Mint Hotels to get Hilton rebrand as group acquired by Blackstone

The group’s eight hotels, including one recently opened property in Amsterdam, will be operated under a management contract as part of Blackstone’s Hilton Worldwide business.

It is thought the portfolio will be branded as Mint by Hilton in the short term, although details on the future name for the hotels are unclear.

Founded by father and son Sandy and David Orr with Donald MacDonald and Bill Crear in 1995, Mint Hotel launched its first property in Bristol in 1999, having secured a joint financing agreement with Uberior Ventures, a subsidiary of Lloyds Banking Group, a year earlier.

BigHospitality believes Blackstone acquired the group using around £230m of equity, along with £300m debt from Deutsche Bank and £75m from Duet Real Estate Finance.

David Orr, chief executive and co‐founder of Mint Hotel, said: “After nearly 16 years spent building Mint into the brand that it now is, a transaction has been agreed that gives the business a new future. We have a fantastic team of over 1,500 employees who have worked tirelessly to deliver the outstanding level of service that our customers’ deserve.

“In Blackstone, the business now has a global investor with a strong and expansive track record in the hospitality sector. We feel confident that they will continue to manage the hotels in a manner that is true to its business identity. We wish the new managers every success with the business and are hugely proud to have built it up to the position it now is in.”

All 1,500 employees will retain their positions within the company, which includes seven UK hotels in Westminster, Tower of London, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds, Bristol and Glasgow.