Budget hotel group Travelodge is set to foray into overseas market, marking an investment worth 1 billion euros (715 million pounds) for Spain. (11/19/2007)
The company said in a statement the expansion was its first major move into international markets. The ī700 million programme will involve the opening of 100 hotels and the creation of 2,000 new jobs by 2020. The expansion follows a successful pilot scheme of three hotels - two in Madrid and one in Barcelona.
"(Spain is) an important part of Travelodge´s longer-term growth strategy. While there is a very strong outlook in the UK for the next 10 to 15 years, we have demonstrated through our pilot that the Travelodge model works in Spain," Chief Executive Grant Hearn said in a statement.
The group will open the majority of the hotels between 2010 and 2020, with just three to be unveiled in the next three years.
Travelodge is expanding heavily in Britain, where it currently has over 300 hotels. It is owned by Dubai International Capital (DIC), which bought it just over a year ago from private equity house Permira.
"Travelodge has an important role in international markets, like Spain, which are building high-demand for the no-frills approach," Hearn added. "There are just 100 budget hotels in Spain and with Spanish travellers taking 143 million domestic trips a year, we think the market potential is huge. We also know that 61 percent of our 1.5 million UK online customer base is planning to take a trip to Spain within the next three years."
"We are confident we can deliver strong growth through this combinations."
