Yorkshire hotel group swoops for two iconic properties

YORKSHIRE-BASED hotel group Principal Hayley has continued its expansion with the acquisition of two more well known properties.

Principal Haley has bought the New Connaught Rooms and The Glasgow Central hotel for £13m and plans to invest another £27m to renovate and refurbish the iconic properties.

The deal, which saw both properties bought out of administration following the collapse of The Real Hotel Company, sees Harrogate-based Principal Haley expand to 24 hotels, with more than 4,100 bedrooms and over 500 meeting rooms.

The group, headed by chief executive Tony Troy and backed by European private equity firm Permira, includes The Met Hotel in Leeds, The Royal York, Kenwood Hall in Sheffield and The Palace Hotel in Manchester.

Dating back to 1775, The New Connaught Rooms has a long history of hosting prestigious social and business events and Principal Hayley will be undertaking a major £7m refurbishment programme during July and August to create a flagship dedicated conference, training and banqueting venue in the heart of London.

With a capacity of up to 1,000 guests for banqueting and able to host 5,000 delegates every day, it is also one of London’s largest non-residential conference venues close to the Principal Hayley-owned Hotel Russell which is able to provide accommodation and additional conferencing and four-star hotel amenities.

The refurbishment will be completed by September when The New Connaught Rooms will be re-launched with a sparkling new interior and under a brand new name -The Grand Connaught Rooms.

The historic Glasgow Central Hotel – which has been closed since January – was designed by Robert Rowand Andersen has seen many famous guests stay under its roof but is perhaps best known for being the venue from which the world’s first long-distance television pictures were transmitted on May 24, 1927 by John Logie Baird.

Located next to Glasgow Central Station the hotel is undergoing a major £20m refurbishment to add another 30 bedrooms and will reopen next February renamed The Grand Central Hotel.

Commenting on the deal, Mr Troy said: “We are very excited about the addition of The Grand Connaught Rooms and The Grand Central Hotel to our portfolio. 

“Strategically they are an excellent fit to the collection.  The Grand Connaught Rooms will work hand-in-hand with the Hotel Russell to offer some of the finest conference and banqueting that central London has to offer.

“Glasgow is a thriving tourism and conference destination and the acquisition of The Grand Central Hotel is in keeping with our strategy of offering dedicated conference hotels in key city centre locations around the UK.

“Even in today’s challenging economic climate we are confident that our unique model of offering an ‘a la carte’ selection of high quality city centre hotels and dedicated conference, event and training venues is one which will continue to appeal to both the corporate and leisure markets alike and this acquisition further enforces our commitment to grow.”

This year has already seen Principal Hayleyopen two dedicated conference venues near Paris and Barcelona, enter into a joint venture agreement with The Oakley Court in Windsor; unveil a £9m refurbishment and restoration of The White House and Chapel on the grounds of the Beaumont House in Old Windsor and complete a £2.5m IT and online investment.

Martin Clarke, a partner of Permira who sits on the board of Principal Hayley commented: “We are delighted to support Principal Hayley with further investment for the acquisition of the Grand Connaught Rooms and The Grand Central Hotel. 

“Both properties will strengthen an already excellent portfolio and we are extremely keen to develop even more opportunities for the group across the UK and northern Europe.”