De Vere, part of The Principal Hotel Company, officially launches today (September 14) following an investment of more than £100 million from Starwood Capital Group, which forms part of Principal’s wider £300 million update.
The re-launch brings together 22 properties, 662 event spaces, 1,200 acres of grounds and more than 4,000 bedrooms. The groups historic, mansion house hotels saw extensive renovation, celebrating their British heritage and the estates’ natural landscapes.
The Great Outdoors project is a crucial element of the wider new-look De Vere brand and included enhancement of outdoor spaces, which now feature super-fast wifi up to 100 metres from the property, sculptures and kitchen gardens, as well as on-site bee hives and bug hotels to help native wildlife flourish.
Many properties now feature the Burr & Co coffee shop concept, and significant work has gone into transforming De Vere’s restaurants and bars through inspired design, modern menus based on traditional British ingredients and extensive outdoor dining experiences. Nutritionist Wendy Martinson OBE has developed new and innovative conference menus, which now feature nutritional values and information as part of an initiative to introduce healthy food to conference options.
Smart Space, the company’s new meeting and events product, promises nine services features – ease of booking, inspirational meeting rooms, a personal conference host, tech-savvy support, new Burr & Co break-out areas, nutritionally balanced delegate menus, three existing rewards programmes – Applause Rewards, Showtime Rewards and Trainers’ Club – inspiring outdoor spaces and access to a team of specialists to ensure delegates get moving and stay motivated.
Further renovations across the De Vere portfolio will be unveiled in the coming months.
Laurie Nicol, COO of De Vere, commented: “We’ve got a fantastic team working on the transformation of De Vere, and our new-look brand is already receiving great feedback from both business and leisure guests. The £100 million invested includes comprehensive hotel renovations, as well as staff training and development, and thoughtful expressions of the new brand such as Hunter wellies, unique sculptures and outdoor breakout spaces. By restoring these stunning historical buildings and breathing new life into our event spaces, we’re creating inspirational locations where traditional values meet the latest luxuries.”
More than 1,000 people joined Nicol at De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms in Holborn, London, last night (September 14) to celebrate the launch of the new De Vere brand.
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