EasyHotel
| File:EasyHotel.svg | |
| Industry | Hotels |
|---|---|
| Founded | January 19, 2004 |
| Founder | Stelios Haji-Ioannou |
| Headquarters | London, United Kingdom |
Number of locations | 42[1] |
Area served | Europe[1] |
Key people | Karim Malak (CEO)[2] |
| Website | www |
EasyHotel (styled as easyHotel) is an international budget hotel chain headquartered in London with 42 branches in ten European countries.[1]
History
Originally founded by Stelios Haji-Ioannou through the easyGroup, easyHotel was incorporated in 2004[3] and opened its first hotel in South Kensington, London in 2005. Whilst easyHotel owned its first hotel in South Kensington (which was subsequently sold and franchised in 2007), its growth strategy in its early years was to expand via franchise contracts.[citation needed]
In 2007, Easygroup signed with Dubai-state-owned Istithmar Hotels for them to invest 400 million USD in five years to build 38/3800 Easy hotels/rooms in Africa, the Middle East and parts of Asia. However, only a sole hotel in Dubai opened in 2010 which since closed.[4][1] Later in 2007, easyHotel also signed a master franchise agreement with Germany-based i.gen Hotels, planning 60 franchised EHs in Europe (outside the UK) in three years, of which about 10 were expected in Germany.[4][5]
In 2010, the brand opened its first hotel in Germany, the twelfth easyHotel overall.[5]
In June 2014, the Company floated on the London Stock Exchange raising £24.5m to fund further growth and expansion. In August 2019 directors of the company backed a £139 million bid for the company in August despite opposition from founder Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou. The bidding consortium was made up of Luxembourg-based ICAMAP and Ivanhoé Cambridge of Canada. Ivanhoe is owned by Quebec’s pension company, CDPQ (Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec).[4] As of 2021, ICAMAP and Ivanhoé Cambridge now own 76 percent of stakes in the company.[3] The majority owners also announced to invest € 50 million to vastly expand the chains operations by 2026.[3]
Operations
As of October 2022, easyHotel has corporately owned and franchised branches in the United Kingdom (21, of which 7 are in London), the Netherlands (7), Switzerland (4), Germany (2), France (2), Spain (2), Belgium (1), Hungary (1), Portugal (1) and Bulgaria (1). The formerly operated sole hotel in Dubai no longer exists.[1]
References
- ^ a b c d e easyhotel.com - Our hotels retrieved 9 October 2022
- ^ thecaterer.com - Minute on the clock: Karim Malak, CEO of easyHotel 13 September 2022
- ^ a b c thecaterer.com - EasyHotel secures €50m to more than triple estate by 2026 13 December 2022
- ^ a b c Travel Business Analyst, November 2019
- ^ a b welt.de (German) 7 January 2010
External links
Media related to EasyHotel at Wikimedia Commons
