34 years after the opening of the Novotel São Paulo Morumbi, its first hotel in Brazil, the French group Accor announces the premiere of Novotel Porto Alegre Aeroporto, its 150th establishment in that South American territory.
Located in front of the Salgado Filho International Airport in the city of Porto Alegre, this 166-room hotel is the first franchise in Brazil and the eleventh establishment that this group opens with its historic partner Atrio Hotéis and with the construction company Prisma Engenharia, who have invested about US$17 million for the opening of the hotel.
With 80 projects underway and three contracts for the opening of 25 ibis budget, the group's goal is to reach a network of 250 hotels in Brazil by 2015. According to Roland de Bonadona, accor's general manager for Latin America, "Brazil is living in an era that favors business in general and especially the hotel industry."
The proximity of major events such as the FIFA World Cup and the Olympics have stimulated investments and infrastructure in Brazil, "the expansion of the hotel management sector has been positively guided by the favorable political and economic context; for the development of the middle class and for the growing demand of the big centers," explains Bonadona.
Accor recorded a turnover of close to US$8 million in 2011, representing an improvement of 5.2%. In 2011 it opened 38,700 rooms as part of its expansion strategy, with 24 franchised hotels.
