A Second Rosewood for London

Qatari Diar has chosen Rosewood Hotels & Resorts to manage its luxury hotel development on Grosvenor Square in London’s Mayfair district. The building currently houses the US Embassy but it will be transformed into Rosewood’s second hotel in the UK capital. The 137-room property will include six flagship retail spaces and a grand ballroom with capacity for up to 1,000 guests, among many other facilities. Rosewood currently operates three hotels across Europe (the Rosewood Castiglion del Bosco in Tuscany, Italy; the Rosewood London in the UK; and the Hôtel de Crillon, A Rosewood Hotel in Paris, France) and has a further two in the pipeline along with the Grosvenor Square project (the Rosewood Edinburgh in the UK and the Rosewood Vienna in Austria).

Third citizenM Opens in Paris

Netherlands-based lifestyle chain citizenM has opened its third hotel in the French capital. The 338-room citzenM Paris Gare de Lyon is close to the Gare de Lyon railway station on the north bank of the River Seine, in the east of the city. The latest property to fly the citizenM flag joins sister hotels the 230-room citizenM Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport and the 175-room citizenM Paris La Defense.

Hotel Asset Managers – Minimising the Pain

How can the relationship between owner and manager – and the value of the hotel – be optimised? Hotel owners expect their operators to increase their hotels’ revenue, profits and value. Increasingly, they are turning to professional hotel asset managers to help ensure this is achieved. So, what are the advantages – and limitations – of bringing in an asset manager? What are the various options – in-house or outsourced? Shouldn’t an experienced hotel operator be able to look after all the owner’s interests without such ‘interference’ or can each bring out the best in the other? How can it be a mutually rewarding, enlightening and productive relationship? These questions – and more – will be addressed at a meeting of HOSPA on Wednesday 18 October 2017 at 6pm for 6.30pm at the Sofitel St James’s Hotel in Waterloo Place, London. Russell Kett – chairman of HVS London – will moderate a distinguished panel comprising Katie Benson – vice president of operations at Jumeirah Hotels & Resorts; Cody Bradshaw – managing director and head of European hotels for Starwood Capital; Frank Croston – partner at Hamilton Hotel Partners; Richard Nottage – chairman of the owning company of the Sofitel St James’s and Sofitel Grand, Amsterdam; and Hugh Taylor OBE – chief executive at Michels & Taylor. The event is free for all HOSPA members to attend and only £10 for non-members. To book your place, please email [email protected].

Stalled Greenwich Peninsula Hotel Development Set to Take Off Again

Nine Group has purchased a hotel development in London’s North Greenwich area out of administration for an undisclosed sum. The 50-room Greenwich Peninsula Hotel, adjacent to the O2 Arena, is partly constructed and Nine Group now plans to submit planning permission to extend the property, which is aimed at the three-star market. “I am delighted to be able to complete the build of this hotel, which has been standing incomplete in the centre of the Greenwich Peninsula for over two years, causing consternation to local residents and visitors alike,” commented Nine Group’s founder, Vivek Chadha.

Ramada Leicester Stage Hotel Sold

Hotel owner and operator London Town Group has acquired the Ramada Leicester Stage Hotel from Lester Hotels for an undisclosed sum. The group will undertake a multimillion pound refurbishment of the 79-room hotel, which is three miles from Leicester city centre in England’s East Midlands region. London Town Group now owns eight hotels across the UK, which are operated under various brands, including Mercure, Hotel Indigo and Travelodge.

Scandic Continues to Expand in Denmark

Scandic Hotels has announced plans to open a new hotel in Copenhagen, Denmark. The Nordic chain has signed a long-term agreement with construction company Skanska for the Scandic Copenhagen Airport, which is expected to open in 2020 in the city’s new Scanport area, within walking distance of Kastrup Airport. The 357-room hotel will be just ten metres from the Öresund Sound and will be Scandic’s tenth property adjacent to an airport in the Nordic region.

Order Your HVS Guide to Hotel Management Contracts Today

The HVS Guide to Hotel Management Contracts presents the results of an extensive review of hotel management agreements conducted across the Americas (USA, Canada and South America), Europe, the Middle East, Africa (EMEA), and the Asia Pacific (APAC) regions, in addition to offering an in-depth understanding of the key terms and clauses of such agreements. It covers ten principal areas of discussions – management contract term, territorial restrictions, operator fees, operator performance test, budgeting, owner approvals, employees, indemnification, operator investment in property and termination of the agreement – which are considered critical for owner-operator negotiations. Furthermore, the substantive document includes exclusive HVS insights on key contract provisions supplementing the results of an invaluable and extensive survey that truly offer a global perspective by highlighting the common as well as unique trends in the primary geographies of the world. The global survey sample set comprises 475 hotel management contracts representing close to 120,000 rooms and 55 first-tier (branded) hotel management companies, in addition to several second-tier (third-party) management companies and few independent operators. You may order the full guide and survey report, or just a regional report; please select your preferred option prior to making the purchase. Click here to view excerpts and order you copy.

IHG’s Avid Announcement

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) plans to call its new midscale brand avid hotels. Elie Maalouf, chief executive officer of the Americas at IHG commented that the brand, which is now franchise ready for the US market, aims to offer “modern and stylish designs, superior guest rooms and public spaces and great service – all at an excellent value”. Construction of the first avid hotels is expected to begin in early 2018 with the first property anticipated to welcome its first guests in early 2019.

Hilton Garden Inn to Bloom in Jeddah

Hilton Worldwide has got together with Distinguished Real Estate Arrows Company to bring its Hilton Garden Inn brand to the Saudi Arabian city of Jeddah for the first time. Construction is due start on the six-storey property next month and the 155-room Hilton Garden Inn Jeddah Hamad al Jaser Street is expected to open in 2021. “The mix of business travellers and domestic tourists visiting Jeddah make it ideally suited to quality midscale accommodation and this property will allow us to begin to serve a new section of the market…," said Carlos Khneisser, vice president of development in the MENA region for Hilton.

Absolute Share Price Performance Over the Past Week – 14-21 September 2017

Disclaimer: Information provided above has been gathered from various market sources. HVS has not independently verified the accuracy of the information provided. Interested parties should not rely on the information as statement of facts and are advised to make their own independent checks to verify the information provided. For further information, please feel free to contact HVS London.