Expanding the horizons of B&B Hotels
Overview
PAI Partners agreed to acquire B&B Hotels in December 2015 and completed the acquisition in March 2016.
Under PAI’s ownership, the group grew from a strong local player to an integrated hotel platform operating at a pan-European level.
The exceptional performance of B&B in the three years of our ownership – the fastest growing hotel chain in Europe during that time – and the strong momentum of the hotel industry sparked strong interest from potential buyers (both trades and private equity), leading to the sale of the business to Goldman Sachs in July 2019.
Leveraging our sector expertise and international presence
Our decision to acquire B&B was based on the quality of the management team, its clear leadership positions in France, Germany and Italy, a highly efficient and flexible business model, and the significant potential for room roll-outs and international expansion within an attractive hospitality market.
PAI's experience of supporting international roll-out strategies, using our local presence across Europe, and our specialist understanding of the consumer and hospitality sectors, put us in a strong position to successfully partner with B&B and its management team to further develop the company.
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100%
EBITDA growth
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140
new hotels
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6
new countries
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Our partnership with B&B Hotels
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How did we transform B&B
Under PAI's ownership, B&B Hotels expanded into new countries, implemented an extensive roll-out programme and invested significantly in strengthening its operations, in addition to refurbishing existing hotels.
International expansion
The group expanded into six new countries: Austria, Belgium, Portugal, Slovenia and Switzerland in Europe; and, for the first time outside of Europe, in Brazil. It also made three add-on acquisitions including two in Spain (Sidorme and H2 Hotels) and a portfolio of nine hotels in Germany.
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3
international add-ons
Significant roll-out
With 140 new hotels under PAI's ownership, B&B averaged one opening per week with the pipeline increasing from circa 20 openings per annum pre-PAI acquisition to circa 50 openings per annum at exit. More than 105 new projects were approved in 2018 alone, showcasing the solid momentum built across the whole of the B&B network ahead of exit.
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50
openings per annum
Strengthening of operations
In addition to making a significant investment into refurbishing existing hotels (160 hotels refurbished in France in last two years of ownership), central operations were strengthened and B&B's IT system entirely relaunched.
At the time of the exit in July 2019, B&B had grown to operate a network of 496 budget hotels, with a total capacity of 43,692 rooms across 12 countries and c.1.000 employees, up from c.650 at entry.
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160
refurbished hotels in France
