13 Jul 2016
AccorHotels completes acquisition of FRHI, names CEO of luxury brands
BY Jane Kitchen
Following the approval of shareholders at the General Shareholders Meeting yesterday (12 July), AccorHotels Group has officially acquired FRHI Hotels & Resorts (FRHI) and its three luxury hotel brands: Fairmont, Raffles and Swissôtel.
“Today is a great day for our Group,” said Sébastien Bazin, chair and CEO of AccorHotels. “The acquisition of these three emblematic luxury hotel brands is a historical milestone for AccorHotels. It will open up amazing growth prospects, lift our international presence to unprecedented heights, and build value over the long term.
“By leveraging the operational synergies between FRHI and AccorHotels, we are well-positioned to accelerate the growth of our luxury brands and offer guests even more exciting hotel choices and destinations to explore,” added Bazin.
As part of AccorHotels' larger strategy to strengthen its luxury and upscale business, the company has also appointed Chris Cahill as the group’s CEO of luxury brands. In this newly created role, Cahill will lead the FRHI integration process and be responsible for the strategy and global operations of AccorHotels Luxury Brands. This new structure will include Raffles, Fairmont, Sofitel Legend, So Sofitel, Sofitel, MGallery by Sofitel, Pullman and Swissôtel.
Cahill is an experienced hotelier who has led several successful integrations, is familiar with multi-brand management and brings an extensive background in luxury operations, sales and marketing, the company said. He boasts more than 30 years of hospitality industry experience, including 19 years working with FRHI and its predecessor companies, and most recently served as executive vice president global operations at Las Vegas Sands Corp.
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