Despite much of the coffee break talk being about Donald Trump's election to the White House, this did not overshadow the thread that ran through the day's varied and highly topical agenda at last week's HOSPACE2016 – namely, the impact of Brexit on the UK hospitality industry.
Success in the hospitality industry is becoming ever more elusive: approximately 27 pubs are closing every week; nearly half of the UK's nightclubs have shut down over the past decade and over 40,000 hotel rooms closed in the ten years up to 2013. But it's not all doom and gloom; for example, PWC predicts that this year will see the highest regional hotel occupancy ever and the highest in London this decade.
German business organisation Travel Industry Club (TIC) and Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI) Region Europe have agreed to join forces to offer top notch advantages to the industry's German professionals, with co-branded gatherings already in the pipeline.
Hospitality workers are the "best face of Britain" and any criticism that jobs in cafes, bars and restaurants are a "stopgap" are old-fashioned, according to a Government minister. Employment minister Priti Patel will use a speech to the British Hospitality Association to herald the two million UK jobs growth since 2010 and praise hospitality workers for delivering modern and attractive career options.
Sébastien Bazin, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Accor, said: "Once again, AccorHotels has undertaken numerous initiatives to secure its lead and improve its performance. Our teams have united around our strategic priorities – restructuring of the property portfolio at HotelInvest, swift rollout of the digital plan, selective hotel development, revamping of the food and beverage offering and cultural transformation. The benefits from these initiatives have contributed to our good results in the first half, which include a significant increase in revenue and EBIT, strong cash flow generation, more robust positions in the fastest-growing markets and an improvement in the value of our hotel assets.
On Thursday July 2nd, in the presence of the French and Chinese Prime Ministers, Louvre Hotels Group has signed a strategic agreement with Chinese bank ICBC that will provide the Group with the means to support its ambitious development policy in France and Europe. Now the Group is in a position to boost its policy of organic and external growth, as well as its renovation programme.
Year one of implementation of the business plan has fostered significant improvement in the performance of the hotel business, in the Company's image and in how it is perceived by the market and by travellers
2014 was characterized by strong growth in revenue mainly as a result of the acquisition of the Nordic hotel chain, Rica Hotels, which added 10,600 hotel rooms and 71 hotels. At the same time, the good organic growth of 10.0% in the hotel portfolio confirms that the Group's investments in its portfolio and customer offering yielded the desired results. During the year, the Group gained market share in all of the Nordic countries. This strong growth occurred at the same time as the Group's adjusted EBITDA margin increased to 9.4%.
Starwood Capital Group, a leading global private investment firm, and leading Spanish hotel operator Melia Hotels International announced today that they have established a joint venture that has agreed to acquire a collection of hotels across key resort locations in Spain.
Hispania Activos Inmobiliarios SAU said on Tuesday that its wholly owned unit, Hispania Real SOCIMI SAU (Hispania), had signed an agreement with Grupo Barcelo to establish a joined hotel company focused on holiday sector. Under the deal Hispania will initially buy 11 hotels and one shopping center and it will have the option to buy five additional hotels and one more shopping center
Madrid, 3rd of February 2015. NH Hotel Group has presented today the key milestones of 2014, weighing up the Company's performance in year one of its current five-year strategic plan and providing insight into guidance for 2015
One-off costs related to a hotel closed for renovation and the challenging business climate will impact the 2014 results of the Rezidor Hotel Group and delay the delivery of the company's Route 2015 margin enhancement objectives. Launched in 2011 and targeting an EBITDA margin increase by 6-8pp by the year 2015, the turnaround programme focusses on revenue generation, fee-based growth, cost savings, cap utilization and asset management.
De Vere Group and KSL Capital Partners, LLC (KSL), are pleased to announce that an affiliate of KSL has acquired Village Urban Resorts (Village) from De Vere Group. KSL, headquartered in Denver, Colorado with an office in London, is a U.S. private equity firm dedicated to investing in travel and leisure businesses.
Starwood Capital Group and Jin Jiang International Holdings Co., Ltd. jointly announced today that both parties have signed an agreement regarding Starwood Capital Group's potential sale of Groupe du Louvre and its 100% indirect subsidiary Louvre Hotels Group for an undisclosed amount. The proposed transaction is subject to the "information and consultation" process with Louvre Hotels Group's central works council.
French ministers on Sunday attacked proposals by lawmakers to increase taxes on hotel stays and called for them to be scrapped as they could undermine plans to boost the tourism sector. France, whose economy came to a standstill in the first quarter, has made tourism one of its priorities. The sector accounts for more than 7 percent of the country's gross domestic product and employs two million people directly or indirectly.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE:HOT) today announced it has sold its leasehold interest in The Park Lane Hotel, London to Sir Richard Sutton’s Settled Estates (SRSSE). Starwood will continue to operate the hotel under a new long-term management contract under the Sheraton brand flag.
Some are calling it the “distressed real estate gold rush in Europe.” Others who have been expecting 1990s-style opportunistic investment opportunities for several years, now are seeing a change in European banks’ willingness to sell distressed loans at discounts to clean up their books. Several significant deals have been announced with big name investors and more are underway. What is happening? And what is the opportunity for investors? Is it too late already?
Today NH Hotel Group signed an agreement with Intesa Sanpaolo under which it will acquire the latter's 44.5% stake in NH Italia in exchange for shares. Intesa Sanpaolo set up the Italian joint venture with NH Hotel Group, which owns the remaining 55.5%, in 2007. Accordingly, the deal will entitle NH Hotel Group for the 100% of NH Italia, which is currently active in the hotel business in Italy and the US, as well as operating hotel establishments in Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium.
Starwood Capital Group, a leading global private investment firm, announced today that it has acquired, through a controlled affiliate, U.K. hotel and conference center operator De Vere Venues from the De Vere Group for approximately $385 million (£232 million).
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) [LON:IHG, NYSE:IHG (ADRs)] today announces that Tom Singer will step down from the Board and his role as Chief Financial Officer on 1 January 2014. He will be succeeded by Paul Edgecliffe-Johnson, who joined IHG in August 2004 and has held a number of senior positions, most recently as Chief Financial Officer of IHG's Europe and Asia, Middle East & Africa regions. Paul will take up his new position and become a member of IHG's Board and Executive Committee on 1 January 2014.