Signature Inn's History, Part One

Signature Inn was founded in 1978 by John Bontreger.  The idea was to be a mid-priced brand that was set up to meet the needs of business travelers, along with those traveling for leisure.  The first location opened on March 12, 1981 in Indianapolis, Indiana.   According to a 1998 capture of their website:

“Signature Inn pioneered the ‘value driven,’ mid-priced segment of the lodging industry.  We developed accommodations and services especially for the business traveler, those not commonly found in budget motels or full-service hotels.  Our hotels are strategically located at business travelers' destination points, that is, in high traffic areas near food and beverage establishments.  Early on we realized we couldn't be all things for all people.  Therefore our concept is focused on providing first-class accommodations in a first-class environment within a moderately priced segment, the most profitable segment of the lodging industry."

Some of the business amenities included a reclining chair, a 12-foot work station, guest offices, a business center, interview centers, and modem ports for laptop computers. The hotel also included amenities such as free cable and HBO, swimming pools, spa rooms, fitness rooms at some locations, and discounts at nearby restaurants. Even though some of the amenities mentioned are commonplace in many hotels now, they were a concept that was largely unheard of except in larger (more expensive) full-service hotels. They realized that while the bulk of their weekday business came from business travelers, they needed to market themselves to the leisure travelers as well.

As stated above, their first hotel was opened in 1981 in northwest Indianapolis, Indiana.  Many more locations were built through the 1980s, with at least one each year being build up through 1989.  two more were constructed in the mid-1990s, one in 1994 and one in 1996.  Two locations were other hotels purchased by Signature Inn, one in 1987 and one in 1997.  From what records I've been able to find, the chain consisted of 28 locations.  Indiana, the chain's home state, contained half of their locations.  Ohio contained five locations, Illinois and Kentucky each had three, and Iowa, Michigan, and Tennessee each had one hotel.

Below is a timeline I've put together showing the chain's growth:

1981 – Indianapolis Northwest (IN) opens

1982 – Fort Wayne (IN) opens

1983 – Indianapolis/Castleton and Lafayette (IN) open

1984 – Muncie (IN) and Cincinnati Northeast (OH) open

1985 – Indianapolis West, Indianapolis South, Indianapolis East, and Kokomo (IN), and Columbus (OH) open

1986 – Evansville and South Bend (IN), and Florence (KY) open

1987 – Elkhart and Terre Haute (IN), and Cincinnati North and Dayton (OH) open.  Terre Haute was formerly another hotel before becoming a Signature Inn

1988 – Normal and Peoria (IL), Louisville South (KY), and Canton (OH) open

1989 – Bettendorf (IA), Plymouth (MI), and Knoxville (TN) all open

1994 – Louisville East (KY) opens

1996 – Indianapolis/Carmel opens

1997 – Springfield (IL) joined the chain after being a Sheraton and a Best Western

All of the original 1980s locations had a shallow peaked roof with a vertical area at the top of the roof which allowed the hotels' signage to be mounted on the roof.  The canopy roofs were designed to match the rest of the buildings.  Many had skylights at the peak of the canpoies, some with lights to help shine some light up toward the skylights and down toward the driveway.  Another notable feature of the original buildings are the swimming pools that were not fully rectangular.  They had a bend in the middle of them that made them look somewhat S-shaped.

Four hotels, however, did not match the standard Signature Inn design.  The Springfield, Illinois, location was originally a Sheraton and consisted of three separate buildings.  When Signature Inn took over, a canopy was added to mimic that of the chain's other facilities.  That one did not contain skylights.  The Terre Haute, Indiana, location was an L-shaped building with a flat roof.  A canopy typical of the other inns was constructed when Signature Inn took over.  I am unsure at this point what that hotel used to be prior to 1987.  The Jeffersontown, Kentucky, location was built in 1994 and has its own unique look, possibly due to a co-branding with Best Western.  The Carmel, Indiana, location was built in 1996 and shares the common boxy-hotel look that many hotels nowadays have.

Below is an aerial view, courtesy of Bing Maps, of the Castleton, Indiana location:

This is what a typical Signature Inn looked like, with a few variations.  Some had indoor pools.  Though many were F-shaped (or an inverted F), there were a couple that didn't share the same footprint.

In January 1999,Signature Inn was sold to another company.  My next post within the coming weeks will outline the hotel chain after its sale.  Stay tuned!