InterContinental Hotels Group's Americas Region 2nd Quarter Results Show it Continues to Execute Against its Franchise and Management Growth Strategies

InterContinental Hotels Group's Americas Region 2nd Quarter Results Show it Continues to Execute Against its Franchise and Management Growth Strategies

IHG's Americas region sets new company record for franchise growth and number of Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts licensed in a quarter

ATLANTA, Sept. 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- As reported in the IHG Plc. 2nd Quarter stock exchange announcement issued on September 8th, the Americas region of InterContinental Hotels Group, (IHG) (NYSE:IHG) (ADRs), the world's largest and most global hotel company, continues to show great momentum as it executes against its franchise and management growth strategies.

"The 2nd Quarter was a phenomenal period, the Americas franchise development team set a new company record for franchise growth with the licensing of 106 hotels (12,382 rooms)," said Kirk Kinsell, SVP and chief development officer, the Americas, IHG. "With continued focus on IHG's upscale brands, the Americas franchise development team built on the continued growth momentum of the Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts brand by establishing its fastest-growing quarter with the licensing of seven hotels."

With 619 hotels (62,891 rooms) in the pipeline, IHG's Americas region continues to grow its system through franchising and management contracts. An already established region with 2,807 hotels (385,864 rooms) in 25 countries, IHG's growth in the Americas remains steady with the opening of 56 hotels, which is a year-over-year increase of 62.8% room growth for the quarter.

"IHG is the premiere lodging company to invest with," said Kinsell. "We will continue to be the company that refines its products to meet franchisee and customer needs, looks at innovative ways to increase revenue and pioneers industry-shaping initiatives like the Lowest Internet Rate Guarantee, certification of third party online travel companies and offering nine full- functionality Web sites where guests can complete the booking process in their native language: Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Hebrew, Italian, Japanese and Spanish."

IHG's Hotel Management Group (HMG) is the largest manager of its branded hotels with 231 hotels in the Americas HMG (owned and/or managed) portfolio, and 569 globally in the HMG portfolio (owned and/or managed). IHG will continue to focus on growing its already large management portfolio by capitalizing on the strength of its brands and proven operational skills. IHG's continued development momentum in the Americas region is evidenced across all seven hotel brands (June 2005):

- InterContinental Hotels & Resorts, the IHG brand with international
understanding, has four hotels in the Americas pipeline to complement
its existing 44 upper-upscale segment hotels in the region. And, an
additional 17 hotels are in the global pipeline to complement its total
portfolio of 136 hotels worldwide.
InterContinental Hotels & Resorts was recently named the "Best Business
Hotel Brand" in Europe in a 2005 Readers' Poll conducted by Business
Traveller magazine.
- With IHG's increased emphasis on development of its upscale brands,
Crowne Plaza is expanding its North American portfolio with 23 hotels
in the pipeline to complement its existing 123 hotels. Crowne Plaza
continues to differentiate its brand offering with THE PLACE TO MEET
and the Crowne Plaza Sleep Advantage(TM) program.
- Holiday Inn, 'America's Favorite Hotel', continues its growth momentum
with 123 properties in the Americas pipeline to complement its 1,052
existing middle market hotels. With the success of the prototype and
proven performance of the Holiday Inn brand, 85% of the new deals
signed in 2nd Quarter of 2005 are new builds utilizing the prototype
plans.
Holiday Inn was recently named the "Best Mid-Market Hotel Brand in the
World", as well as the "Best Mid-Market Hotel Brand in Asia-Pacific" in
a 2005 Readers' Poll conducted by Business Traveller magazine.
- Holiday Inn Express, the fastest-growing hotel brand in the limited-
service hotel category, has 349 properties in the Americas development
pipeline. It continues to open an average of two hotels per week, and
has grown to more than 1,391 hotels since its introduction in the early
1990s.
- Hotel Indigo, the industry's first lifestyle brand, delivers a
refreshing, inclusive hotel experience in response to prevailing
consumer trends. With Hotel Indigo's phenomenal reception, it is primed
for continued expansion across the U.S. The first Hotel Indigo opened
in Atlanta in October 2004 and a second location recently opened in
Chicago's historic Gold Coast neighborhood in May 2005. There are two
properties in the pipeline scheduled to open by end of year 2005, one
that will open in the Chicago-Palatine and another in Sarasota, Fla.
- Staybridge Suites reached 75 hotels faster than any other competitor in
the upscale extended-stay segment with 83 now open and an additional 63
in the Americas pipeline.
- Acquired by IHG at the end of 2004, Candlewood Suites has more hotels
in the pipeline than any other brand in the midscale extended-stay
segment. It has 111 properties with another 55 properties in the
Americas pipeline. The Candlewood Suites brand is a great example of
how IHG's Enterprise Values can drive performance of a brand. Its
RevPAR increased for the fifteenth consecutive month in July 2005,
growing at a double digit rate in six of the past seven months and up
15.7% year-to-date.

Helping further the success and momentum of its brands, IHG's integrated approach helps unify marketing initiatives so that hotels benefit from each others efforts and learn from each other -- while keeping the brands distinct and differentiated to their customer segments. This is done by offering current and prospective franchisees a multi-brand marketing platform comprised of our Enterprise Values -- technology, global reservations centers, global sales, performance support, and Priority Club(R) Rewards; as well as, fostering a collaborative, 'Together We're Stronger' relationship with its hotel owners.

Source: InterContinental Hotels Group

CONTACT: Charlotte Wood, +1-770-604-2429, or
charlotte.wood@ichotelsgroup.com, or Carolyn Hergert, +1-770-604-8248, or
carolyn.hergert@ichotelsgroup.com , both of InterContinental Hotels Group

Web site: http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/
http://www.6c.com/
http://www.priorityclub.com/
http://www.ihgplc.com/media

NOTE TO EDITORS: InterContinental Hotels Group PLC of the United Kingdom (NYSE: IHG; London) (ADRs) is the world's largest hotel group by number of rooms. InterContinental Hotels Group owns, manages, leases or franchises, through various subsidiaries, more than 3,500 hotels and over 537,000 guest rooms in nearly 100 countries and territories around the world. The Group owns a portfolio of well recognized and respected hotel brands including InterContinental(R) Hotels & Resorts, Crowne Plaza(R) Hotels & Resorts, Holiday Inn(R) Hotels and Resorts, Holiday Inn Express(R), Staybridge Suites(R), Candlewood Suites(R) and Hotel Indigo(TM), and also manages the world's largest hotel loyalty program, Priority Club(R) Rewards, with over 26 million members worldwide. In addition to this, InterContinental Hotels Group has a 47.5% interest in Britvic, one of the two leading manufacturers of soft drinks, by value and volume, in Great Britain. InterContinental Hotels Group offers information and online reservations for all its hotel brands at www.ichotelsgroup.com and information for the Priority Club Rewards program at www.priorityclub.com. For the latest news from InterContinental Hotels Group, visit our online Press Office at www.ihgplc.com/media.

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Profile: travel