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Europe’s largest hotel company Accor announces almost two billion net loss
Europe’s largest hotel company Accor made a €1.99bn net loss last year due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The owner of several hotel chains including Ibis, Sofitel, Rixos, Novotel, Mercure and Raffles, said revenue per room globally was down 65% in 2020.
It was even worse in the UK where RevPAR fell by 73.3% due to longer lockdowns than the rest of Europe. In London it was down 78.5%.
However, the company – which owns more than 5,000 hotels worldwide – said measures taken in the second half of the year had helped limit the impact of the coronavirus crisis.
"The Group also continued with the rollout of large-scale initiatives to plan ahead for the economic recovery and consolidate its leadership position in lifestyle: implementation of a new streamlined and agile organization, a merger with Ennismore through the creation of a dedicated entity comprising 12 unique hotel brands, and the signing of a strategic partnership with the Faena brand," added Chairman and CEO Sebastien Bazin.
"In 2021, while the vaccine is ensuring a gradual rebound in tourism-—largely driven by leisure guests—Accor is ideally positioned to benefit from the recovery and press ahead with its roadmap."
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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