Swallow Hotels sold its entire portfolio of 953 hotels and pubs in locations throughout the UK, in October 2006. Yet the Swallow name will live on at 26 of the company”s former properties, which Scottish hotel company, Crerar, will manage with the intention of keeping their original branding.
Crerar”s acquisition of the hotels raises its portfolio from 33 ” of which six are owned by Crerar Hotels and the remainder managed by Crerar Management ” to 59. The company also owns Leisure Breaks, a short breaks company that markets 240 hotels throughout the UK.
Company CEO, Paddy Crerar, explained his decision to keep the Swallow name at the hotels: ”Swallow has been a successful hotel brand for more than 30 years. Like all household names there are inevitable peaks and troughs, but over time the qualities of the brand have remained steady.
”The recent issues with Swallow Hotels related to the financial model which was unrelated to the actual hotel product,” Crerar added. ”The hotel qualities and customer perception remain high and we will be building on this during the coming months.”
Properties included in the deal are dotted throughout England and Scotland in locations such as Birmingham, Manchester, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Durham City, Newcastle upon Tyne, Canterbury and Ipswich.
Image: The Crerar hotel in Ben Wyvis, Scotland