Created after the fall of industry giant Tanner & Haley, leaving nearly 900 members without a club and with little sense of the security of their membership deposits, the Destination Club Association was established in June of 2006. The organization was tasked to "promote the responsible growth of the industry through education to create awareness of the industry and its unique vacation offerings, through the establishment of best practices and other consumer protections, and through cooperation with the broader hospitality industry worldwide."
The trade organization helped draft a suggested list of best practices that club members would adhere to and devised a new metric to track each club's ability to repay obligations owed to members called the Net Asset Test.
When established, the association counted six of the largest and most established destination clubs in the sector, including:
LUSSO Collection would also join the organization and Parallel would be replaced by the Solstice Collection after the two clubs merged. Private Escapes and Ultimate Resort would also merge to form Ultimate Escapes, who would serve on the association as well as the new Abercrombie & Kent Residence Club.
Once the financial and real estate markets began their downfalls in 2008, many of the destination clubs throughout the industry were critically hit. Despite their attempts to provide additional disclosure and assurances to members, many members of the DCA were similarly hurt.
LUSSO Collection, High Country Club, and Solstice Collection all filed for bankruptcy. Not convinced that the organization "had any teeth," the organization's newest member Abercrombie & Kent Residence Club resigned from the organization.
How the association will progress has yet to be determined.
The members, one by one
The association was a response to Tanner & Haley, whose bankruptcy in July 2006 left 874 members across Private Retreats, Distinctive Retreats and Legendary Retreats waiting to learn what their deposits were worth. Its founding members were the six clubs that dominated the industry at the time.
Their later histories are spread across this archive. Exclusive Resorts and Quintess came through the downturn and kept growing. Private Escapes and Ultimate Resort merged in 2007 to form Ultimate Escapes, which went public in 2009 and filed for Chapter 11 in September 2010. Parallel merged into the Solstice Collection, which filed for bankruptcy early in 2009. High Country Club and the LUSSO Collection both ended in Chapter 7.
The Net Asset Test was the association's main tool, a way for a member to see whether a club's assets covered at least two thirds of the deposits it owed. The Abercrombie & Kent Residence Club joined after its 2008 launch and then left. The due diligence questions the original site kept repeating, on debt against equity, the use of deposits and audited accounts, cover much of the same ground.
Common questions
What was the Destination Club Association?
A trade group formed in June 2006 by leading clubs after the failure of Tanner & Haley left nearly 900 members unsure of their deposits. It set out to promote responsible growth through education, best practices and consumer protections.
Which clubs founded the Destination Club Association?
Exclusive Resorts, High Country Club, Parallel, Private Escapes, Quintess and Ultimate Resort. The LUSSO Collection, the Solstice Collection, Ultimate Escapes and the Abercrombie & Kent Residence Club joined later.
What did the association create?
A suggested list of best practices for member clubs and the Net Asset Test, which measures whether a club's assets cover at least 66 percent of the deposits it owes members.
How did association members fare in the 2008 downturn?
Badly. The LUSSO Collection, High Country Club and the Solstice Collection all filed for bankruptcy, Ultimate Escapes followed in 2010, and the Abercrombie & Kent Residence Club resigned, unconvinced the group had any teeth.