Travelodge in £100m pub group link up

Travelodge, the budget hotel operator, is to link up with several pub groups, including Greene King and Mitchells & Butlers, as part of a £100m expansion programme.

The hotel group, which has just under 32,500 rooms across the UK, plans to add 36 sites to its estate by 2015 through forming partnerships with Greene King, JW Lees, Marston's, JD Wetherspoon and Mitchells & Butlers.

"The pub companies have noticeably stepped up their development plans over recent months and in many parts of the country their target locations correspond with ours," said Paul Harvey, managing director for development at Travelodge.

"A combined hotel/pub development is attractive to banks and funders, making the development process a lot quicker than it otherwise may be."

Travelodge currently co-locates with pub companies on 15 developments across the UK.

It recently exchanged on two properties with pub companies — a 53-room hotel on land adjacent to an existing pub in Kidderminster with Marston's; and a 62-bed hotel alongside a JD Wetherspoon in Glossop, Derbyshire.

Innovation​

Brigid Simmonds, chief executive of the British Beer & Pub Association, told The Times​: "While pubs have faced tough times in recent years, this is a great example of how they are fighting back.

"Pubs are perfectly placed too provide the hospitality at sites next to hotels. Pubs are now serve more than one billion meals each year and are diversifying in many ways to serve their community.

"Innovation like this is a key ingredient in making a success of new pub openings."

Last July Travelodge added 52 former Innkeeper's Lodges to its estate, after pub operator Mitchells & Butlers sold them to property company PRUPIM for £91m.

In September 2009, Marston's entered into a £40m joint venture with the budget hotel operator. As part of the agreement, the companies sought sites of around one acre located on busy A roads where they can develop a hotel alongside a pub restaurant.

The first site under the agreement opened last year in Wincanton, Somerset and features a 57-room Travelodge hotel next door to a 6,500sq ft Marston's pub.