News & Stories

Paris. In June, the French consortium Société Européenne d'Hôtellerie signed a partnership with German consortium GreenLine Hotels adding 70 properties to its portfolio in one shot. Many more entities just like these exist across Europe and seem to be ready to join forces in order to compete against hotel chains and OTAs. SEH has become the first multi-brand network in Europe. SEH's playground is clearly not limited to France anymore, but also reaches out to Eastern, Southern Europe and even the province of Quebec in Canada. Being an independent hotel is a must to join the group.

Duesseldorf. "We would like to grow," Otto Lindner says, Chairman of Lindner Hotels AG. "We could do this on our own steam, but the beauty concept of an expanding group must today include a story" – a story with a character like Clemens Toennies. With 31 hotels in operation in seven European countries, Lindner Hotels & Resorts has been part of the German Mittelstand since the 1970s. It has grown organically but today has reached critical size. The new character in Lindner's life is Clemens Toennies, a meat and meat products company, better known as the chairman of the football club Schalke 04. Both medium-sized companies are now to make targeted investments in Lindner's newest lifestyle brand me and all hotels. Thanks to this new partnership, officially concluded in mid-June of this year, Lindner Hotels has already won the first hotel pitch – and pushed renowned chains hotels aside. The Mittelstand is coming together.

Frankfurt. As of winter 2017/18, the tour operator DER Touristik will implement an animal welfare guideline: hence, all six brands will successively remove all their offers, which feature direct contact to wild animals, from their programs by 2020. But DER is not the only one.

Madrid. The travel industry must be better prepared for economic and political disruption if it is to make the most of future economic growth. This is a very big challenge but also a great chance. And: It is important to keep an eye on four scenarios.

Vienna/Bangkok. Five months after the acquisition of Vienna House by the Thai investor U City, the process of synergy building has begun: In future, the Austria hotel group will expand its brand in Asia and U Hotels & Resorts will venture the leap to Europe.

Vienna. According to recent brand value estimates, the Hilton brand, the most valuable hotel brand worldwide, is worth USD 8.370 billion. This is followed by other US giants such as Marriott, Hyatt, Sheraton, Holiday Inn, Courtyard by Marriott, Hampton Inn and Ramada. In light of such dimensions, Austrian hoteliers have decided to have their hotel names valued. At least two now know the answer.

Amsterdam. The innovation and rise in popularity of co-working spaces confirm that the concept is becoming mainstream. The sector has grown very fast and created a sort of frenzied reaction among investors, banks, real estate companies, and hedge funds. Even hoteliers are interested and this time, they may have more to offer on the matter than one might think. The Student Hotel, Zoku, Mama Shelter, Ruby Hotels, Virgin Hotels, etc. are already developing their own version of co-working spaces, somehow trying to prove that their hospitality expertise is perfect to answer the needs of the "co-living/co-working" adepts.

Paris. In the footsteps of Dayuse.com, a booking platform for hotel rooms during the day and of OnePark, a hotel-friendly parking solution, another French start-up is taking advantage of the hospitality sector now. Its name? Airoffice. Its concept? Selling unexploited hotel spaces online as "free working" areas for outside guests. A lobby, a bar, an empty breakfast room, a lounge, a terrace, a patio – Airoffice offers customers a cozy environment to work in for few hours and hoteliers an opportunity to generate extra revenue without doing anything, except greeting the "Free worker".

Paris. Exactly one year ago, AccorHotels CEO Sébastien Bazin brought the former CEO of Fairmont Raffles Hotels International back on board. Chris Cahill, born in Quebec, listened, agreed, now sits in Paris, is again learning French and more about Accor, which together with the three unified brands Fairmont, Raffles and Sofitel now ranks 2nd in the world among luxury chains. But of course, it isn't to stay this way. Cahill is sticking with each individual brand, but is working on the profile of each. Cahill denies there is any quality difference between Fairmont and Sofitel, as some have claimed. He wants individual websites for the brands. A tour d'horizon with the CEO Luxury Brands of AccorHotels.

Washington DC. Donald Trump and his clan are facing unprecedented scandals. The President's constant provocative decisions and hateful tweets have now started to fire back. Donald Trump is now being officially investigated for possible obstruction of justice in the Russian probe and law suits against his conflicts of interest are piling up. His luxury hotel in Washington is in the spotlight, but the real deal is abroad, where Trump Organization is taking advantage of every opportunity the presidency can bring. A lot has happened since January. Only six months have passed since our first part about the President's conflicts of interest.