Hyatt today announced that it had agreed to acquire Mr & Mrs Smith for £53M, and the deal is expected to close in the second quarter of 2023. Mr & Mrs Smith has a loyalty and marketing partnership with IHG (read more here).
Mr & Mrs Smith is a collection of 1,500 or so independent hotels that you can often find under other various marketing programs like Preferred Hotels. Mr & Mrs Smith is very similar to the Design Hotels collection that Marriott owns, or Small Luxury Hotels of the World (SLH), which currently has a loose partnership with Hyatt.
You can access Hyatt here and Mr & Mrs Smith here.
READ MORE: World of Hyatt Rate & Bonus Points Offers
Hyatt’s Announcement:
CHICAGO–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H) and Mr & Mrs Smith today announced an agreement for a Hyatt affiliate to acquire London-based Mr & Mrs Smith, a platform offering direct booking access to a carefully curated and growing collection of over 1,500 boutique and luxury properties in some of the world’s most desirable locations. Hyatt will acquire 100 percent of the asset-light Mr & Mrs Smith platform for an enterprise value of £53.0 million in cash consideration.
“We are excited by this planned acquisition and to explore bringing guests and World of Hyatt members even more global luxury offerings across hundreds of geographies – including over 20 countries where there are currently no Hyatt hotels such as Fiji, Croatia, Iceland and Anguilla,” said Mark Vondrasek, chief commercial officer, Hyatt. “Founders Tamara and James Lohan alongside their impressive team have built the ultimate global direct booking collection of truly unique stay experiences including rooms located in treehouses, within caves, and underwater suites. Importantly, we see a lot of synergy between our collective ethos of care, and we look forward to working together to bring our shared focus to new, memorable stay experiences for guests and World of Hyatt members – and introduce new guests to Hyatt hotels around the world.”
The planned acquisition of Mr & Mrs Smith is expected to build on Hyatt’s leadership position in luxury and further strengthen Hyatt’s distribution capabilities, especially across Europe – through forging relationships with additional hotel owners and more than 1 million loyal Mr & Mrs Smith members. This acquisition builds on a transformative growth period for Hyatt in the last 12 months, which included the recently completed acquisition of Dream Hotel Group’s lifestyle brand and management portfolio and the conversion of a portfolio of over 30 franchise agreements with Lindner Hotels & Resorts and me and all hotels, as well as substantial organic growth of Hyatt’s global portfolio. As a result of Hyatt’s expanded brand portfolio and ever-growing offering for every stay occasion, membership in the World of Hyatt loyalty program has more than tripled during the past five years.
The transaction is anticipated to close in the second quarter of this year, subject to customary closing conditions. At a later date following the closing, Hyatt plans to unveil direct booking access to properties within the Mr & Mrs Smith platform through Hyatt’s distribution channels, including Hyatt.com and the World of Hyatt app. The anticipated move will have the potential to unlock access to more than twice the number of global boutique and luxury properties within Hyatt direct booking channels, and Hyatt is exploring ways to enable World of Hyatt members to earn and redeem points across eligible hotels in the Mr & Mrs Smith collection. World of Hyatt members are some of the most valuable travelers in the industry who spend more and stay more, generating high-quality revenue for hotel owners.
“I am really excited that we have found such a dynamic and globally trusted brand as Hyatt to take Mr & Mrs Smith into our next chapter. We have long admired and respected Hyatt and are confident that there is no one better placed to build on what we have achieved and take our company to new heights,” shared Tamara Lohan, co-founder and chief executive officer, Mr & Mrs Smith. “Our vision has always been for Mr & Mrs Smith to be the world’s definitive travel club for hotel lovers. Thanks to Hyatt, that vision has become much closer to reality. With Hyatt’s support, Mr & Mrs Smith will be able to offer our community of members, hoteliers and partners so much more.”
Following the planned acquisition close, over 100 Mr & Mrs Smith colleagues are expected to join Hyatt’s Commercial Services team, including Tamara Lohan who will serve as Mr & Mrs Smith CEO, reporting to Mark Vondrasek, Hyatt’s chief commercial officer, and James Lohan who will serve as Mr & Mrs Smith chief creative officer.
In connection with the transaction, Credit Suisse served as financial advisor to Hyatt and Linklaters LLP acted as its legal advisor. Arrowpoint Advisory (part of Rothschild & Co) served as financial advisor to Mr & Mrs Smith and Fieldfisher LLP acted as its legal advisor.
Mr & Mrs Smith Club:
Mr & Mrs Smith has a club, and the Silversmith and Goldsmith come with a monthly fee. The free tier only offers 1% of the revenue as a credit.
IHG & Mr & Mrs Smith Partnership:
IHG One Rewards Elite Beneifts:
IHG One Rewards members will enjoy:
- 10 points per $1 USD (on eligible room rates)
- A BlackSmith welcome gift (subject to availability)
- Bonus points on every stay (Silver Elite = 20%;
Gold Elite = 40%; Platinum Elite = 60%;
Spire Elite = 100%)
InterContinental® Ambassadors, Royal Ambassadors and Kimpton® Inner Circle members will enjoy:
- 10 points per $1 USD (on eligible room rates)
- A GoldSmith welcome gift (subject to availability)
- Bonus points on every stay (Silver Elite = 20%; Gold Elite = 40%; Platinum Elite = 60%; Spire Elite = 100%)
- Complimentary room upgrade (up to one category higher, subject to availability upon arrival)
Previous Articles:
Mr & Mrs Smith Now Offers 1% To 3% Cash Back For Loyalty Program Members
Mr & Mrs Smith Hotels Bookable On IHG’s Website (Both For Cash & Using Points)
Now More Mr & Mrs Smith Hotels Available On IHG’s Website
Where Are Mr & Mrs Smith Hotels Bookable On IHG?
Select Mr & Mrs Smith Hotels Bookable On IHG’s Platform From October 6, 2020
Mr & Mrs Smith IHG Integration Delay
Mr & Mrs Smith Hotels Appearing On IHG Rate Search
IHG Rewards Club And Mr & Mrs Smith Loyalty Partnership Coming In Early 2020
Conclusion
The acquisition is expected to close in the second quarter. So it will likely be 2024 before we see any of these hotels on Hyatt’s platform and their World of Hyatt participation.
Mr & Mrs Smith currently has an agreement with IHG, and I expect this to end once the deal with Hyatt has closed.
You have to remember that Mr & Mrs Smith is not really a chain but a booking platform like Tablet Hotels, Small Luxury Hotels of the World, and the likes, and hotels are of variable quality.
The press release states that Hyatt is exploring ways for World of Hyatt members to earn and redeem points at Mr & Mrs Smith hotels. However, Mr & Mrs Smith Club likely stays, and not all hotels will become World of Hyatt participating. Elite benefits at these hotels are probably limited.
Also, it seems that the Mr & Mrs Smith booking platform will stay, and you can merely also book these hotels through Hyatt, precisely like what is the situation with select Design Hotels and Marriott. Only some of the Design Hotels are Marriott Bonvoy participating, and the benefits are very limited.
This must mean that Hyatt’s deal with the Small Luxury Hotels of the World will end. So why would they have hotels from two competing platforms?
