Cendant takes charge of Days Inn and Howard Johnson
22 June 2001
USA-based Cendant Corporation is to manage directly the franchising of its Days Inn and Howard Johnson brand names in the UK and mainland Europe following the collapse of UK-based Premier Hotels earlier this year. Premier, which was the master franchisee for the brands in Europe, went into receivership in April. Under its agreement with Premier, Cendant could take back the rights to the brand names if Premier was unable fulfil its obligations. There are 28 Days Inn and four Howard Johnson hotels in the UK and continental Europe. Cendant said it now planned aggressive expansion of the chains in Europe. It has set up an office in London to look for hotels to add to the franchise system. "This signals that we are seeking significant expansion in the UK," said Markus Deutsch, managing director of Cendant Europe's travel division. "Our assumption of direct franchise responsibilities in the UK represents Cendant's first form of direct franchising outside the USA. There are 1,933 Days Inns worldwide, with a total of more than 163,000 bedrooms. Nearly 500 hotels operate under the Howard Johnson banner. They have a total of about 49,000 rooms.
