CampbellGray Hotels expands with Audeh Group backing

Former Hotelier of the Year Gordon Campbell Gray (pictured) is to spear head the development of a global portfolio of hotels after entering a new business agreement with Jordanian-based trading company, Audeh Group.

An injection of finance will enable CampbellGray Hotels to develop and operate properties to add to the group's existing 87-bedroom Le Gray hotel in Beirut.

Luxury hotels already lined up for development include Le Gray in Amman, Jordan; the Phoenicia, Valletta, Malta; and Machrie, Isle of Islay, Scotland.

There are also plans to create a collection of hotels and resorts at a more accessible price point.

Campbell Gray, who was named Hotelier of the Year by The Caterer in 2002, said: "This partnership heralds an exciting next chapter for our company. It will allow us to realise our full potential and extend our distinctive brand of hospitality to different destinations."

Saad Audeh, son of Issa Audeh, the founder of the Audeh Group,added: "I had grown tired of the corporate chains of cookie-cutter hotels, and know that many of today's travellers, whether on business or for leisure, want a hotel that simply makes them feel great each day.

"We are thrilled to be working with Gordon and his super-professional team, and see this partnership as an opportunity to create many fabulous new hotels of the kind at which I have always wanted to stay."

A phased re-launch of the 136-bedroom Phoenicia in Valletta - originally opened in 1947 and now owned by a private investor - will get underway this summer, following a refurbishment by Peter Young Design and Mary Fox Linton. New features include two 'sky suites' on the roof, a health club and spa with eight treatment rooms, a gymnasium, and indoor and outdoor swimming pools.

Meanwhile, CampbellGray Hotels intends to create a world-renowned hotel and golfing destination by developing Machrie Hotel and Golf Links on the Isle of Islay into a 48 bedroom destination propety. Owned by former BBC chairman Gavyn Davies and his wife, Baroness Sue Nye, a one-time advisor to former prime minister Gordon Brown, the hotel is located on Laggan Bay, on what is regarded as one of the best links courses in the world.

Peter Young Design and Mary Fox Linton will also re-design Machrie, which is due to open in early 2017. Davies and Nye bought the property as a 16-bedroom hotel out of administration in 2011.

Campbell Gray previously managed One Aldwych, the London hotel he opened to great acclaim in 1998. It went on to win countless awards for its innovative approach to luxury, combined with strong green credentials.

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