Z hotels receives £ 18m funding for new central London property
Manchester and Liverpool hotel sector to benefit from 3,200 new rooms
Airbnb pens open letter to hoteliers in attempt to trump rivals Expedia and Booking
MONTH IN REVIEW
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INVESTMENT
Z hotels receives £ 18m funding for new central London property
Z Hotels has secured £ 18m of funding that will be used to acquire a fivestorey office building just off Trafalgar Square in central London .
The building in Chandos Place will be converted into a hotel , retaining an existing penthouse apartment , following the funding agreement with Metro Bank . Branded as ‘ The Urbanite Stay ’, Z Hotels has plans to open a further two hotels in central London and Bath later this year . The group was launched in 2011 by a group of former executives from Thistle Hotels headed by King and already has eight hotels in London and additional hotels located in Liverpool , Glasgow and Bath .
Bev King , founder of Z Hotels said : “ We really appreciate how quickly Metro Bank were able to put terms together for the acquisition . Metro Bank and our relationship manager Jackie Skelt were very supportive in the dealings with us which allowed the transaction process , from initial offer through to drawdown , to run extremely smoothly and efficiently . We look forward to developing our relationship with Metro Bank as we enter the next stage of growth in our business .”
Mark Stokes , managing director commercial banking at Metro Bank added : “ We ’ re delighted that we could provide Z Hotels with a swift and custom-made funding solution . We look forward to further developing our longstanding relationship with them over the coming years , as they continue to expand their hotel portfolio .”
REGIONS
Manchester and Liverpool hotel sector to benefit from 3,200 new rooms
Around 3,200 new hotel rooms will become available in Manchester and Liverpool over the next two years .
According to real estate advisors Colliers International another 2,073 hotel rooms will be added to the 17,894 already available in Manchester as of 31 December 2017 , while an additional 1,170 rooms will be added to the 8,205 currently available in Liverpool .
Julian Troup , head of Colliers International , said the weak pound , the strengthening of global and eurozone economies and the increasing frequency of direct flights between Asia and Manchester had all contributed to the growth in the performance of the city ’ s hotel sector .
Troup said : “ Hotel sector performance in Liverpool and Manchester is expected to stay strong but there is a degree of caution regarding the extent of supply growth with potential future consequences for performance . Brexit obviously adds an element of uncertainty to hotel market prospects in Manchester and elsewhere in the UK although current market conditions do not show it having a negative impact .”
He added : “ Manchester is one of the most visited cities in the UK , benefitting from its diverse culture , burgeoning services sector , wide range of tourist attractions and of course , the United and City effect while the visitor economy of Liverpool also continues to benefit from its ongoing renaissance .”
AIRBNB
Airbnb pens open letter to hoteliers in attempt to trump rivals Expedia and Booking
Airbnb has penned an open letter to boutique hotel and B & B owners in an attempt to attract more hotels and bedand-breakfasts onto its platform .
In the letter , titled ‘ Airbnb is for everyone : An open letter from Airbnb to boutique hotel and B + B owners ’, Airbnb called for independent hoteliers to advertise on its platform , claiming it is a cheaper alternative to travel agents Expedia and Booking whose 30 % fees are “ too high ”.
It listed its main selling points to hotel owners as follows : n Airbnb will add four new property types to our platform – Vacation Home , Unique Space , B & B and Boutique . With this change , hoteliers will be able to easily distinguish their rooms from other listings and guests will be able to more easily find the space they are looking for . n Airbnb is to to offer lower fees compared to online travel agencies ( OTAs ) that may charge commissions of up to 30 %. n Airbnb doesn ’ t require hoteliers to sign contracts , and they don ’ t have to worry about competing with Marriott , Hilton and other big chains on the platform . n Airbnb gives access to global community of guests from more than 191 countries around the world . Airbnb had commissioned independent research firm David Binder Research to interview owners and managers of traditional B & Bs , inns and boutique hotels to gauge the state of the market prior to the letter .
12 www . hotelowner . co . uk April 2018