Steigenberber Hotels currently operates 77 hotels in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Egypt.
The group now plans to launch into the UK market, with an initial focus on London. Other major cities are also on the radar, such as Birmingham, Liverpool and Glasgow.
Steigenberger told BigHospitality that it will be looking for sites for both its 5-star brand – Steigenberger Hotels and Resorts – and its mid-scale, three-star brand – InterCityHotel.
Steigenberger expansion
“We intend to sign 15 new contracts each year for the foreseeable future,” said a company spokesperson. “The UK will hopefully be the next country for us, we believe in this country.
“As a German brand wanting to become international, London is of course one of the key markets for us if we are to grow properly.
“But we’re also looking at other markets in Europe, for example France and Italy. The Mediterranean is also a possibility for our resorts, as well as China and other Asian destinations.”
Hotel sites
The group said its expansion into the UK market is “opportunistic”, and depends on the availability of suitable sites. It is currently looking for sites that it can either rebrand or convert, which it will then lease, franchise or manage.
“The UK will be a very important market for us. It’s already one of our main incoming markets and we have a global sales agency in London. So it will also be an important market for our hotels as well.
“We are convinced there is space for us. We really believe in the market otherwise we wouldn’t be so keen on getting hotels in the UK. We know that with the Steigenberger brand we’d be bringing a special quality over, we’d like to export German quality to the UK.”
Steigenberger currently operates 45 Steigenberger Hotels and Resorts and 32 InterCityHotels, with a total of 14,000 rooms.