NH Sells Franchise Organisation Golden Tulip Worldwide To Its Management - NH Hoteles will concentrate on a single brand and unified products and services
Mr. Hans W.R. Kennedie, from The Netherlands, will stay on as Managing Director of the Hotel Franchise Company
NH Hoteles, the third leading European hotel company, has sold "Golden Tulip Worldwide", the company which manages the Golden Tulip and Tulip Inn Franchises, to a Group, led by Golden Tulip's Managing Director Hans W.R. Kennedie. This transaction implies that Golden Tulip Worldwide will no longer be an NH business unit. This deal is mainly driven by NH's decision to concentrate its activities in a single hotel brand, NH, and on a unified products and services for the entire chain.
NH Hoteles decided to change the name of Golden Tulip to NH Hoteles, among several reasons, because of the need to consolidate the brand with the largest geographical presence in the European hotel industry. The Golden Tulip Hotels and Tulip Inns owned and leased by NH Hoteles will be re-branded to the NH brand in the course of this year.
Golden Tulip Worldwide franchises to 300 hotels located in 42 countries around the world. The organization's current management team headed by Hans Kennedie will continue to manage and operate the licence business and guarantee the quality standards for all the hotels operating under the Golden Tulip and Tulip Inn brands. Mr. Kennedie has been associated with Golden Tulip in a number of different positions and has been based in the company's offices in The Netherlands, New York and London. He is the group's Managing Director since June of 2000 and has been with the Company for over 18 years.
The Golden Tulip Hotels are Superior First Class hotels in business locations and main tourism areas while the Tulip Inn are Limited First Class and Superior Tourist (3-star) establishments that also cater to business and leisure travellers. Since 1975, Golden Tulip Worldwide is a preferred Travel partner of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines. Besides KLM, Golden Tulip is a member of several frequent flyer loyalty programs, including NorthWest Airlines, American Airlines, Alitalia and Air France.
Hans Kennedie, the current Managing Director of Golden Tulip Worldwide, said that, "our decision will simplify our operations and will enhance our positioning to enable us to fully develop the Golden Tulip brand potential while avoiding the risk of confusion created by the distribution of a shared brand".
About Golden Tulip Worldwide
Golden Tulip Worldwide is one of the leading European franchisers of three and four star hotels in Europe. Golden Tulip Worldwide currently consists of approximately 300 hotels in 240 cities across 42 countries, with 240 hotels being located in Europe. The franchising operation markets two brands: Golden Tulip Hotels (superior first class hotels) and Tulip Inns (comfortable three-star operations). Each hotel maintains its individuality and local character. A selective recruitment of franchisees as well as a standardised quality control guarantees the same high international standard of quality and service within both brands.
About NH Hoteles
The NH Hoteles Group (
NH Hotels 2001 sales totalled €762 million, 38.35% higher than in the previous year. The NH Group is listed in the Madrid stock exchange (included in the selective Ibex 35), and in Amsterdam's Euronext. Moreover, NH Hotels is a member of the Stoxx Europe 600 index that includes Europe's leading companies and is also included in the well-known Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) stock index.