SACO Property Group acquires ninth site

Serviced apartment company SACO has acquired its first hotel in Manchester, Whitworth Locke, which is expected to open in June 2018.

The purchase comes as part of the ongoing expansion of the company's Locke lifestyle aparthotel concept, which aims to bridge the gap between contemporary lifestyle hotels and design-led serviced apartments.

Whitworth Locke offers 150 units, and will house a gym, multiple independent food and beverage offerings, co-working space and meeting rooms.

SACO opened its first Locke property in London in October 2016 and since the start of the year it has secured additional development opportunities in London, Cambridge and Dublin, adding over 900 units to its existing pipeline of 1,200 under operation.

The brand’s second property, Eden Locke, is due to open in Edinburgh in July 2017.

The company is aiming to have more than 2,000 units by 2020. The group is now targeting further acquisitions in Paris, Berlin, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Dublin and Hamburg, in addition to bolstering its presence in other major UK cities.

Ben Harper, SACO commercial director, said: “With the successful launch of our first property behind us, we have been focused on securing sites for the continued expansion of the Locke brand and Manchester was a natural target. We know the city well as we have successfully operated there under the SACO brand for a number of years. This new opening gives us an opportunity to operate the two aparthotels under both SACO and Locke brands in Manchester, providing increased capacity, choice and relevance for all customer groups."

UK serviced apartment sector to expand by 13.1% in 2017 >>

SACO acquires London property as part of £100m investment programme >>

Hyde restaurants launch in Locke by SACO >>

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