Accor has revealed the particulars of its rebranding project, which will focus on consolidating and strengthening its economy brands as well as see a change in the name of its loyalty programme.
The ibis brand will turn into a “mega brand” divided into three categories to fit different market segments within the economy sector intself. “The vertical segmentation of economy to upscale brands is a thing of the past. Now all brands must be able to project a self-enhancing image to their customers and offer modern, contemporary, stylish services,” stated the press release.
The new structure will compartmentalise the budget sector into three ibis sub-brands: the ibis, the ibis styles and the ibis budget. The group’s all seasons brand will fall under the new ibis styles while Etap hotels will become the ibis budget and ibis will remain ibis. “Ibis is now the keystone of our economy portfolio,” said Denis Hennequin, Accor chairman and chief executive.
The implementation of this new structure will be complete by 2013, enabling Accor to “increase the clarity, consistency and strength of the three economy brands,” said the release.
The rebranding also involves upping the service quality in order to “offer the highest level of comfort and well being in the economy hotel segment.” This includes improving bedding comfort, reconfiguring common areas, such as food and beverage outlets, as well as offering new technologies to keep up with new trends and customer expectations. However, which new technologies have not yet been revealed.
Finally, Accor will rename its loyalty programme from A|Club to Le Club Accorhotels although no changes are being made to the mechanics of the programme itself.
For more information, visit www.accorhotels.com
Alisha Haridasani
