focused on sales to existing Vacation Club owners staying at the respective resort. Bluegreen also utilizes telesales operations to sell VOIs to Vacation Club owners.
Bluegreen offers sales and marketing services to third-party developers for a commission. Under these arrangements, which are typically, but not always, entered into on a non-committed basis, Bluegreen sells third-party developers’ VOIs as Vacation Club interests through Bluegreen’s sales and marketing platform.
Customer Financing
The company generally offers qualified purchasers financing for up to 90% of the purchase price of vacation ownership interests (VOIs).
Sales/Financing of Receivables
The company’s ability to sell or borrow against its VOI notes receivable is an important factor in meeting its liquidity requirements. The vacation ownership business generally involves sales where a buyer is only required to pay 10% of the purchase price up front, while at the same time selling and marketing expenses related to such sales are primarily cash expenses that exceed the down payment amount.
Receivables Servicing
Receivables servicing includes collecting payments from borrowers and remitting the funds to the owners, lenders or investors in such receivables, accounting for principal and interest on such receivables, making advances when required, contacting delinquent borrowers, terminating a Vacation Club ownership in the event that defaults are not timely remedied and performing other administrative duties.
Strategy
The key elements of the company’s strategy are to continue to enhance Bluegreen’s Vacation Club experience; and pursue opportunistic strategic transactions.
Trademarks, Service Marks and Trade Names
The company owns or has rights to use a number of registered and common law trademarks, trade names and service marks in connection with its business, including, but not limited to, Bluegreen, Bluegreen Resorts, Bluegreen Vacations, Bluegreen Traveler Plus, Bluegreen Vacation Club, Bluegreen Wilderness Club at Big Cedar and the Bluegreen Logo. Without limiting the generality of the preceding sentence, World Golf Village is registered by World Golf Foundation, Inc.; Big Cedar, Cabela’s and Bass Pro Shops are registered by Bass Pro Trademarks, LP; RCI is registered by RCI, LLC; Ascend, Ascend Hotel Collection, Ascend Resort Collection, Choice Privileges, Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality Inn, Sleep Inn, Clarion, Clarion Pointe, Cambria hotels, MainStay Suites, Woodspring Suites, Econo Lodge and Rodeway Inn are registered by Choice Hotels International, Inc.; and Suburban Extended Stay Hotel is registered by Suburban Franchise Systems, Inc.
Regulation
The vacation ownership and real estate industries are subject to extensive and complex governmental regulation and as a consequence, the company is subject to various federal, state, local, foreign, environmental, zoning, consumer protection and other laws, rules and regulations, including those regarding the acquisition, marketing and sale of VOIs, as well as various aspects of its financing operations. At the federal level, the Federal Trade Commission has taken an active regulatory role through the Federal Trade Commission Act, which prohibits unfair or deceptive acts or unfair competition in interstate commerce. In addition, many states have what are known as Little FTC Acts that apply to intrastate activity.
In addition to the laws applicable to the company’s customer financing and other operations discussed below, it may be subject to the Fair Housing Act and various other federal laws, rules and regulations. The company is also subject to various foreign laws with respect to La Cabana Beach Resort and Casino in Oranjestad, Aruba and Blue Water Resort at Cable Beach in Nassau, Bahamas.
The company’s marketing, sales and customer financing activities are also subject to extensive regulation, which can include, but is not limited to: the Truth-in-Lending Act and Regulation Z; the Fair Housing Act; the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act; the Equal Credit Opportunity Act and Regulation B; the Electronic Funds Transfer Act and Regulation E; the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act and Regulation C; the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (the Dodd-Frank Act); Unfair or Deceptive Acts or Practices and Regulation AA; the Patriot Act; the Right to Financial Privacy Act; the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act; the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act; and anti-money laundering laws. Pursuant to the Dodd Frank Act, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the “CFPB”) was created. The practical impact upon the company is the requirement to use a new Integrated Mortgage Disclosure Statement in lieu of the separate Good Faith Estimate and Closing Statement. In addition, Bluegreen’s term securitization transactions must comply with certain requirements of the Dodd-Frank Act, including risk retention rules.
Competition
The Company competes with various high profile and well-established companies, many of which have greater liquidity and financial resources. Many of the world’s most recognized lodging, hospitality and entertainment companies develop and sell VOIs in resort properties. Major companies that now operate vacation ownership resorts directly, through subsidiaries or through strategic relationships include Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation, Hilton Grand Vacations, and Travel + Leisure Co.
Seasonality
The company has historically experienced, and expects to continue to experience, seasonal fluctuations in its revenues and results of operations. Due to consumer travel patterns, the company typically experiences more tours and higher VOI sales volume during the second and third quarters (year ended December 31, 2022).
History
Bluegreen Vacations Holding Corporation was founded in 1966.
