Accor reveals near record occupancy for London hotels

18-Apr-2012 - Last updated on 21-Mar-2024 at 13:55 GMT

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Accor has posted increased revenue growth results in the first quarter of the year driven in the UK by 'remarkable' gains in London where it is opening a new Ibis in a shopping centre development in Shepherd's Bush

International hotel operator Accor has revealed in its first quarter results that increased revenue growth globally has been driven in the UK by a very strong period in London with occupancy rates at near record levels for the French company.

The Ibis operator experienced like-for-like revenue growth of 1.4 per cent in the upscale and midscale segments of the business and in the economy segment experienced strong growth of 5 per cent.

High demand across all the company brands and what Accor described as 'remarkable gains in London' were the driving force behind the strength in the UK market.

Globally the business, which also operates the MGallery and Novotel brands in the UK, reported like-for-like revenue growth of 4.5 per cent in the period with 'solid performance in every segment'. During the quarter 56 hotels were opened accounting for nearly 8,000 rooms; of the new sites 90 per cent came under management or franchising agreements.

Economy

Both room rates and occupancy rates rose in the UK - occupancy levels reached almost 80 per cent in the upscale and midscale sites. However it was the economy market where the French operator said it had seen the biggest uplift as occupancy rates rose to 83.7 per cent.

"The 'dynamic pricing' policy introduced in the economy hotels in 2011 continued to deliver benefits and is helping to optimize revenue per available room (RevPAR), with strong growth in occupancy rates in the segment," Accor said.

In September last year Accor announced it was planning to consolidate its three economy brands – Ibis, Etap and All Seasons - under one name to help it better meet ‘changing consumer expectations.’ The Ibis 'mega-brand' was necessary, according to the company, in order to address the desire for both budget and upscale brands to have a modern and contemporary offering.

Expansion

Accor is currently in the process of what it describes as an ‘ambitious and aggressive expansion strategy’, with plans to double its UK estate by 2015. Management contracts and franchise will make up the majority of the expansion. Of the new hotels opened in the first quarter of the year 24 per cent were in Europe.

In January the operator announced it had opened a record amount of new hotel rooms across its global estate in 2011 - a record expansion that has continued in this latest results release from the company.

Earlier this week Accor launched a comprehensive sustainability programme as part of its bid to reduce CO2 emissions by 10 per cent by 2015.