Press Releases

BridgeStreet Worldwide - Toronto - First to Offer Concierge Services to Corporate Housing Guests in Canada Through Agreement with VIPdesk

TORONTO, October 14, 2004 /CNW/ – MSB Furnished Suites Management Inc. (MSB), operating as BridgeStreet Worldwide - Toronto, - Canada's leading international provider of corporate housing to business travelers, today announced that beginning October 1, it began offering a full array of concierge services to its corporate housing guests in Toronto.

The newly available service, called BridgeStreet Concierge, is offered through multiple access points, including Internet, a toll-free number and Web-enabled telephones and PDAs. BridgeStreet was the first corporate housing provider to offer global, 24/7 concierge services to its guests. Powered by VIPdesk, the service was introduced in July 2003 at BridgeStreet's U.S., London and Paris properties, where its time-saving advantages made it an immediate hit with guests. This October, BridgeStreet began offering its concierge service to its Canadian affiliates.

"Our core customer is the business traveler who is accustomed to a high level of service and routinely travels to new cities where he or she has no previous experience," said Thomas Vincent, president, BridgeStreet Worldwide - Toronto. "Now, with BridgeStreet Concierge, business travelers in Canada can get the same specialized services at their corporate apartment as those offered at the most upscale hotels in the world, and on a 24/7 basis."

"This service is part of BridgeStreet's ongoing strategy to expand the scope of value-added services available to our guests," he said. "The typical business traveler views concierge services as a necessity rather than a privilege. BridgeStreet Worldwide has taken the traditional concept to a new, 'virtual' level. We view the addition of concierge services in Canada in a non-hotel setting as a unique and significant competitive advantage for us."

BridgeStreet Concierge offers a full complement of concierge services, including fulfilling such traditional requests as obtaining hard-to-find show tickets, sports and recreation travel research, weather reports, auto rental and entertainment suggestions. "These are highly trained professionals, mostly former hotel concierges, who provide the kind and level of service our guests need or are accustomed to getting." Guests may also access local information for 52 major cities on the Internet by clicking on "BridgeStreet Concierge" on the BridgeStreet website, bridgestreet.com.

About BridgeStreet

BridgeStreet is Canada's leading provider of worldwide corporate housing accommodations to business travelers, offering corporate apartments for extended stays throughout Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, France and 40 other countries around the world. BridgeStreet properties meet uncompromising standards of quality, comfort and service. For more information, visit bridgestreet.com.

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