Greene King will spend £4m more on Old English

Pub company and brewer Greene King is to spend a further £4m refurbishing its Old English collection of hotels next year, bringing the total spent on teh chain since its acquisition two years ago to more than £21m.

Greene King bought the chain of 135 hotels for £59.1m in September 2001. Having reduced the portfolio by disposing of some properties and shifting others into its tenanted and leased division, the company was left with 61 hotels in what a spokesman said was a state of "disarray".

This year Greene King has spent £4.4m upgrading the hotels, with many undergoing £400,000-£500,000 refurbishments. About the same amount is expected to be spent in 2004.

Greene King, which is third of the way through its refurbishment plans for Old English, believes there is room in the market for up to 150 Old English Inns and is on the lookout for properties to add to the portfolio.

Source: Caterer & Hotelkeeper magazine, 30 October - 5 November 2003