Virgin Hotels

Virgin Hotels is a brand of hotels created by Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group, launched in 2010.[1]

Virgin Hotels
FoundedNew York City, USA (2010 (2010))
Headquarters
Miami
,
United States
Number of locations
4 (10 total planned)
Area served
Chicago, Illinois; San Francisco, California
Key people
Raul Leal - CEO
OwnerVirgin Group
Websitevirginhotels.com

History

In October 2011 Virgin Hotels bought the 27-story Old Dearborn Bank Building in the Loop area of Chicago for $14.8 million from Urban Street Group LLC.[2] On January 15, 2015 the first Virgin Hotel opened.[3] In February 2019, Virgin Hotels opened at its second location in San Francisco, CA on 4th street, near to Yerba Buena Gardens. One element of Virgin Hotels' business plan was to acquire distressed properties in North America cheaply during the property downturn, but banks decided to hold distressed real-estate assets until the market for them rebounded rather than sell them so the company fell well behind its planned timetable.[4]

Development

Further hotels are being planned in New York City and Nashville.[5] The 300 room New York site will be located on the corner of 29th Street and Broadway.[6] The 240 room Nashville property is to be located at One Music Row.[5] The San Francisco hotel opened on 4th street in February 2019. The Dallas hotel which was the latest to open in December 2019 and is located in the Design District, near Downtown Dallas

The entrance at Virgin Hotels Chicago, the first Virgin Hotels hotel

The British-based Virgin Hotels Group Limited owns the Virgin Limited Edition portfolio of properties that include luxury resorts such as Necker Island.[7]

The group aims to have hotels in 20 locations by 2025.[3] When asked about the operation, Virgin's Richard Branson said "There won’t be hidden charges, and you won’t get charged $10 for a chocolate bar you know you can buy at a store for $2."[8] Branson has said the brand is geared toward the female business traveler.[9]

In January 2018, rumours arose regarding Virgin's early negotiations toward purchasing the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.[10] As of March 2018, Hard Rock Hotel and Casino is expected to be rebranded as Virgin Hotels Las Vegas by the end of 2019.[11] As of May 2020, the Las Vegas hotel has still not opened. Currently the website displays a Fall 2020 opening date.[12]

Current locations

United States
  • Virgin Hotels Chicago (Chicago, Illinois)[3]
  • Virgin Hotels Dallas (Dallas, Texas)
  • Virgin Hotels Nashville (Nashville, Tennessee)
  • Virgin Hotels San Francisco (San Francisco, California)

Future Locations

United States

Coming in 2020

Coming in 2021
  • Virgin Hotels New Orleans (New Orleans, Louisiana)
  • Virgin Hotels Silicon Valley (Silicon Valley, California)

Coming in 2023
  • Virgin Hotels Miami (Miami, Florida)

Coming in 2024
  • Virgin Hotels Palm Springs (Palm Springs, California)

Scotland

Coming in 2021
  • Virgin Hotels Edinburgh (Edinburgh, Scotland)[13]
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References
  1. "Virgin Hotels in deal with John Buck Co. to enter Chicago market". Chicago Real Estate Daily. 2011-10-24. Retrieved 2013-05-12.
  2. "In brief: Franklin Center - 22 W. Washington - Virgin Hotels". Chicago Real Estate Daily. 2011-11-28. Retrieved 2013-05-12.
  3. Tabbara, Mona (16 January 2015). "Virgin Hotels' first property opens in Chicago". TTG Digital. Archived from the original on 17 January 2015.
  4. Karmin, Craig (2014-04-20). "Richard Branson's Virgin Hotels Are Slow to Launch: Entrepreneur Plans a Third U.S. Hotel, but First Is Unfinished". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2015-01-21.
  5. "Virgin Hotels - coming to Nashville". Virgin Group. 20 April 2014. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
  6. "Virgin Hotel to open in New York in 2016". USA Today. 4 June 2013. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
  7. "About Us". Virgin Limited Edition. Retrieved 2013-05-12.
  8. Earle-Levine, Julie (2015-01-13). "Richard Branson Enters the City Hotel Scene". The New York Times. Retrieved 2015-01-20.
  9. Karmin, Craig (2015-01-13). "Richard Branson Pitches Virgin Hotels as Female-Friendly: First Property to Open in Chicago; Safety Features, Well-Lit Vanities Court Women". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2015-01-20.
  10. "Sources: Virgin Hotels could possibly buy Hard Rock in Las Vegas", by Nikki Bowers, Las Vegas Now
  11. "Sir Richard Branson on Virgin's Takeover of Hard Rock Vegas Hotel: It'll Be 'Tasteful, Fun'", by Andrea Bennett, Conde Nast Traveler.
  12. "Virgin Hotels Las Vegas website". Retrieved 2020-05-17.
  13. "Richard Branson chooses Edinburgh for first UK Virgin hotel". www.scotsman.com. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
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