Brisbane’s ‘Hotel X’ in the inner-city suburb of Fortitude Valley has become one of two members of a new luxury conversion brand launched today by IHG Hotels and Resorts, introduced as the Vignette Collection.
The newest addition to the IHG Luxury stable was foreshadowed in the company’s half-year results released earlier this month and is aimed at providing an internationally recognised luxury conversion brand for independent hoteliers to retain their own identity while connecting to IHG’s sales, marketing and distribution programs along with the IHG Rewards loyalty program.
Alongside Hotel X, the new Vignette Collection has welcomed the Pattaya Aquatique Hotel in the Thailand beachside holiday town of Pattaya. The property was developed and operates in collaboration with Thai lifestyle real estate group, Asset World Corporation Public Company Limited.
Vignette Collection is the sixth new brand to join the IHG stable in the past four years, building on the company’s overall brand portfolio, which now numbers 17.
The 146-room Hotel X opened earlier this year and is a development from Pointcorp. The property features a ground floor restaurant and bar, a rooftop pool with adjacent restaurant, spacious fitness centre and event space with concierge valet.
Room furnishings include Justin Nicholas artworks, with Dyson and GHD appliances in upper-tier room categories, along with Karl Lagerfeld bathroom products.
IHG Hotels and Resorts CEO, Keith Barr, said the Vignette Collection is a compelling way to welcome independent luxury hotels into the IHG family.
“As our first hotels in Australia and Thailand both showcase, each property is as unique as the next, and all will be endorsed by IHG’s trusted reputation for quality,” Barr said.
“We’ve been strategic with the enhancements we’ve made to our Luxury and Lifestyle portfolio in recent years, which at more than 400 hotels and 100,000 rooms is the second largest in the industry.”
IHG Hotels and Resorts SVP Managing Director, Japan, Australasia and Pacific, Leanne Harwood, said she was delighted Queensland would be the setting for another IHG brand to make its debut, building on the global launch of the voco Hotels brand on the Gold Coast in 2018.
“Hotel X is such a shining example of this great new brand, and I’d like to congratulate Chris Vitale and the Pointcorp team for taking this exciting step with us,” Harwood said.
“We are seeing huge growth in the bespoke lifestyle sector and an increased interest in conversion opportunities in Australasia so, as we look ahead, we are excited by the potential of the Vignette Collection in this market.”
Vignette Collection will aim to attract independent hotel owners eager to plug their properties into IHG’s procurement and operational scale to improve distribution of their luxury guest experience. Over the next decade, IHG says it expects to attract more than 100 properties globally.