Small but perfectly formed

In the last couple of days there have been two breaking stories to get the ball rolling for the new year. SACO has bought a site in central Dublin – which incidentally is a red hot hospitality transaction market right now – for its Locke brand.

SACO will redevelop the former nightclub site in to a 100+ room aparthotel with co-working space and an F&B outlet. Managing director Eric Jafari says the property will be “the type of area where people will come and spend five or six hours” – the people he is talking about are not just guests but the young Apple Mac-carrying crowd who have become such a feature of London hotel lobbies such as The Hoxton and The Ace. It’s a very different model from SACO’s more conventional properties, and it will be fascinating to see the brand progress.

BridgeStreet will be targeting a similar demographic as a result of its partnership with Charlie Fulford, the man behind the new Stow-Away aparthotel concept. Fulford has a track record when it comes to innovative building and design concepts – he is the founder of Artworks, a three-storey retail and creative business space in London’s Elephant & Castle, made from recycled shipping containers.

Stow-Away aparthotels will feature micro-studios, with developments made using prefabricated modular construction. They will also feature F&B offerings and communal spaces.

It’s an exciting start to the year, and great to see real innovation being embraced by some of the biggest names in the industry.