Von Essen is to launch its first new-build city hotel in the spring as part of a £40 million investment in the collection this year.
The 70-room Hotel Verta, located next to London Heliport in Battersea, is the chain’s first hotel in London. It is the second hotel in its Metropolitan collection, which launched with the Forbury Hotel in Reading last year.
Von Essen founder Andrew Davis said the investment budget was to double for 2010. “A lot of hotels are going under because of lack of investment so we are taking the brave move to invest £40 million this year,” he said.
The country house hotel group aims to become the UK’s biggest hotel spa operator, with the addition of seven spas planned for this year. Plans are under way to add spas to Callow Hall in Derbyshire, Homewood Park in Bath, The Greenway in Cheltenham and Woolley Grange in Wiltshire.
Von Essen currently has one property outside the UK, in France, and plans to expand further into France and Italy in the long term.
Von Essen executive sales and marketing director Greg Ward said the group had had a good response from the trade to its Savour Sundays initiative, which offers Sunday evening stays for £50.
“Trade sales are key for us but agents are not always able to go on fam trips, so this way they can experience the hotels for themselves,” he said.
“We are talking about doing online training to help educate agents about our hotels.”
The company is also to offer customers self-drive hire of luxury cars, such as Ferraris and Lamborghinis.