Northern European hotel operator Scandic Hotels Group has inked a deal to acquire Restel's hotel operations in Finland for €114.5 mln.
The acquisition of the Finnish operator's portfolio of 43 hotels will make Scandic the largest hotel player in Finland. Currently, 28 out of 230 of Scandic's hotels are in operation and under development in the country.
'This is an important step forward for Scandic Hotels and one that will give us a strong network in the Finnish market,' commented Frank Fiskers, president & CEO of Scandic. 'We look forward to operating and developing these hotels under the Scandic brand going forward and to welcome all of the Restel team members and customers to Scandic.'
Restel currently has about 7,600 keys across its 43 hotels with long-term lease agreements, seven of which are operated under franchise agreements with Intercontinental Hotels Group. Most of the hotels are operated under the Cumulus brand and will gradually be converted into Scandic hotels. The seller will remain the landlord for four of the hotels.
'We’ve found an excellent partner in Scandic. Our hotel portfolio will be in safe hands and become part of Scandic’s strong brand. At the same time, it will have access to their distribution capacity and significant customer base in the Nordic region,' said Mikael Backman, CEO of Restel.
Scandic said it saw good opportunities for sales growth and margin improvement in the acquired hotel portfolio in the coming years, including via the rebranding process.
Nordic hotel deals
The transaction, which is subject to regulatory approval, followed a number of other deals in the Nordic region this week.
Swedish player Fastighets AB Balder agreed to acquire four hotel properties in the centre of Copenhagen for around SEK1 bn (€100 mln).
The four properties are all located next to Central Station in Copenhagen and are now run under the name Star, Mercur, Richmond and the Plaza. Stockholm-listed Balder will sign long-term leases with Ligula Hospitality Group to operate all four hotels.
The assets are expected to be transferred in the third quarter of the year.
Norway's Midstar bought Mastemyr Hotel, the owner of Quality Hotel Entry in Kolbotn, near Oslo, from Petter Stordalen's Strawberry Properties for an undisclosed sum.
'We are to strenghten our collaboration with Nordic Choice and look forward to continue to develope this newly renovated hotel in an exciting market,' commented Midstar's Ola Stendebakken.
While Thommessen, Ramböll, KPMG, CBRE and Cushman & Wakefield advised Midstar, Pangea advised Stordalen.
