Lifestyle hotels tips

Standard International, the hotel company behind The Standard Hotels and The Peri Hotel — and a majority owner of Bunkhouse House Group — is taking on a lot these days to meet CEO Amber Asher‘s aggressive expansion plans.

Hilton said Wednesday it had acquired a majority controlling interest in Sydell Group, the owner of NoMad Hotels.

India could well be the breeding ground for lifestyle hotels.

Jolyon Bulley became IHG’s CEO of the Americas in July 2023. He has big shoes to fill — his predecessor, Elie Maalouf, ascended to group CEO.

At the start of the year, Sortis Holdings said it would acquire Ace Group International, owner of Ace Hotels, for $85 million in cash. Now the deal is off.

JLL Hotels & Hospitality released a report – “An investor’s guide to lifestyle hotels” — highlighting how this sector is enjoying a buzzy moment.

Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants is a boutique hotel brand created by Bill Kimpton in 1981 in San Francisco. InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) bought it for $430 million in 2014 and has been scaling it up as a mid-priced lifestyle brand.

Owners of U.S. hotels have long turned to third-party management companies, such as Sage Hospitality Group, to run their properties. Sage stands out because, since 2017, it has grown from having 17 independent, soft branded, luxury, or lifestyle properties in largely suburban areas to having 47 lifestyle hotels in major urban areas (out of 60 hotels total).

Ace Group International, the operator of a buzzy brand of 11 open Ace lifestyle hotels, will be acquired by Sortis Holdings, a Portland, Oregon-based hospitality firm, the companies said on Tuesday.

For years, the third-party managers of hotels have stayed behind the scenes, working on behalf of owners to staff and run properties. But Springboard Hospitality, a manager of 40 hotels in 10 U.S. states, seeks to become a consumer brand that markets its lifestyle hotels directly to travelers.

On January 17, I reported that Sortis Holdings would acquire Ace Group International, owner of Ace Hotels, for $85 million in cash. Executives for Sortis Holdings, a Portland, Oregon-based hospitality firm, weren’t available to speak when I wrote that article. But I’ve since interviewed them. Here’s some more color on their plans.

Mondrian Singapore Duxton, a 302-room luxury hotel, has seen its opening delayed by a couple of months. The Straits Times has a fun profile by Louisa Lim of all the frenzy behind-the-scenes in how the joint venture by hotel group Accor and lifestyle brand builder Ennismore aims to get the five-star hotel just right.

The founders of Urban Cowboy opened their first boutique hotel in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, in 2014 without a real plan. Little did they know they were starting a minor hotel empire.

Ennismore is a forerunner in the lifestyle space, with hotel, resort, and coworking brands — plus the Rixos all-inclusive brand, Paris Society venues, and dozens of restaurants and bars. The fastest-growing lifestyle hospitality company has 16 brands, with 137 hotels and resorts and over 160 in the pipeline.