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Owners at Poipu Point Resort on Kauai, Hawaii, faced with a special assessment in excess of $5,000 per week for reconstruction to correct water intrusion damage to the buildings, have rebelled against the assessment by filing a lengthy class action Complaint against Diamond Resort International, its CEO Stephen Cloobeck and several directors.

In 163 paragraphs within the 52-page Complaint, the plaintiffs have detailed allegations of intimidation against recalcitrant directors and other methods to gain control of the board of directors by installing Diamond employees as directors. Once in control, according to the Complaint, the Diamond directors increased the management fee paid to Diamond to more than ten times prior levels and imposed the special assessment in violation of the Poipu Point governing documents.

Among the allegations is a claim that the water intrusion damage was known to Diamond before they acquired the resort from Sunterra and that Diamond delayed taking any action until they gained control over the board. Further, Diamond is alleged to have sold points in its collection of Hawaii resorts without disclosing the water intrusion damage and impending assessment.

The Complaint points out that the $65 million total assessment works out to more than $300,000 per unit, and charges that much of the money will be used for renovations unrelated to the water intrusion problem.

Plaintiffs allege the directors committed breaches of their fiduciary duty in assisting CEO Stephen Cloobeck to gain control of the board, voting on matters when they had a conflict of interest and authorizing the water intrusion assessment knowing it was invalid under the governing documents.

Diamond Resorts and Stephen Cloobeck are alleged to have committed consumer fraud and deceptive trade practices in seeking to collect the invalid assessment.

Plaintiffs seek to have the water intrusion assessment declared invalid, all payments already made to be refunded and damages.

Source: Timesharing Today Express

When the third season of the two-time Emmy Award-nominated series "Undercover Boss" premiered in January, the CEO of Las Vegas-based Diamond Resorts International, Stephen Cloobeck, got an inside look to the inner-workings of his corporation's timeshare developments.

Cloobeck's right-hand man, David Palmer, president of Diamond Resorts, pushed the experience on Cloobeck after talking with other CEOs who went through the "Undercover Boss" experience.

"Stephen's expectations about customer service are pretty unrealistic," Palmer said in an interview at the episode's premiere in New York City. "That is what I like about him, but I felt like the snapshots he was getting during his "surprise" visits were still very varnished. He needed this."

So after an hour of makeup each morning, Cloobeck posed as Jack Fischer, a middle-aged man who wanted to quit his day job and venture into the world of hospitality. Fischer would shadow four different Diamond Resorts employees to find out what it was really like, and if the career change was really for him.

Cloobeck gave up the corporate executive suite at Las Vegas-based Diamond Resorts for two weeks to fix and paint drywall, handle small maintenance projects, and check in guests at a few of his company's timeshare developments.

"I realized my company was nowhere near as efficient as it could be," Cloobeck said. "I also understood after my experience that everyone in my company needs to communicate better, which means they'll communicate with our guests better."

While he saw small things that needed "fixing" in the company, Cloobeck said the interaction with employees helped him understand what workers go through.

Cloobeck would encourage any CEO to participate in the series. "It's important to get into the trenches and see if systems are working properly," he said.

It was announced this week that the Corporation for Travel Promotion is now doing business as Brand USA, Inc. The Corporation for Travel Promotion was created in 2010 for the purpose of encouraging travelers from all over the world to visit the United States of America.

The public-private marketing entity works in close partnership with the travel industry to maximize the economic and social benefits of travel in communities around the country. Through its call-to-action “Discover America,” Brand USA will “encourage and inspire travelers to explore America’s boundless possibilities.”

In this blog we have written about The Corporation for Travel Promotion, and its mission to increase foreign travel to the U.S., and thus increase jobs and put the U.S. travel industry on a healthy footing, where it has not been since the 9-11 attacks.

Increased foreign tourism to the U.S. can translate into increased interest in timeshare resales, exchanges, and rentals, so it is good to hear that Brand USA Inc. launched the United States’ first-ever nationally coordinated global campaign at London’s British Academy of Film and Television Arts and a subsequent press conference at ExCel London.

According to Stephen J. Cloobeck, Chairman of Brand USA Inc., and Chief Executive Officer of Diamond Resorts International®, “Brand USA has arrived and it’s not just a tourism brand, but a platform to spur powerful growth throughout all the corners of the United States. It is a 21st-century brand that will help reposition our great nation in the global market for travel – and drive economic activity, including billions in new spending and tens of thousands of new outsource-proof jobs and much needed tax revenue.”

“The new identity of Brand USA captures the unique and diverse culture of the US, and is a critical step in the development of the nation’s first unified marketing strategy,” said Cloobeck.

The logo, which comprises a collection of dots joining together to form the letters USA, symbolizes” the boundless possibilities of the US.” The logo also displays Brand USA’s consumer website, DiscoverAmerica.com. The first official advertising and marketing campaign is scheduled to launch in spring 2012.