Choice ditches hotels as brand standards are elevated
Choice Hotels has ditched around 30% of its UK hotels after deciding to raise its brand standards.
The franchise group has ended a management contract with the Real Hotel Company in order to take back control of its Clarion, Quality and Comfort brands.
Now left with 48 properties in the UK, it has introduced upgraded bedding including duvets, free high-speed internet access or wi-fi, and a consistent breakfast offering.
“We felt the standard of the brands had slipped from where we had positioned them,” said Mark Pearce, VP international operations.
“So we decided to terminate contracts with hotels which weren’t able to meet brand standards.”
The group has this week opened a new design-led hotel, the Quality Hotel Maitrise, Maida Vale, London, showcasing the new brand standards.
A Quality hotel in Crewe opened last week and another is due to open in Reading next week.
“The plan is to be very aggressive in increasing our portfolio, particularly in secondary markets,” said Pearce.
“We are strong in central London, for example, but now we are going to push out into the outskirts.”
By Bev Fearis
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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