Essential news from around the world…
Essential news from around the world…
Strok of genius
Croatian businessman Goran Strok, owner of the UK-based Wren Hotel Group, has bought his second hotel in Croatia. He has paid 4.7m kuna (about £390,000) for the 172-bedroom, five-star Excelsior hotel in Dubrovnik. As part of the deal he will take on £12m of debt owed by the hotel. The group's first Croatian hotel was the 125-bedroom Grand Hotel Bonavia in Rijeka, Croatia, which opened in March 2000.
Carlyle changes hands
The Hotel Carlyle in New York City has been sold by the partnership that has owned it for more than 30 years to private investment firm Maritz, Wolff & Co. The 180-bedroom hotel will be managed by Rosewood Hotels & Resorts, which is part-owned by Maritz, Wolff & Co.
Boutiques open in Paris
Sol Meliá has opened its first two boutique hotels in Paris, the Meliá Colbert Boutique Hotel and the Meliá Vendôme Boutique Hotel. Both hotels were bought in November 1999 and have been closed for four months for £4.8m-worth of refurbishments.
Wendy's upswing
Wendy's International has reported strong like-for-like sales growth in the last three months of 2000. Like-for-like sales at Wendy's company-run restaurants in the USA rose by 3.2%. At its Tim Hortons coffee shops and bakeries in Canada, sales were up by more than 8%, while in the USA sales at Tim Hortons increased by about 13%.
Scandic to open in Dresden
Scandic Hotels is to operate a hotel in the centre of Dresden, Germany. The 200-bedroom hotel will be newly built and is set to open in the autumn of 2002.
A hotel for all seasons
Canada-based Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts has been named in Fortune magazine's annual list of the 100 best companies to work for in America for the fourth year running. It ranked 78th.
Autogrill buys Swiss rival
Italy-based caterer Autogrill has bought Swiss rival Passaggio for €166m (£105m). Passaggio has more than 100 outlets in 30 locations, including airports, railway stations and motorway services. In 1999 its sales were €167m (£106m).
Accor turns to China
French-owned hotel company Accor has bought a "significant" stake in Hong Kong-based hotel management company Zenith Hotels International. Founded in 1991, Zenith manages nine hotels in China and one in Bangkok. The hotels are four- and five-star standard.
