Rezidor Hotel Group

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The Rezidor Hotel Group
Type	Public company
Founded	1960
Headquarters	Brussels, Belgium
Key people	Kurt Ritter (CEO)
Industry	Hotel
Products	Temporary residence
Revenue	▲ 29,000,000 euros (dated 30 September 2007)
Operating income	▲ 572,000,000 euros (dated 30 September 2007)
Net income	▲ 29,000,000 euros (dated 30 September 2007)
Employees	25,000
Website	[1]

The Rezidor Hotel Group, before known as Rezidor SAS is one of the fastest growing hotel companies in the world^{[citation needed]}. Rezidor's Head Office is located in Brussels, Belgium. Since November 2006, the company is listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange. Piror to that the company was owned by the SAS Group (75%) and Carlson Hotels Worldwide (25%).

The group features a portfolio of over 320 hotels in operation and under development with more than 67,000 rooms in 50 countries.

Rezidor operates the brands Radisson SAS Hotels & Resorts, Regent Hotels & Resorts, Park Inn and Country Inns & Suites in Europe, Middle East and Africa, along with the goldpoints plusSM loyalty programme for frequent hotel guests. Rezidor has signed a worldwide license agreement with the Italian fashion house Missoni, in order to develop and operate a lifestyle hotel brand of the same name: Hotel Missoni.

[edit] History

The first SAS hotel was opened in Copenhagen in 1960 and became the first designer hotel of the world. This is where some of the masterpieces of famed designer Arne Jacobsen came to life. The hotel operations of the Scandinavian Airlines was initially part of SAS catering, which was later renamed SAS Catering and Hotels. Re-organisation in 1985 saw the creation of SAS International Hotels (SIH), a fully owned subsidiary of the SAS Group. Expansion of the hotel network was then a key objective, and in 1989, SAS bought 40 percent of Intercontinental Hotels and held its interest until selling in 1992.

In 1994, Brussels-based SIH concluded a marketing agreement with Radisson Hotels Worldwide, in which no equity exchange took place. The agreement actually placed SAS International Hotels in a new and strong position within the marketing, sales and distribution network of the US-based Carlson Companies, the parent company of Radisson. The American company, a major player in international travel and tourism, was founded by Curtis Carlson, a first generation Swedish-American. As a result of this arrangement, SIH became the sole franchisor for the Radisson brand in Europe, Middle East and Africa.

On 1 October 2001, SAS International Hotels (SIH) was renamed Rezidor SAS Hospitality. The renaming of the parent company created the basis for further expansion with a variety of brands. The name Rezidor SAS is a distinctive word coinage suggesting the English "residence" and "door" and the French "or" (gold). The SAS addition rapidly provided the basis for global location in the travel industry. The vision of Rezidor SAS Hospitality is to become a leading company in the hospitality sector and offer a choice of top-quality hotel brands in a variety of market segments.

Another major step in this direction was taken in September 2002, when Kurt Ritter, President & CEO of Rezidor SAS Hospitality, signed a further strategic agreement with Carlson Hotels Worldwide. As a result, Rezidor SAS also became a strong partner for the Park Inn, Country Inn and Regent brands in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. In June 2005, Rezidor SAS Hospitality completed the strategic agreement with US-based Carlson Hotels Worldwide, which resulted in an enhancement of their long-time franchise partnership into a shareholder agreement. Carlson Hotels acquired a 25 percent shareholding in Rezidor SAS from SAS Group in return for renegotiated commercial terms of the parties’ current Master Franchise Agreement.

On November 28, 2006 Rezidor went public and changed its name into The Rezidor Hotel Group. The company is listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange. Currently, Carlson Companies are the biggest share holder (41.7%).