In Brief: A joint venture between Starboard Hotels and LaSalle Investment Management has acquired seven Accor-branded hotels in key UK markets from sellers Ares Management and EQ Group, signaling continued investor interest in branded hotel assets and portfolio-scale transactions.
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Novotel Birmingham Centre – Image Credit Accor
Birmingham, Sheffield, Luton, Southampton and London hotels bring owner and operator’s total portfolio to twenty-eight
Starboard Hotels in a joint venture with LaSalle Investment Management has acquired seven hotels in key markets across the UK from Ares Real Estate Funds (“Ares”) and EQ Group (“EQ”) for an undisclosed sum. These will be managed by Starboard under existing Accor franchise agreements. Ares and EQ were represented by JLL and Christie & Co.
The award-winning owner and operator’s UK hotel portfolio now totals 28 as it celebrates 20 years in operation since its establishment in 2006. The acquisitions bring Starboards’ total room number to over 3,000 and creates new career opportunities within the group.
The seven hotels comprising 913 bedrooms are: ibis Birmingham New Street, Novotel Birmingham Centre, Novotel Sheffield Centre, ibis Luton Airport, ibis Southampton Centre, Novotel Southampton and ibis London Barking, these bring the total number of Accor hotels managed by Starboard to 15.
Accor is a global hotel operator and franchisor with over 250 hotels in the UK and Ireland. Novotel is an Accor brand positioned in the midscale market, providing four-star accommodation for business and leisure travellers, whereas the ibis brand offers budget travellers value for money.
Frazer Callingham, Managing Director of Starboard Hotels, said: “This is a first Private Equity Joint Venture transaction for us and we are very excited to be working in partnership with LaSalle to bring this established portfolio into our hotel family. We expect the portfolio to bring operational efficiencies across our estate, and it is exciting to be a part of both new cities and brands with great potential to grow and improve.”
Leif Skogland, Vice President, Value-Add Investments, Europe at LaSalle Investment Management, said: “We are delighted to be partnering with Starboard on this exciting opportunity; we see great potential in this portfolio and look forward to realizing the business plan. We believe further opportunities will arise across the UK for us to expand our joint venture with Starboard.”
Hussein Sunderji, Managing Director & Partner at EQ Group, said: “EQ Hotels are delighted to complete the sale of the portfolio to Starboard and LaSalle, and look forward to seeing these well-located regional hotels’ continued growth under their ownership. This sale marks our final exit from the 18-asset UK portfolio acquired with Ares in 2024, completing a 27-month deal cycle that delivered significant value creation through both nimble deal execution and best-in-class operational management.”
Kerr Young, Head of UK National Hotels Transactions, Capital Markets at JLL said: “Completing this transaction highlights the underlying liquidity in the UK hospitality market and signals a buoyant outlook for regional portfolio activity moving forward. We wish the new owners every success as they take these assets into their next phase of growth.”
Jeremy Jones, Head of Brokerage – Hotels at Christie & Co, said: “We are delighted to have assisted in the sale of these hotels, strategically located in key markets including London Luton Airport and London Barking. The transaction highlights the continued demand for quality hotel assets in established UK locations.”
ibis London Barking is Starboard’s third London hotel. It provides easy access to the business district of Canary Wharf and the UK’s largest shopping centre, Westfield Stratford.
ibis Luton Airport is a ten-minute walk away from London Luton Airport terminal and a short distance from Luton Airport Parkway Station. With this acquisition, Starboard now has three hotels that serve major UK airports.
ibis Birmingham New Street Station is located in the Arcadian Centre in Birmingham’s Chinese Quarter. Novotel Birmingham Centre is on Broad Street in the Brindleyplace district. They bring Starboard’s total number of hotels in the UK’s second largest city to four.
Novotel Sheffield Centre is within a five-minute walk of Sheffield Station and is in close proximity to Crucible Theatre, Lyceum Theatre, Don Valley Stadium, Sheffield Arena, and Sheffield United Football Club. It is the second Starboard owned and operated hotel located in Sheffield.
ibis Southampton Centre and Novotel Southampton are Starboard’s first hotels located in one of the UK’s busiest port cities; both are a short walk from Southampton Central Station, the city centre and the Cruise Terminals.