Mercure opens up Doncaster for AccorHotels

05 August 2015 by Rosalind Mullen

French hotel group AccorHotels is to launch its Mercure brand in Doncaster this autumn under a franchise agreement with Cairn Hotel Group.

The 62-bedroom Danum hotel on High Street will re-open as the Mercure Doncaster Danum hotel following an undisclosed investment in a rebranding and refurbishment programme.

The works will create Mercure's trade-mark open-lobby concept which allows guests to work and socialise. In addition, the restaurant is being refitted to accommodate 70 diners and will be renamed Anthony's Bar & Restaurant. And all bedrooms are being redesigned by Matthews Mee of Wakefield. The ballroom is also due to be refurbished, with capacity for 250 guests.

This will be AccorHotel's first property in the town and boosts its already significant presence in the Midlands in cities such as Birmingham, Leicester and Coventry. The move is in line with the group's strategy to streamline, consolidate and manage its asset portfolio, while strengthening its budget and midscale brands.

Thomas Dubaere, managing director at AccorHotels UK & Ireland, said: "This opening demonstrates the attractiveness of the Mercure brand to franchise partners and is another important step in the progress towards our ambitious target to open 300 hotels in the UK and Ireland over the coming years"

Mercure is Accor's four-star brand, comprising 711 hotels in 52 countries, of which 75 are in the UK. Accor operates and franchises 3,700 hotels across 92 countries. Its brands range from the five-star Sofitel, to midscale names such as Novotel and the budget Ibis.

In 2013, Newcastle-based Cairn Hotel Group completed a £31.5m refinancing deal with HSBC, which included £6.5m of new funds to support further acquisitions and the refurbishment of some of its 21-strong portfolio. It included an agreement with InterContinental Hotels Group to refurbish and rebrand four hotels which it then managed.

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