Irish hotel group Tifco, backed by Goldman Sachs, is reportedly set to take over the company that operates Ireland's Travelodge franchise, according to industry sources.
The deal would add 12 inns to Tifco's current portfolio of seven hotels, however it needs to be approved by the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission first. The Irish Times reports that the value of the deal is not immediately clear and that the 780 Travelodge rooms would be leased rather than owned.
Tifco currently operates a total of 1,776 bedrooms, spread across properties such as its three Crowne Plazas and the five-star Hermitage golf and spa resort in Co Laois. Travelodge's Irish portfolio, which was taken over in 2004 in a €22.5 million deal by Smorgs (Ireland), is run by Seamus McGowan, Richard O’Sullivan and Stan Cooney. The most recent accounts filed by Smorgs show it made a €1 million loss for the year to March 2014 on €9.5 million of gross profits.
Hotel assets have become more and more of a hot property as Dublin faces a severe shortage of hotel rooms despite revenue per available room increasing by 23 per cent last year.
