In early 2007, a group of Accor North America executives gathered to discuss the state of their budget brand, Motel 6. The chain’s prototype had served it well throughout the 1990s, but it lacked the foresight to carry it into the next decade.

“It’s not cutting edge. It’s not new design. It’s not as energy efficient,” reflected Jim Amorosia, president and COO of Motel 6 and the brand’s extended-stay sister, Studio 6. “It’s not all the things that are becoming more and more critical to an organization, to the consciousness of the user.”

So those executives asked themselves, ‘How are we going to do it better?’

The answer was a new prototype called the Phoenix.

I had a chance to see Accor’s first newly built Motel 6 Phoenix prototype near the company’s North American headquarters outside of Dallas, Texas, late last week. And while I spent the entire night, it took only a cursory glance to see those forward-looking changes Amorosia and the Accor team dreamt up more than two years ago.

Pulling up to the property, for example, I was immediately struck by the hotel’s clean design, anchored by a “tower” that holds the slightly revised Motel 6 logo (the word “Motel” runs vertical now) and segment leading price. The whole thing is lit by LED panels at night—a veritable beacon for weary road warriors coming off adjacent I-35W that winds between the hotel and the Texas Motor Speedway.

The changes on the inside were even more profound. The prototype boasts a Euro-chic design that is both minimalist and stylish. You’re not going to find ornate wall art, decorative pillows or sprawling floor plans here (it is a budget hotel, after all), but the use of space, which combines a queen-sized bed, comfortable desk/seating area and snazzy LCD TV wall display, makes this hotel pop in the segment.

The prototype features other changes as well: standard Wi-Fi and granite bathroom countertops, to name a few.

When coming up with the design, the name of the game was efficiency, Amorosia said. Each guestroom has everything a guest needs (with a little extra), all for under roughly US$43,000 a key (excluding land). That price tag, along with the extensive efforts toward energy conservation (e.g. thermal solar water heating, low-flow toilets, wood-effect flooring made of 80 percent pre-consumer recycled material), has peaked the interest of franchisees, some of whom were clamoring to build the prototype when it was announced in March 2008. But Amorosia and his team needed to build one themselves to make sure they got it right.

After spending the night, it certainly seems so. What I had always seen as a somewhat frumpy brand has taken a definitive step forward—one that reflects a broader development strategy for Accor in general. I’ll get into that more in an article next week. For now, enjoy some pictures I took of the property and the official ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday night.

This solar panel system on the hotel's roof (one of many energy-efficient initiatives) heats the property's water.

The stylish bathrooms feature granite countertops.	A snazzy TV console features a 32-inch LCD screen and closet storage space behind.

Olivier Poirot, CEO of Accor North America, talks about the property and the brand's new direction during the grand opening cermony.

(From left to right) Olivier Poirot cuts the ribbon at the first newly built Motel 6 Phoenix prototype as Northlake Mayor Peter Dewing, and Motel 6 President and COO Jim Amorosia look on.