Following his assertion this week that he anticipates the majority of Dalata’s deals and announcements will come from the UK this year, the hotel group’s CEO, Pat McCann has revealed plans for further expansion into mainland Europe, with Germany and the Benelux countries being among the primary targets.
Emphasizing that the move won’t happen until Dalata has taken advantage of more opportunities in the UK, McCann told The Irish Independent, “Once we're through that process, we're already looking at the next location where we might consider.”
He continued, “We're not waiting but it's a little bit too soon to look beyond Ireland and particularly the UK. I don't want the concentration to come off those, because that's where most of the bang for our bucks is currently.
"It will be mainland Europe and it will be country-specific.
"It's not a question that we dot ourselves all over the place. It's not our strategy. We like to build strong positions in each geographic region that we're in. Mainland Europe is a big place.
"It won't be the Mediterranean. It will be northern Europe, in a market where we know and understand."
While McCann stated that Germany and the Benelux countries are appealing to Dalata, he asserted, “We have done some work, but not enough for us to be definitive at this point in time.”
