Great Northern hotel becomes Starwood's first Tribute property in UK

01 September 2015 by Janet Harmer

London's Great Northern hotel is the first in Europe to join the Tribute Portfolio, the new collection of independent properties announced by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide earlier this year.

The 91-bedroom hotel, owned by Jeremy Robson of asset management company Ram Group, opened in King's Cross in 2013 following a £40m renovation. It features the Plum + Spilt Milk restaurant operated by Mark Sargeant.

Tribute Portfolio was launched as Starwood's 10th brand, joining the likes of St Regis, Sheraton and W Hotels, to provide independent hotels with access to the company's global marketing platform, loyalty programme and booking system. At Tribute's launch in April, Starwood said it hoped to have signed up around 100 hotels at the four-star level over the next five years, with the first three hotels located in the USA.

Dave Marr, global brand leader for Tribute Portfolio and Sheraton Hotels & Resorts, said that the Great Northern hotel had been designed with "meticulous attention to detail" and that Starwood was looking forward to partnering "alongside Mr Jeremy Robson as he continues to bring his independent vision to life".

Robson described the Great Northern as "one of London's finest boutique hotels" and that he is looking forward to building on its success with what he described as a "powerful brand".

Frits van Paasschen, president and chief executive of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, stepped down from his role in February, as a result, it is believed, of a failure to maintain growth of its portfolio alongside other global hotel companies such as Hilton Worldwide, InterContinental Hotels Group and AccorHotels. In April, Bruce Duncan, chairman of the group, announced that a sale of Starwood was one option being considered for the future of the company.

Starwood currently operates more than 1,200 hotels in around 100 countries. In the UK, its portfolio includes Aloft Liverpool; Aloft London Excel; Le Meridien Piccadilly; Sheraton Grand Hotel & Spa, Edinburgh; Sheraton Heathrow; Sheraton Skyline; Trump Turnberry, a Luxury Collection Resort; the Park Lane Hotel; the Park Tower Knightsbridge, a Luxury Collection Hotel and W London - Leicester Square.

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