Sol Melia and Rank end Hard Rock Hotel association

Mallorca-based Sol Melia and Hard Rock International have disbanded their joint venture set up to roll out Hard Rock-branded hotels.

The Lifestyle Hotels JV was set up in 2003 to develop the group, but Sol Melia now wants to develop properties under the Melia brand.

The Tryp Reina Victoria hotel in Madrid, which was due to be Europe’s first Hard Rock property, will now open in September as the first new generation Melia hotel.

Hard Rock owner Rank confirmed it was looking at options for the brand including a possible sell off.

The company, which has recently bought back the rights to its name in Australia and the Middle East, issued a statement adding it was looking to “reacquire and reassemble international property and operating rights to address and improve brand oversight and development”.

It is not yet known what will happen to the existing Hard Rock hotel in Chicago or the Paramount Hotel on Time Square in New York, which was being redeveloped into a Hard Rock hotel under the JV.

Properties in Barcelona, Cancun and Los Cabos in Mexico are next in the pipeline.

The Rank Group considers selling Hard Rock brand >>

Hard Rock Hotels reveals ambitious growth plan >>

Burke goes to Rank >>

By Emily Manson

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