Saco’s design-focused brand Locke Hotels has announced three new properties set to open by 2022.
The sites in Lisbon, Berlin and east London are in addition to six openings previously announced by the brand.
Locke will spend £100m on the Lisbon property, an 18,000 sqm former convent dating to the 1600s that it will call Locke de Convento de Santa Joanna. Opening is scheduled for 2022.
The Berlin property is set open in 2021 and is in the East Side Gallery development by the river Spree.
Another Locke will open in Dalston in north east London in April 2021. All will feature the brand’s co-working space Locke Labs.
Setting out European expansion plans, the brand has previously announced two Dublin openings planned for 2020, in Ormond Quay and North Docks; two properties in London’s Tower Bridge and Broken Wharf areas along the Thames; an extension to its Aldgate property; and a new opening in Cambridge.
Serviced apartment provider Saco has more than 250 properties across 56 countries. It founded Locke in 2016 with the aim of introducing a more upscale, “boutique” vibe. Only three Locke properties have opened since then, in London Aldgate, Edinburgh and Manchester.
Locke also announced a reshuffle of its leadership team, hiring two senior IHG staff, Stephen McCall and Nick Barton, as Chief Executive Officer and Chief Commercial Officer.
Speaking at the International Hotel Investment Forum in Berlin, McCall said: “The business is entering an exciting phase of growth with ambitious European expansion plans.
“The burgeoning tech and creative scenes in these cities, coupled with the high demand for co-working spaces match our vision to be an inspired second home for communities in every European gateway city. Today marks a new chapter in the Locke story as we continue to redefine the category and drive growth across the UK and Europe.”
In 2016, Savills called aparthotels the “rising stars of the hospitality industry”, and in 2018 reported continued strong growth and investor confidence. It also noted the growth of smaller lifestyle brands under extended stay providers, such as Locke, and Staycity’s Wilde.