Twelve Menzies hotels sold out of administration
The Topland Group, owned by billionaire brothers Sol and Eddie Zakay, have acquired 12 Menzies Hotels from administration in a deal worth at least £80m.
A total of 15 Menzies Hotels were put up for sale in July after its parent company Cordial Hotels went into administration two months earlier.
While Topland has taken a dozen of them, including the 78-bedroom Welcombe Hotel, Spa and Golf Club (pictured) in Stratford-upon-Avon, a further three - in Swindon, Gatwick and Luton - have been closed.
There were reports that guests at the Swindon hotel were turfed out on Friday following the deal, and that 49 staff lost their jobs. The Swindon Advertiser claimed that the hotel had been booked for a party of 140 on the evening of Friday 29 November, but that the doors were closed before it could take place, and staying guests were asked to leave.
The hotels that remain open have a combined bedroom count of over 1,500 in locations which stretch from Aberdeen to Bournemouth.
Bespoke Hotels will take over management of the hotels under Vision Asset Management.
Jeremy Hill, director and head of hotels at Christie + Co, said: "We are delighted to announce the sale of Menzies Hotels, one of the leading private hotel groups in the UK. Christie + Co launched the sales process in the summer of this year, and the huge interest we received saw us undertake a substantial number of asset tours for interested parties
"The response to the sale of this 4-Star collection is evidence that the UK hotel market is gathering strength as trading levels improve."
Topland Group was advised by Osborne Clarke, the vendors by Allen & Overy.
