China’s HNA Buys Carlson Hotels

Photo: Levan Verdzeuli

A division of Chinese HNA Group announced late Wednesday it will buy Carlson Hotels Inc., parent company of the Radisson and Country Inns & Suites brands and one of the biggest hotel companies in the world.

HNA Tourism Group said the deal–for an undisclosed amount–will allow the company to “establish our presence in the U.S. market and expand our footprint in hospitality internationally.”

Bjorn Hanson, clinical professor with the New York University Preston Robert Tisch Center for Hospitality and Tourism, said part of Carlson Hotels’ value is its brand recognition and loyalty, notably with its Country Inns & Suites brand. 

Carlson operates more than 1,400 hotels in 115 countries. Its brands include the Quorvus Collection, Radisson, Radisson Blu, Radisson RED, Park Plaza, Park Inn by Radisson, and Country Inns & Suites By Carlson.

The transaction also includes Carlson’s majority stake in Brussels-based Rezidor Hotel Group, which manages hotels in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.  

“Carlson Hotels has been performing very well recently, and we are very proud of our hotels business and the people in it,” a company spokesperson told TMR, “the larger economics of the industry, though, are changing by the day. We have been watching these trends, and looking for ways to build on the momentum of our hotel business given where the industry is headed. The Carlson family believes this decision is the best way to position the business for sustainable long-term success and remain true to the family legacy.”

“This historic agreement provides tremendous opportunities for growth,” said David P. Berg, Carlson Hospitality Group chief executive officer, in a statement. “As part of HNA Tourism Group, Carlson Hotels will have an opportunity to advance our commitment to providing guests with hospitality worldwide.”

Berg is expected to stay on as CEO and Carlson’s headquarters will remain in Minnesota.

Diana Nelson, Carlson’s Board chair, said selling the company was a difficult decision for the Minnesota-based Carlson company. It carries the name of founder Curt Carlson, an immigrant to the United States who settled in the Midwest and launched a travel conglomerate that includes Carlson Wagonlit Travel and the TGI Fridays restaurant chain, which it sold off in 2014 “to focus on travel and hospitality.”

The larger economics of the industry, though, are changing by the day. We have been watching these trends, and looking for ways to build on the momentum of our hotel business given where the industry is headed.

Carlson’s travel division also has had a change in leadership. On April 20 it brought in Kurt Ekert, formerly the executive vice president & chief commercial officer of Travelport, as its CEO, replacing Douglas Anderson.

“Since my grandfather, Curt Carlson, founded our company in 1938, our family has run businesses that create opportunity for people and positive change in the world,” Nelson said. “We strongly believe that selling our hotel business to HNA Tourism Group, a company that fully recognizes its value and heritage, is the best way for us to position it for success and to be true to my grandfather’s legacy in the long term.”

The deal needs regulatory approval but is expected to close in the second half of this year.

HNA Group runs multiple hospitality and real estate businesses, including more than 450 hotels and more than 300 airplanes. It also has a pending deal to acquire U.S. technology distributor Ingram Micro Inc., for which it bid $6 billion in February.

The conglomerate is the latest in a string of Chinese investors buying up U.S. real estate. Anbang Insurance Group bought the Waldorf Astoria and Strategic Hotels and Resorts from the Blackstone Group in a deal valued at $6.5 billion and was set to buy Starwood Hotels & Resorts for $14 billion, but backed out unexpectedly.