The Royal Bank of Scotland and Michels & Taylor, have announced their intention to launch a new hotel brand for Ireland under a joint venture arrangement.
The brand will be launched across Ireland in the new year with the aim of having an initial group of at least 25 hotels carrying the new flag. A limited group of hotels that currently have existing lending arrangements with The Royal Bank of Scotland, through its Ulster Bank subsidiary, have been selected and will be invited to join the group which, when set up, will aim to become the largest hotel brand in the country.
Collection of independent Irish hotels
The new brand will be positioned as a wholly domestic flag, offering customers a unique collection of independent Irish hotels that offer the best in Irish hospitality. It is hoped that the marketing and sales support from the brand will broaden the market and attract more hotel customers to Ireland.
Currently the hotels operate independently under their own names and this will remain the case with the new flag. The new brand will act as a consumer-facing “umbrella” brand, sitting below the hotel name, and backed up with a sizeable marketing budget and enhanced distribution. Significant synergies aim to be delivered to the hotels through dedicated reservations, additional bookings, improved commercial terms with key industry partners, and procurement benefits.
The company will be fully set up and resourced in Ireland, with initial funding from the two JV partners. The hotels will also benefit from M&T’s London-based specialist support teams to help them enhance their profitability.
Derek Sach, Senior Executive, Royal Bank of Scotland comments: “We are delighted to be launching this unique partnership with M&T. We have significant exposure in Ireland and believe that creating a brand for the hotels with whom we work is a creative and commercially attractive opportunity to support them in strengthening their trading performance and enhancing their value for all the stakeholders involved”.
Sir David Michels, Chairman of M&T adds: “Ireland has been without a major domestic hotel brand for many years and we believe there’s a real opportunity for a group of hotels to get together and offer the customers something tangible and inherently Irish. The country is famous the world over for its hospitality and friendly welcome, and we intend to utilise this wonderful asset, with professional hotel expertise from M&T, to the commercial benefit of all the hotels that join in.”