Speaking to us ahead of the completion of last week’s merger between Ultimate Resort and Private Escapes, Jim Tousignant laid down the mantle by claiming that the newly formed Ultimate Escapes, of which he is co-CEO along with Richard Keith, is the world’s number one destination club, ahead of Exclusive Resorts. We were somewhat taken aback. After all Exclusive Resorts is widely regarded as the industry’s 800-pound gorilla, and it does have over 3,000 members, more than double Ultimate Escape’s membership. As far as properties go Exclusive still takes the cake with 350 homes, compared to 140 for Ultimate Escapes.

So what’s Tousignant talking about? Well for one Ultimate Escapes does offer the most locations of any destination club—a total of 50 around the world, compared to 35 for Exclusive Resorts. But what really separates the two clubs is Ultimate Escapes approach to a far broader target demographic than ER. Ultimate Escapes is after-all really a “family” of destination clubs. Its Premier Club features homes with an average value of $1 million (Ultimate Escapes has the most homes of any club in this category), the mid-level Signature Club offers homes worth $2 million, and the highest tier Elite Club features homes worth an average of $3 million (for which Ultimate ranks as owning the second most homes of any club.) Based on the breadth of its offering, in this regard you can make a case for Ultimate Escapes as the industry leader.

Ultimate Escape’s multi-tier club strategy may have more potential for growth as destination clubs move into the main stream and target broader mass affluent potential membership base, which remains largely untapped. In the United States alone, there are some 10 million households whose savings and combined household income would qualify them as potential destination club members. Exclusive Resorts has done well in catering to a higher stratum of this spectrum. Exclusive Resorts’ entry level 10-night plan might be within the grasp of more modestly affluent consumers at a deposit of $139,900 and yearly dues of $13,900 per year, but it seems reasonable to assume that value conscious potential members might opt for more nights in slightly less luxurious (KitchenAid stove instead of a Viking range), less optimally situated (a walk to the beach instead of beachfront) homes. In that case, Ultimate Escape’s range of options positions the club for the maximum range of potential customers.

Could Exclusive Resorts’ lead narrow as the market opens up to more individuals closer to the minimum mass affluent threshold? Sound off in our comments and let us know what you think.