Accor secures management rights to 10 more hotels with most to be branded Mercure
Accor will expand its hotel portfolio, having secured the management rights to 10 hotels including one Ibis Styles and nine Mercure hotels.
The move adds the Salter property portfolio of former Travelodges to Accor’s portfolio, with Accor to rebrand flagship properties near Wynyard in Sydney, as well as in Perth and Melbourne, as Mercure hotels.
Global fund manager Salter Brothers’ purchased the Travelodge portfolio for $620 million from Mirvac and the NRMA earlier this year..
The recent additions are a direct result of Accor capitalising on a resurgent tourism industry.
The nine Mercure hotels increases the Mercure brand to 53 hotels, with the new additions to be fully rejuvenated.
Part of the rejuvenation must fit into Salter Brothers ESG goals.
“With energy costs rising, the importance of ESG hotel benchmarks is now more important than ever and we’re looking forward to establishing these targets with Accor as they move into full operation with the portfolio,” managing director Paul Salter said in a statement.
“The timing of settlement means we’re extremely well placed to capitalise on the market recovery which is now well underway, with occupancy rates in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne returning to over 60 per cent and business and leisure travel forecast to steadily increase into 2023.”
Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Newcastle will host the hotels. In Brisbane and Sydney properties will include Mercure Brisbane Garden City, Mercure Newcastle City, Mercure Sydney Bankstown, Mercure Sydney Blacktown, and Mercure Sydney Macquarie Park.
In Melbourne, customers will find Mercure Melbourne Southbank and in Perth a Mercure Perth on Hay.
Newly appointed Accor chief executive Sarah Derry said the addition of the former Travelodges along with 2000 keys was exciting for the Accor group.
“It’s an exciting time as we start to see signs of recovery for the tourism sector,” she told The Australian, just eight weeks after starting her new role.
Derry also highlighted the locations of the hotels.
“We are working with Salter Brothers to reinvigorate the portfolio, setting them up for success with the next generation of travellers and signalling our confidence in the return of corporate travel,” she told The Australian.
The Australian has also recently revealed that the Salter Brothers could buy part of Jude Turner’s Spicers Retreats – a portfolio of upscale boutique hotels.
Irit Jackson, 5th July 2022
