InterContinental Hotels Group Franchise News

May 25, 2012 // Franchising.com // IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) [LON: IHG; NYSE: IHG (ADRs)] announces that David Webster will retire on 31 December 2012. He has been Chairman of the Group since January 2004 and a member of the Board since April 2003. Patrick Cescau will become Chairman upon David’s retirement.
Patrick was Group Chief Executive of Unilever from 2005 to 2008 and previously held other senior positions with the company, including Finance Director and CEO of the Foods Division. He will join the Board of InterContinental Hotels Group PLC as Chairman on 1 January 2013.
David Webster said:
"My time with IHG has truly been a career highlight for me and I leave with a feeling of achievement for all that has been done since demerger in 2003...

Gift Card Redemption Sales Allow Priority Club Members to Redeem Their Points to Save On Gas, Restaurants and More All Summer Long
May 24, 2012 // Franchising.com // ATLANTA – Priority Club® Rewards from IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group), the world’s largest and fastest growing hotel loyalty program, is helping our members throw caution to the wind and hit the open road with greater ease and peace of mind. Starting May 25 through May 28, gas gift cards will be available for a 25 percent discount off their normal point redemption value. As we heat up our summer sale, members can allow points to do the talking and their hard earned money do the walking…right back into their wallets.
According to AAA*, 34...

May 11, 2012 // Franchising.com // ATLANTA – With the summer vacation season fast approaching, one of the world’s largest hotel companies IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) today announces its latest promotion for Priority Club® Rewards members. Beginning June 1, the industry’s first, largest and fastest-growing guest loyalty program Priority Club Rewards will give its members the opportunity to earn 1,000 bonus points for every qualifying night through Sept. 3, 2012, up to 20,000 bonus points—enough points for a one-night stay at a Candlewood Suites or Staybridge Suites hotel, two nights at some Holiday Inn or Holiday Inn Express hotels, or many of Priority Club Rewards’ non-hotel reward options.
Additionally, Priority Club Rewards will offer exclusive bonus rewards to its members who are fans of the program’s new Facebook page and to those who book directly on any of IHG’s web sites such as priorityclub...

"Vacation Pay" Promotion Offers Up to $300 Cash Back for Weekend Stays This Summer
ATLANTA, May 7, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Back by popular demand, IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) is offering guests cash rewards through their "Vacation Pay" promotion, arming travelers with extra spending money to use following their vacation and beyond. U.S. residents planning their fun in the sun between May 14, 2012 and Sept. 3, 2012, will receive a $75 prepaid card when they stay two consecutive weekend (Friday, Saturday or Sunday) nights at any of IHG's 4,400 hotels worldwide, including InterContinental® Hotels & Resorts, Crowne Plaza® Hotels & Resorts, Hotel Indigo®, Holiday Inn®, Holiday Inn® Resort, Holiday Inn® Club Vacations, Holiday Inn® Express, Staybridge Suites® and Candlewood Suites®...

InterContinental Hotels & Resorts has been awarded a Gifted ranking in the second annual L2 Digital IQ Index®: Hotels.
May 07, 2012 // Franchising.com // Developed by L2, a think tank for digital innovation, and NYU Stern Professor Scott Galloway, the Digital IQ Index is a robust tool that scores brands on over 350 quantitative and qualitative data points across four dimensions: website, digital marketing, social media and mobile.
InterContinental Hotels & Resorts was one of only 11 hotel brands to achieve the Gifted ranking and ranked sixth out of the 52 hotel brands in the Index.
Brands that were awarded the Gifted ranking experimented across platforms with tactics including concierge mobile applications, on-site user reviews, shareable destination guides and programming on Instagram, Pinterest and other emerging platforms...

May 03, 2012 // Franchising.com // ATLANTA and COLORADO SPRINGS – IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group), one of the world's largest hotel companies, and USA Cycling, cycling’s national governing body, today announced they have entered into a multi-year agreement that names IHG the exclusive hotel partner of USA Cycling.
"We are really looking forward to this new relationship with USA Cycling and the USA Cycling Team," said Del Ross, vice president, Americas Sales & Marketing, IHG. "This partnership provides a terrific opportunity for IHG to showcase team travel accommodations for USA Cycling’s more than 70,000 licensees and hundreds of athletes that race around the world."
As a part of its sponsorship, IHG will create a special portal for USA Cycling members to book rooms at exclusive rates at any participating IHG hotel including InterContinental® Hotels & Resorts, Hotel Indigo®, Crowne Plaza® Hotels & Resorts, Holiday Inn® Hotels and Resorts, Holiday Inn® Club Vacations, Holiday Inn Express®, Staybridge Suites® and Candlewood Suites®...

April 30, 2012 // Franchising.com // IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group), the world’s largest hotel group by number of rooms, and Muscat Golf Course Project LLC today announce the signing of a 20-year management agreement for the luxury InterContinental Muscat Hills Golf Resort in Oman.
Signed during the 2012 Arabian Hotel Investment Conference taking place in Dubai, the hotel will form part of the Muscat Hills Golf and Country Club – a 1.2 million square metre development set in a unique hillside location with spectacular panoramic mountain and sea views over the Gulf of Oman. Muscat Hills is a mixed use development with upscale residential villas and apartments, an 18-hole championship golf course, country club and hotel...

April 25, 2012 // Franchising.com // InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), one of the world’s largest hotel companies, has worked with some of the most influential hospitality experts and travel commentators to identify the key global trends that will have potential impact in 2012 and beyond.
What to expect?
With over 153 million room nights being booked by guests each year, IHG has used its scale to examine insights into how travel and lifestyle habits are changing, in order to be able to design for the future needs of its guests. The contributors to this trends summary were all asked what they thought were the main drivers of change that would influence 2012 in terms of travel and these insights have been reflected in five macro trend areas...

New promotion gives meeting planners up to 180,000 Priority Club® bonus points.
ATLANTA – IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group), the world’s largest hotel group by number of rooms announced today its meetings promotion, “Triple Bonus Points” to incentivize those who book meeting space across its hotel brands including InterContinental Alliance Resorts*®, Crowne Plaza® Hotels & Resorts, Hotel Indigo®,Holiday Inn® and Holiday Inn® Express. “Triple Bonus Points” gives meeting planners up to 180,000 bonus Priority Club® points when they book rooms at participating IHG locations across North America.
"At IHG we understand the importance of meetings for our business travelers,” said Wayne Hamilton, Marketing Director of U...

Participating IHG hotels in the United States and Canada will assist communities in reducing waste and stopping the spread of preventable diseases.
ATLANTA, Ga. and ORLANDO, Fla. – IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) [LON: IHG, NYSE: IHG (ADRs)], one of the world’s largest hotel groups, announced today a partnership with Clean the World to recycle partially-used soaps and bottled amenities from hotel guest rooms and distribute them in communities with limited access to hygiene products.
Clean the World Foundation Inc. is a 501 (c) (3) charitable organization that is committed to stopping the spread of preventable diseases by collecting, recycling and distributing hotel guest room amenities to children and families in the United States, Canada and more than 45 countries worldwide...

“Travel Bonus” Promotion Gifts Travelers with up to $200 in Cash Rewards for Weekday Stays
April 18, 2012 // Franchising.com // ATLANTA – IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) one of the world’s largest hotel companies today announced the launch of its “Travel Bonus” promotion, designed to help small business owners and their employees save on travel costs.  U.S. residents planning to travel between April 16, 2012 and Aug. 2, 2012, will receive a $50 prepaid card when they stay two consecutive weekday (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) nights at any of IHG’s 4,400 hotels worldwide, including InterContinental® Hotels & Resorts, Crowne Plaza® Hotels & Resorts, Hotel Indigo®, Holiday Inn®, Holiday Inn® Club Vacations, Holiday Inn® Express, Staybridge Suites® and Candlewood Suites®...

April 05, 2012 // Franchising.com // InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), one of the world’s largest hotel companies has appointed former McDonald’s Chief Marketing Officer, Larry Light, as Global Chief Brands Officer.
Reporting directly to CEO Richard Solomons, the hiring of Light builds on the company’s strategy of developing and nurturing a powerful portfolio of preferred brands including; Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express, Indigo, Crowne Plaza, InterContinental, Staybridge Suites and Candlewood Suites.
Larry Light is one of the world’s leading brand consultants and author of the book ‘Six Rules for Brand Revitalisation’. He served as Global Chief Marketing Officer for McDonald’s during 2002-2005, crucial years in the brand’s marketing turnaround and as CEO of Arcature LLC, a brand management consultancy, Larry has also worked with other high profile organisations including Mars, Nissan, 3M and IBM...

IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group PLC) [LON: IHG, NYSE:IHG (ADRs)] filed its annual report on Form 20-F for the year ended 31 December 2011 with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on 29 March 2012. The Form 20-F, including complete audited financial statements, can be found on the Company’s website, www.ihgplc.com/investors.
Shareholders may request a hard copy of the Form 20-F free of charge from the address below:
Company SecretariatInterContinental Hotels Group PLCBroadwater Park, DenhamBuckinghamshire UB9 5HRUnited Kingdom
About IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group)
IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) [LON:IHG, NYSE:IHG (ADRs)] is a global organisation with nine hotel brands including InterContinental® Hotels & Resorts, Hotel Indigo®, Crowne Plaza® Hotels & Resorts, Holiday Inn® Hotels and Resorts, Holiday Inn Express®, Staybridge Suites®, Candlewood Suites®, as well as our two newest brands, EVEN™ Hotels and HUALUXE™ Hotels & Resorts...

March 12, 2012 // Franchising.com // IHG, the world’s largest hotel group by number of rooms, and the biggest international hotel company in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, has signed an agreement with the Rayadah Investment Company to open two new hotels in Riyadh’s King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD), including the first Hotel Indigo in the Middle East.
Hotel Indigo Riyadh KAFD and InterContinental Riyadh KAFD will be situated in the heart of Saudi Arabia’s new economic and financial hub. With easy access to the airport and in close proximity to the main business area of Olaya, the two hotels will be ideal for those people travelling for business who also want to explore the city.
Hotel Indigo pioneers a new concept targeting upscale travellers who seek a unique hotel experience...

(ATLANTA) – 8 March, 2012 - IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) [LON: IHG, NYSE:IHG (ADRs)] announced today that 77 Staybridge Suites and Candlewood Suites hotels owned by Hospitality Properties Trust (NYSE: HPT) and managed by IHG are undergoing renovations, with HPT investing approximately $165 million in the improvements.
The first phase of renovations is complete, with 26 Candlewood Suites in markets including Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas and Phoenix boasting new kitchen and bath designs, among other changes. All renovations across both brands are expected to be complete by September 2012, with a total of 58 Candlewood Suites and 19 Staybridge Suites making the changes.
“These renovations will have a positive effect on our brand portfolios as a whole,” said Robert Radomski, vice president, Global Brand Management, Extended-Stay Brands, IHG...

March 06, 2012 // Franchising.com // IHG Global Customer Care has been voted favourite provider of customer service in the leisure and tourism industry in the 2012 People’s Choice Stevie®Awards.
More than 250,000 public votes were cast from around the world as part of the sixth Annual Stevie Awards for Sales and Customer Service, the world’s top honours for contact centre, customer service and sales professionals.
The Awards demonstrate IHG’s dedication to customer care and our best in class delivery channels. Our Customer Care team forms part of IHG’s direct channels. In 2011, these channels delivered 69 per cent of our total room revenue, freeing up time for our hotels to focus on delivering a great experience to our guests...

New Brand Fills Unmet Demand for Healthier Travel
February 28, 2012 // Franchising.com // ATLANTA – IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) [LON: IHG; NYSE: IHG (ADRs)]today announces the launch in the U.S. of EVEN™ Hotels, its new hotel brand. This brand meets the large and growing customer demand for healthier travel, at a mainstream price. EVEN Hotels is another industry first for IHG, as it uniquely provides solutions for all aspects of travelers’ wellness needs in the areas of exercise, food, work and rest. No other brand can do this, under one roof, at this price point. Joining IHG’s existing seven hotel brands, EVEN Hotels will be a key pillar in IHG’s portfolio of preferred brands and in the long term, a key driver in market share growth in the U...

Site provides one-stop access to special hotel packages in the Caribbean.
February 23, 2012 // Franchising.com // MIAMI – Travelers looking for one-stop access to some of the Caribbean’s most desirable destinations can now log onto www.ihg.com/caribbeanvacations in English, or www.ihg.com/caribe in Spanish to book special packages for participating InterContinental, Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express properties in Aruba, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Trinidad.
Standard and all-inclusive packages, such as a romantic escape for two at the InterContinental V Centenario Santo Domingo, as well as discounted packages and unique family vacation offerings, including a family vacation package at the Holiday Inn Aruba Beach Resort & Casino, are all available...

Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, welcomes the creation of new jobs in Britain and attends the launch of the IHG Academy in Newham.
IHG Academy to develop talented people through hospitality training, providing the opportunity to work for a global hotel company with world renowned hotel brands.
February 22, 2012 // Franchising.com // IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group), one of the world’s leading hotel companies with brands such as Holiday Inn, today announced it is creating nearly 3,000¹ new jobs across its 275 UK hotels over the next three years, including over 1,100² new jobs this year. IHG also announced the launch of its newest hospitality training Academy in London.The announcement was welcomed by the Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, who attended the launch of the IHG Academy programme at the soon to open Holiday Inn London Stratford City...

Intercontinental Will Be Part Of Europe Embankment
February 17, 2012 // Franchising.com // As InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) today celebrated the InterContinental brand’s return to Russia with an opening ceremony at the InterContinental Moscow Tverskaya, the company also signed a second InterContinental hotel in Russia.
The 173-room InterContinental St Petersburg, in the prestigious Europe Embankment scheme, will mean the InterContinental brand has a presence in Russia’s two capital cities, after a decade away. The management contract with Petersburg City, a subsidiary of VTB Development, sees the new build hotel set to open in 2016.
The striking trapezoid-shaped hotel will have 159 rooms, 13 suites and a presidential suite...