Budget hotels chain Metro Inn up for sale

Apr 10 2008 By Alan Plews, Evening Gazette

A BUDGET hotel in Thornaby has been put on the market by its London owners less than a year after opening under a new brand.

The Metro Inn chain, which includes sister hotels in Peterborough, Doncaster, Newcastle and Falkirk, has been put up for sale with Christie and Co, London.

A spokeswoman for Christie, which specialises in selling hotels, said: “The sale is attracting a high level of interest and a few offers have already been received. The budget market is doing quite well and proving quite popular.”

All five hotels had been bought from the Hotel Formule 1 group, owned by French company Accor. They were rebranded as Metro Inns and opened in April and May last year.

Metro’s four directors, who formed the chain in 2006 to support the acquisition and expansion of a new budget brand in the UK, were not available to comment.

At the time of the company launch they stated the group’s vision was “to establish Metro Inns as the market leader in the low budget sector”.

Their mission included providing “maximum return for investors” and “to recognise our employees’ contribution through reward, career development and security”.

The Teesside hotel employs a general manager, two duty managers, four housekepeers, one night porter and two ancillary staff.