News Hour:
Committed to expanding the Canadian presence of two of its top-performing midscale brands, Wyndham Hotel Group today announced multi-unit agreements with PHI Hotel Group to develop 25 Wingate by Wyndham hotels over the next 25 years and 15 Hawthorn Suites by Wyndham hotels over the next 15 years.
The agreements multiply Wingate’s footprint in Canada by five times its current size and establish Hawthorn’s presence in the country. PHI Hotel Group has already executed on three Wingate hotels for development in 2016, and has another eight hotels in its existing portfolio currently under construction.
Half of Canada’s population identifies as middle class, a demographic that desires to travel but has a limited budget. According to Phocuswright, Canadians are traveling domestically more frequently, making midscale hotel brands such as Wingate and Hawthorn an ideal travel solution. The hotels, most of which are new construction, will open as soon as 2017 and reside in top Canadian travel markets such as Montreal, Ottawa, Calgary, and Halifax.
“These agreements demonstrate our steadfast commitment to continued growth in Canada,” said Chip Ohlsson, Wyndham Hotel Group’s chief development officer. “We’re targeting Canada’s leading cities – where travelers really want to be – with two incredible brands that guests embrace for their convenience, quality, and experience.”
“Wingate and Hawthorn stand out for us and for our guests, offering thoughtful, consistent experiences under a trusted name,” said Sukhi Rai, president of PHI Hotel Group. “This collaboration is a natural fit, bringing Wyndham Hotel Group’s powerful scale and industry-leading technology efforts to life through two brands that travelers adore. We look forward to continuing to build our relationship together.”
Wyndham Hotel Group’s hotels in Canada represent approximately 6% of its global portfolio – and that number is growing quickly. Wyndham Hotel Group boasts a robust pipeline of 46 hotels with more than 4,000 rooms in Canada, gearing up to surpass 550 hotels in the country. Currently, 11 of the company’s 16 hotel brands have a presence in Canada, including Baymont Inn & Suites®, Days Inn®, Dolce Hotels and Resorts®, Howard Johnson®, Knights Inn®, Microtel Inn & Suites by Wyndham®, Ramada®, Super 8®, Travelodge®, Wingate by Wyndham® and Wyndham Garden®.
Hawthorn Suites by Wyndham is an extended-stay brand offering guests a home away from home designed to help them maintain their routine whether their stay is for a week, a month or a year. Wingate by Wyndham offers guests everything they need to stay connected, on-schedule, productive and ready for whatever comes next.
