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Opinion Article Development

December 17, 2014

“The asset light approach has been exhausted”

Saar Sharon is the newly appointed CEO of Leonardo Hotels in the UK, where his brief is to lead the company's expansion through asset acquisition, joint ventures and leasing across the UK. As an alumnus of the Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne, we thought it fitting to ask one of Saar's old professors to interview him on behalf of The Hotel Yearbook. Demian Hodari, the school's expert on hotel ownership and management structures, rose to the occasion. Their conversation touched on the advantages of being small and emerging trends in ownership structure.

By Demian Hodari, Late Associate Professor of Strategic Management, EHL

London, United Kingdom

December 11, 2014

Paul Flaum has been named MD at Whitbread Hotels & Restaurants (WHR)

Whitbread announced that, after ten successful years with the company, Patrick Dempsey, Managing Director of Whitbread Hotels & Restaurants (WHR), will be stepping down from the Board and leaving the company on 28th February 2015. Paul Flaum, currently head of Whitbread Restaurants, will become the new MD WHR on 1st March 2015. Paul has worked for Whitbread for 11 years and was Chief Operating Officer for WHR prior to becoming MD Restaurants. Reporting to Paul will be Simon Jones, who becomes MD Premier Inn UK and hub by Premier Inn (currently Marketing & Strategy Director) and Mark Anderson who will add responsibility for Premier Inn Germany to his existing responsibilities for Property, Procurement and Logistics.

London, United Kingdom

December 11, 2014

Whitbread Hotels & Restaurants (WHR) Managing Director Patrick Dempsey Stepping Down

Whitbread announces today that, after ten successful years with the company, Patrick Dempsey, Managing Director of Whitbread Hotels & Restaurants (WHR), will be stepping down from the Board and leaving the company on 28th February 2015.

London, United Kingdom

Press Release Markets & Performance

December 10, 2014

London and Regional UK hotels set for growth in TRevPAR and GOPPAR in 2014 and 2015

Regional UK total revenue per available room (TRevPAR) and gross operating profit per available room (GOPPAR) are forecast to rise by the end of the year by 6.5% and 14.4% respectively, while London will also experience positive year-on-year comparison but at a slower pace with TRevPAR and GOPPAR going up in 2014 by 1.3% and 1.8% respectively. Moreover, both Regional UK and London hotel markets will continue to grow in 2015 with rising TRevPAR and GOPPAR anticipated, according to the Hotel Profitability Forecasts Reports released by e-forecasting and HotStats.

London, United Kingdom

External Article

December 10, 2014

Claridge's Lactose intolerance | economist.com

A group of mothers staged a “nurse-in” outside Claridge's, a posh London hotel, today. The demonstrators took to breast-feeding their children outside the establishment in protest against its treatment of a young mother earlier this week. Louise Burns was taking afternoon tea at the hotel and began breast-feeding her hungry baby. A waiter told her—politely, by Ms Burns’s own account—that it was Claridge’s policy to ask mothers to cover up while feeding. He then produced a large napkin to drape over the baby. An embarrassed Ms Burns tweeted the episode (pictured), the Guardian picked it up, and a debate about the rights and wrongs of Claridge’s actions ensued. Nigel Farage, leader of UKIP, a popular right-wing political party, added fuel when he suggested that mothers might prefer to “sit in a corner” when breast-feeding so as not to upset others.

London, United Kingdom

Supplier News Sales & Marketing

December 9, 2014

Quentin Hotels Select IDeaS to Boost Revenue Management Strategy

IDeaS Revenue Solutions, the global provider of pricing and revenue management software, services and consulting today announced that Quentin Hotels has implemented IDeaS Revenue Management System (RMS) across their property portfolio in two European capital cities.

London, United Kingdom

December 4, 2014

New Amba Hotels launching with world’s fastest, free unlimited WIFI*

The new Amba Hotel Charing Cross, the first Amba Hotel worldwide, is now open. Situated just steps from Trafalgar Square, the hotel offers the fastest Wi-Fi in the world in any Meetings & Events hotels, with no limits on uploads and download speeds.

London, United Kingdom

Visit HITEC 2026 in San Antonio!

HITEC is the center for the latest conversations on hospitality technology. Come and see the technology shaping the industry.

Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP)

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Why Hospitality Net Leads B2B in Hospitality

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Hospitality Net

December 4, 2014

Michael McCartan has joined Duetto as Managing Director for EMEA

McCartan previously served as Chief Executive Officer of eRevMax, a travel technology service provider, where he grew operations to serve more than 8,000 customers, capturing data benefitting more than 40,000 hotels worldwide. He directed product development, business development, and customer and hotel relationship management in more than 100 countries, managing offices and research development in the U.S., UK, Poland, Singapore and India, and sales representatives globally.

London, United Kingdom

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Why Hospitality Net Leads B2B in Hospitality

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Hospitality Net

Supplier News Sales & Marketing

December 3, 2014

IDeaS Announces Partnership with Association of Serviced Apartment Providers in the UK

IDeaS Revenue Solutions, the leading provider of pricing and revenue management software, services and consulting, today announced a major new partnership with the Association of Serviced Apartment Providers (ASAP).

London, United Kingdom

External Article Sales & Marketing

December 2, 2014

HOTELS Interview: Forte elaborates on new Italian partner | hotelsmag.com

With Rocco Forte Hotels new strategic partner in Fondo Strategico Italiano (FSI), Sir Rocco Forte has been newly emboldened to state he wants to at least double the size of today’s 10-hotel company within five years. An injection of £60 million (US$95 million) from the Italian state-backed sovereign fund 80% controlled by Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP) and 20% by Bank of Italy in exchange for a 23% equity stake would certainly give any European luxury brand renewed stimulus and Sir Rocco is already in discussions concerning a development in Venice and is actively pursuing projects in Milan, Naples and Sicily.

London, United Kingdom

December 1, 2014

Elyes Mrad has been appointed as Managing Director EMEA at American Express Global Business Travel

Mr. Mrad joins GBT from Hertz International where he was most recently the Senior Vice President of Sales & Marketing. Previously he held the position of Managing Director for Hertz Germany, Czech Republic and Slovakia. In addition to positions within the Hertz Corporation, Mr. Mrad has held senior roles in Asia Pacific with Sita, Japan Tobacco International and in the production department of Rolex-Geneva. He holds a Masters degree in Business Administration from the Institute of Management Development (IMD) in Lausanne, Switzerland and a Master of Science degree in Precision Engineering from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology.

American Express GBT

London, United Kingdom

External Article Sales & Marketing

December 1, 2014

The VIP Treatment: How London Restaurants And Hotels Reward Their Regulars | forbes.com

We asked some of the top hotels and restaurants in London and a bit further afield what lengths they go to to make sure their regular customers feel special: “In Hélène Darroze at the Connaught, when guests visit to celebrate a special event such as a birthday or an anniversary, with their consent, we take an instant picture of them with a Polaroid camera. At the end of their meal, we give them the photograph with a message from the Hélène Darroze team which we hope makes the experience extra special and memorable for our customers.”

London, United Kingdom

November 27, 2014

Hostel Sector Set To Thrive As Demand Grows For Low-cost Beds

The hostel and limited service hotel sector is becoming one of the most dynamic hospitality investment sectors, with its adaptability and cost effectiveness along with intense competition from both group and independent operators contributing to rapid expansion.

London, United Kingdom

Press Release Finance

November 27, 2014

KSL Capital Partners, LLC Acquires Village Urban Resorts from De Vere Group

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.

KSL Capital Partners, LLC

London, United Kingdom

Press Release Markets & Performance

November 26, 2014

HotStats UK Chain Hotels Market Review – October 2014

Once again the UK Provinces lead the way to profit growth with positive year-on-year movement during the month of October in gross operating profit per available room (GOPPAR). Yorkshire and Humberside hoteliers experienced a 10.0% increase in this metric while London hoteliers registered a decline, according to the latest data from HotStats.

London, United Kingdom

Press Release Development

November 25, 2014

InterContinental® London - The O2, to Open Late 2015

The new InterContinental® London - The O2 is scheduled to open in late 2015, providing extensive facilities for leisure and business travellers visiting the capital. The luxury 453-bedroom 18-storey hotel and conference centre currently in construction as part of a 7.6 acre development scheme on the Greenwich Peninsula, a destination enjoying a huge surge in visitors following the 2012 Olympic regeneration project.

London, United Kingdom

Press Release Sales & Marketing

November 24, 2014

European hotel industry acknowledges Gabriel Escarrer, from Meliá Hotels International, as new CEO of the Year in the European Hospitality Awards 2014

Since his appointment as CEO, Gabriel Escarrer has lead an aggressive international expansion; the group now has over 360 hotels worldwide and is ranked amongst the top 20 hotel companies in the world. Significantly under his direction, the Company founded 58 years ago by his father, Gabriel Escarrer Julia, has kept on consolidating its leadership through an effective response to the international crisis and the management of unprecedented cultural and organisational change, increasing financial consolidation and a steady expansion of its brands both in its traditional markets and in new markets.

London, United Kingdom

November 19, 2014

Nicolas Kipper has been appointed as General Manager at London Marriott Hotel Park Lane

Nicolas joins from his previous seven year position as General Manager of the Marriott Moscow Grand. Nicolas will manage the day-to-day running of London Marriott Hotel Park Lane, including supervision of staff and commercial performance.

London, United Kingdom

Press Release Sales & Marketing

November 17, 2014

HOSPACE 2014 delegates to benefit from most wide ranging and informative programme yet of HOSPA’s popular 18 practical and topical hospitality ‘Educational Workshops’

HOSPACE 2014 – HOSPA's Annual Conference and Exhibition for Hospitality Finance, Revenue Management, IT and Commerce Professionals on 20 November at Sofitel London Heathrow, Terminal 5 – is the largest and most prestigious annual gathering of like-minded hospitality practitioners in the UK

London, United Kingdom

November 17, 2014

Alex Caetano has been promoted to Operations Manager at Park Plaza Victoria London

Alex was promoted through PPHE Hotel Group’s newly launched Talent Management Programme, which aims to attract new talent and identify talent already within the business, managing progression with dedicated development programmes and training. Alex comments, “I have been supported through various developmental opportunities from the moment I joined PPHE Hotel Group. These were not only training seminars, but also various projects to help me enhance certain key skills and competencies. It is a very exciting time to become part of the management team and for anyone considering joining the hotel team.”

PPHE Hotel Group

London, United Kingdom