SilverNeedle Hospitality will roll out Country Comfort hotels in Asia, following the development of a new franchise model for the upper-midscale brand.
The Country Comfort brand is already well-established in Australia and New Zealand, but SilverNeedle said it is now targeting “Southeast Asia, North and South Asia”, and is currently in discussions with potential franchisees in Japan, Malaysia, Macau, Vietnam and Australia.
And to tempt more hotel operators into its franchise network, SilverNeedle has set up a new business model that it says will be “fair and transparent”, providing “a compelling investment proposition” for hoteliers. This will include allowing franchisees to benefit from the supply chain cost-savings achieved by a large hotel group.
“As franchising is one of the best ways for hotel owners and investors to grow a hotel chain, we want to offer an attractive and cost-effective model that stretches yields,” said Sean Flynn, SilverNeedle’s executive vice president of brands.
“As a franchisor, we take a long-term view of aligning our economic interests with the franchisees’ so we will be one of the few hotel franchisors that will not make any money off the franchisee’s capital expenditure.”
Under the new scheme, Country Comfort hotels will be equipped with a range of centrally-sourced fixtures and fittings, including new mattresses, bed linen and shower units.
SilverNeedle rebranded the 28-year old Country Comfort in October 2013, with plans to turn it into a major new player in the business travel sector. New brand standard amenities will include free Wi-Fi, free local calls and low in-house prices for laundry and other items.
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