TRENDING
Virgin adds to development arsenal
Rendering of the pool at the Virgin in New York City
Virgin Hotels CEO James Bermingham is about to have more fun , as only Virgin Group Founder Sir Richard Branson would want it , because development of the now 10-year-old hotel brand with only five hotels open is expected to kick into a higher gear – not galactic mind you – but it has opened four hotels over the last two years , will open three more this year , and has a new plan to focus more on resorts and residential opportunities .
Hotels in Edinburgh and Glasgow are set to open this spring , while a milestone , 460-room ground-up New York City property opens this summer with multiple F & B outlets as well as a rooftop bar . At the same time , a mixed-use deal is done in Miami and Bermingham says two more deals should be announced in the near future . Among the markets Virgin is actively exploring are Boston , Los Angeles , Austin , Seattle and London . There is now a bigger focus on Europe and Virgin would love to add Cape Town and Johannesburg , according to Bermingham .
The day HOTELS interviewed Bermingham in mid- February marked his first anniversary with Virgin after spending more than 20 years with Montage Hotels & Resorts . “ My time with Virgin has greatly exceeded my expectations ,” he says . “ I grew up in Dublin and spent 10 years in London watching Sir Richard disrupt
8 hotelsmag . com May 2022