Accor targets the boutique hotel sector with launch of the MGallery collection

Accor announced today the launch of MGallery, a collection of distinctive, high-quality upscale hotels that have an exceptional personality through one or more of four principal elements: Vision, Design, History and Location.

The collection will launch with eight hotels – Grand Hotel Melbourne (Australia), St Moritz Queenstown (New Zealand), Hotel am Konzerthaus in Vienna (Austria), the Continental Hotel Zurich and Rotary in Geneva (Switzerland), and the Baltimore in Paris, Le Royal Hotel Lyon and Grand Hotel Beauvau Marseilles (France).

The MGallery label enables Accor to respond to a rapidly growing group of travellers who prefer boutique-style hotels with genuine character, often a destination in their own right.

MGallery hotels will be included according to four major principals:

– Their history, whether a historical building or location, whose past is tied to famous people or major events that took place within the hotel’s walls;

– Their exceptional setting in a city or resort destination;

– The vision behind the creation of the hotel;

– The exceptional exterior or interior design of the hotel.

The network has been originally created from existing Sofitel and Grand Mercure hotels selected for their special character, and located in city centre or resort destinations. A number of new MGallery hotels are expected to be announced over the next three months.

By the end of 2010, Accor plans to have grown the collection to more than 40 hotels.

“Launching the MGallery label opens a new horizon for Accor. We will prove that we have the requisite legitimacy and know-how, using in particular the Group’s expertise and experience as springboards to conquer the market of upscale, individual hotels with a marked identity,” states Gilles Pélisson, the Accor’s Director and CEO.

He adds, “We are aware that a growing number of our clients want their hotel to have that extra bit of character that will make their stay unique and unforgettable. It was with this trend in mind that we started the MGallery collection.”

A new website for MGallery hotels has been launched at www.mgallery.com.

Accor, a major global group and the European leader in hotels, as well as the global leader in services to corporate clients and public institutions, operates in nearly 100 countries with 150,000 employees. It offers to its clients over 40 years of expertise in two core businesses:

– Hotels, with the Sofitel, Pullman, Novotel, Mercure, Suitehotel, Ibis, all seasons, Etap Hotel, Formule 1 and Motel 6 brands, representing 4,000 hotels and nearly 500,000 rooms in 90 countries, as well as strategically related activities, such as Lenôtre.

– Services, with 30 million people in 40 countries benefiting from Accor Services products in employee and public benefits, rewards and loyalty and expense management.