MEM­PHIS-Hilton is launch­ing its first new ho­tel brand in 20 years. With to­day's sched­uled open­ing of the first Home2 Suites in Fayet­teville, NC, Hilton World­wide is ven­tur­ing in­to a mid-tier ex­tend­ed stay mar­ket that re­mains rel­a­tive­ly com­pet­i­tive amid a slow­ly re­cov­er­ing econ­o­my.

Hilton al­ready has a pres­ence in the ex­tend­ed-stay seg­ment with the up­scale Home­wood Suites, but Home2 Suites is pro­vid­ing some­thing new: In­creased ameni­ties and a larg­er, more mod­ern lob­by de­sign.

Hilton hopes its lob­by con­cept-called "Oa­sis"-will bring ex­tend­ed-stay cus­tomers out of their rooms and in­to the lob­by, so they'll feel less iso­lat­ed or lone­ly dur­ing mul­ti-day stays. Six oth­er Home2 Suites are un­der con­struc­tion, with the next few open­ing in Bal­ti­more, San An­to­nio and Lay­ton, Utah. (AP)