Magdalen Chapter appoints general manager and executive chef
The Magdalen Chapter in Exeter - the second property which is soon to be opened by Chapter Hotels - has announced its first two key appointments.
Fiona Moores is to return to the 59-bedroom hotel as general manager, after having previously run the property when it was known as the Hotel Barcelona under the ownership of the Alias Hotel Group. Meanwhile, Ben Bulger, who until recently worked at Riverford Organic Farm in Devon, has been appointed executive chef.
The Hong Kong-based Swire Properties Hotel Holdings bought Alias, which included properties in Cheltenham, Exeter and Brighton in 2006, with a view to launching a group of UK provincial properties offering quality and good value under the Chapter Hotels brand.
The first hotel in the group opened last year as the 61-bedroom Montpellier Chapter in Cheltenham. After the opening of the Magdalen Chapter in May or June, work will begin on the conversion of the Avon Gorge hotel in Bristol to a third Chapter hotel.
The 77-bedroom Avon Gorge was bought by Swire from Peel Hotels in 2007 and has continued to be run as a three-star property.
Brian Williams, managing director if Swire Properties Hotel Holdings, said that work was progressing well on the conversion of the former Victorian eye hospital into the Magdalen Chapter
"It is a sympathetic conversion, but with contemporary interiors and has the added bonus of a garden in which we have installed a swimming pool and a kitchen garden is to be established."
Chapter Hotels - the story of the launch >>
Chapter Hotels launches first property in Cheltenham >>
Montpellier Chapter in Cheltenham appoints Tom Rains and James Partridge >>
By Janet Harmer
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