The UK’s Association of Service Apartment Providers (ASAP) is rolling out its accreditation programme globally, following collaboration with US-based Corporate Housing Providers Association (CHPA).
The programme, known as the International Serviced Apartment Accreditation Programme (ISAAP) the trade association for the UK serviced apartment sector, has grown out of the Quality Assessment project, which was set up in the UK to provide the sector with a set of standards – similar to the star rating used by hotels.
The ISAAP will be launched this summer in the US and Canada with plans for a global roll-out to be unveiled later this year.
“The ISAAP programme, which embraces guest opinion, internet review mechanisms and detailed physical assessment, launches at a time when the serviced apartment industry is growing at 14 per cent in the past year alone, with 750,000 apartments worldwide,” said ASAP & ISAAP managing director, James Foice.
“North America is a major driver for innovation in our industry, so we are excited to roll out the programme there,” he added.
New York, San Francisco and Dallas in the US and Toronto and Calgary in Canada have been selected as primary locations for the programme’s pilot assessments, conducted by assessors from the UK.
ASAP said the collaboration across North America is “just the beginning” of the project, with “more European organisations coming on board soon”.
CHPA CEO Mary Ann Passi said: “Collaborating with ASAP and their UK-based assessors to launch this pilot programme, ensures that quality standards are consistent.
“The results will help build CHPA’s assessment capability while helping members differentiate their companies based on service and quality of their guests’ experiences. This pilot programme begins connecting the industry globally to ensure that clients and guests are best served.”
In December ASAP unveiled its logo for the Quality Assessment programme.