Focus Hotels safeguards 500 Real Hotel Group jobs

Focus Hotels Management has helped safeguard 500 jobs at the collapsed Real Hotel Group by agreeing to take on the running of 10 hotel leases.

Focus, which is headed by Peter Cashman, currently provides management and management services six hotels in London, Nottingham and Swindon.

Cashman was an executive director at Choice Hotels Europe until stepping down in January 2007. 

He said: “Having been a founder director of Friendly Hotels, which later became the Real Hotel Company, and working with Alun Edwards and Tony Mylchreest, themselves former operations directors, we are familiar with all the hotels and look forward to delivering the long term development plans to take the business forward.

“We believe that there is a strong opening in the current market for quality mid-market hotels offering value and excellent service”.

The ten saved hotels, which have a total of 780 rooms, are in Altrincham, Wigan, Wolverhampton, Hull, Hatfield, Chester, Northampton, Stafford, Blackburn and Telford. They previously operated under the Quality and Clarion brands.

The 40-strong Real Hotel Group, and subsidiary the Real Hotel Company, collapsed into administration on 21 January 2009. Four hotels were closed immediately by administrators.

Cashman is also a director of Kasterlee an Irish based hotel group which operates 10 four-star hotels in Ireland and the UK.

Choice Hotels International ends franchises with Real Hotel Group >>

Hotel insolvencies double; worse to come >>

150 jobs lost as Real Hotel Group closes four hotels >>

The Real Hotel Group collapses into administration >>

Choice Hotels Europe to shed management jobs to save £1m in costs >>

By Gemma Sharkey

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