PARIS—Accor is kicking off the year with an encouraging development outlook and a full schedule of new hotel openings around the world. While 2020 was a year of unprecedented challenges—not the least of which were felt among the travel and hospitality sectors—Accor maintained a steady pace of development and continued to sign new projects, leading to a robust roster of new hotel openings throughout 2021.
“As we are all too familiar, 2020 had a profound impact on our day-to-day lives and the hospitality industry as a whole; even so, the early stages of a global rebound will be material and significant,” said Agnes Roquefort, global chief development officer, Accor. “Despite the delays and temporary closures we experienced due to the pandemic, we continued to experience sustained momentum across our development pipeline and are optimistic that the worldwide rollout of COVID-19 vaccines will lead to renewed trust in travel and a much greater sense of personal safety for the entire global population.”
The lifestyle category is set to be one of Accor’s most vibrant segments over the coming years, with the number of lifestyle hotel openings expected to triple by 2023. Moreover, the segment currently accounts for roughly 5% of the group’s annual revenue, while representing 25% of the company’s development pipeline by value. The recently announced joint venture with Ennismore, expected to close in Q2 2021, will contribute to a diverse platform set to become grow this year with new properties opening their doors, including Mondrian Shoreditch London; Jo&Joe Vienna Westbahnhof; So/ Sotogrande Resort & Spa; SLS Dubai and 25hours Dubai.
Accor’s luxury segment will also see a bunch of openings in 2021 with the Banyan Tree Doha in Qatar and Raffles openings in Udaipur, India, and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Fairmont will see the opening of the Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles, along with Fairmont Windsor in England; Carton House, a Fairmont managed hotel in Dublin; Fairmont Ramla Riyadh in Saudi Arabia; Fairmont Ambassador Seoul; and Fairmont Tagazhout Bay in Morocco. Sofitel will bring French sophistication to several new destinations including Seoul; Hangzhou, China; and Adelaide, Australia.
Conversion opportunities also presented themselves in 2020 and will continue to be a growth driver in 2021 and beyond, as Accor has emerged as the partner of choice among independent hotel owners attracted to the company’s flexibility and ease of transition, its spectrum of brands and its welcoming culture that celebrates authenticity, diversity and entrepreneurialism.
Across the group’s brand portfolio, leading brands for conversion opportunities include The House of Originals (luxury), MGallery (upper-premium), Mövenpick (premium), Grand Mercure (premium), Mercure (midscale), ibis Styles (economy) and Greet (budget). Not surprisingly, these seven brands account for 43% of Accor’s opening pipeline over the next five years. For example, MGallery will welcome several new hotels in key gateway locations this year, including Orchard Hills Residences Singapore – MGallery, The Silveri Hong Kong – MGallery and The Porter House Hotel – MGallery in Sydney.
