Best Western Hotels and Resorts has introduced what it describes as a new ‘white label’ franchise model to the hotel industry in Ireland.
Best Western states that SureStay will provide access to a brand with over 70 years’ hospitality experience, 'along with enticing membership benefits and exclusive access to Best Western’s infrastructure and distribution channels'.
Launching worldwide last month, SureStay hotels will operate under three distinct brands – SureStay Hotel (premium economy), SureStay Plus Hotel (lower mid-scale) and SureStay Signature Collection (mid-scale soft-brand) – 'offering prospective franchisees a more equitable, less one-sided franchise option in the marketplace'.
Best Western believes SureStay will provide 'a wealth of benefits to ownership groups including access to Best Western Hotels & Resorts’ reservation systems and websites for desktop, mobile and tablet, the best in global distribution and a dedicated customer care support centre'.
There are two requirements necessary to qualify to become a member of SureStay. First, that the franchisee has a minimum one year-long rating of at least 3.5 stars on TripAdvisor, and secondly that the franchisee keeps to the SureStay Service Promise – there is no requirement for a property improvement plan but the brand will make sure the franchisee’s properties adhere to certain levels of quality.
"Through SureStay we will create a group of hotels that have access to the benefits of a global hotel chain without necessarily having to adapt the current product offering, specific standards or systems," says Karl de Lacy, International Development Director at Best Western Hotels & Resorts. “It will be easy to enter into a franchise agreement with SureStay Hotels, and we see great potential in Ireland. There are a large number of hotels in this segment, which today have no chain affiliation or belong to a small, local hotel chain, lacking the development which SureStay can offer."
