Time Out secures management contract to run Time Out Market in Prague: Time Out Group, the global media and entertainment business, has entered into a management agreement with CRESTYL Group to open a new Time Out Market in Prague, the capital city of the Czech Republic. The company stated: “This is Time Out Market’s second management agreement, enabling further global roll-out of the successful food and cultural market. CRESTYL Group – one of the leading developers in the Czech Republic – will invest in the development and operation of the entire Time Out Market Prague site and will obtain all necessary planning and licencing consents. As part of this long-term management agreement, Time Out Group will receive a guaranteed management fee and have primary responsibility for branding, curation and day-to-day operation of the site. The first Time Out Market opened in Lisbon in 2014, bringing the best of the city together under one roof: its best restaurants, bars and cultural experiences, based on editorial curation. Today, it is Portugal’s most popular attraction with a record 3.6 million visitors in 2017. The group is now bringing this success story to other cities around the world with five Time Out Markets coming to North America next year: Miami, New York, Boston, Chicago and Montréal, the group’s first management agreement. With its opening expected at the end of 2021, Time Out Market Prague will be located at the heart of the historic city centre in the Savarin – a project by CRESTYL Group to redevelop the prime downtown area and busy neighbourhood around the famous Wenceslas Square. This is the city’s main retail area and cultural centre, attracting over 150,000 footfall every day. Upon opening, Savarin is set to become Prague’s prime shopping experience, culinary destination and commercial hot spot with its extensive office space. Across 25,000 sq ft, Time Out Market Prague will accommodate around 465 seats indoors and 120 outdoors. There will be 14 food offerings, two bars, a speakeasy lounge, a cultural space and a retail shop – all representing the best food, drinks and culture the city has to offer.” Julio Bruno, chief executive of Time Out Group, stated: “We are pleased to have partnered with CRESTYL Group, entering into our second management agreement for Time Out Market. This allows us to further expand our incredibly successful format around the world. It is another great milestone in the transformation of Time Out into a global media and entertainment brand with a digital and physical presence. Within just a few years, Time Out Market has become a recognised and visionary global brand in the hospitality sector – we are very proud to bring Time Out Market to the beautiful city of Prague.” Didier Souillat, chief executive of Time Out Market, added: “Its rich history and culture make Prague a very popular destination, attracting millions of tourists every year. Recently, the city’s culinary scene has developed an impressive diversity, with young chefs opening innovative eateries and established restaurants offering superb dining experiences. Time Out Market Prague will be a fantastic addition and home to many of the city’s outstanding talents. We couldn’t have found a better place with a location right at the heart of the city, already popular with locals and visitors alike. Savarin – our home – is an iconic landmark and I am sure people will come to visit again and again to enjoy the city’s best food, drinks and cultural experiences.”

Easyhotel reports “transformational year”: Easyhotel, the owner, developer and operator of super budget branded hotels, has reported sales rose 25.8% to £37.3m for the financial year ended 30 September 2018. Adjusted Ebitda climbed 28.6% to £2.96m. The company stated: “Owned hotels Revpar was up 11.4% with the group’s owned hotels continuing to deliver market outperformance for the third consecutive year. Like-for-like revenue for franchised hotels increased by 12.1%. Nine new hotels opened during the year, totalling 907 rooms, which are trading well; supporting improvement in combined occupancy of 82.4% (2017: 79.8%) and ADR of £51.3 (2017: £47.8). First owned hotel in Continental Europe opened in September – our flagship Easyhotel Barcelona (204 rooms). A further franchised hotel in Lisbon has opened since the year-end bringing the total portfolio to 34 hotels and 3,169 rooms across 28 cities. Six new owned hotel sites in Milton Keynes, Cardiff, Chester, Cambridge, Dublin and Blackpool secured during the year. 686 owned rooms and 474 franchised rooms (were) added to the development pipeline. (We have) Increased resource to accelerate growth in Europe where we see significant opportunity, with initial focus on France, Spain and Germany. A further site in Bristol has been acquired since the year-end, bringing the total development pipeline to 1,100 owned rooms and 1,874 franchised rooms.” Guy Parsons, chief executive of Easyhotel said: “This has been a transformational year for the group. We have increased our portfolio of rooms by 42%, in 27 cities across the UK, Continental Europe and the Middle East, making excellent progress towards our target of being the market leader in “super budget” hotels. Despite the wider macro-economic uncertainty that continues to impact consumer confidence, particularly in the UK, we have grown market share for the third consecutive year. The continued outperformance of our hotels reflects the growing strength of the Easyhotel brand. Our simple, stylish but highly affordable offer resonates exceptionally well with today’s cost-conscious traveller, giving us confidence to continue developing owned hotels. The successful placing completed in March 2018 has allowed us to accelerate our growth plans further, in line with our strict investment criteria. We see a number of exciting opportunities for the brand, not only in the UK but increasingly in Europe where we have recently opened our first owned European hotel in Barcelona. We have added a further 1,160 rooms to our development pipeline over the course of the year and invested behind our team to expand our presence in Europe, where we believe there is significant opportunity for the brand, particularly in Spain, France and Germany. With funds available for future hotel development, we believe Easyhotel is well positioned for long- term growth, and will continue to outperform its competitors. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the entire team for their hard work and commitment over what has been an incredibly busy year and look forward to building on this progress in 2019.”