Chris Penn reveals details of sports hotel brand

Former managing director of the Ace Hotel London Shoreditch is to launch a hotel business focusing on sports performance and wellness.

Chris Penn, who left Ace in September last year, revealed details of the brand called Steel Hotels at the International Hotel Investment Forum in Berlin last week.

He said that the guest will be at the centre of the constantly evolving concept.
By catering to the amateur and corporate sports performance market, Penn hopes the brand will become the trusted partner of sportspeople throughout the UK, focusing particularly on swimming, cycling and running.

While capital for the project has been forthcoming, finding the right asset has been the challenge. Penn said that he is seeking an asset of around 150 rooms, located within a rural location within an hour and a half of London. The second phase of the brand would looking at urban centres.

An average stay at Steel Hotels is expected to be around three days, with professional athlete camp programmes providing an opportunity for extended stays.

Penn, winner of 2015 Extra Mile Catey after swimming the English Channel to raise funds for Hospitality Action, joined Ace Hotel London Shoreditch in 2013. His first general manager role was at Flemings Mayfair, having previously worked at the Cavendish and the Stafford, both in London, and Historic House Hotels' Hartwell House near Aylesbury.

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