Leading Leeds Hotel Changes Name to Radisson Blu

Radisson SAS Hotel, Leeds, has this week changed its name to Radisson Blu Hotel, Leeds. This renaming is part of a total brand change of name, which includes seeing all UK hotels currently flying the Radisson SAS flag becoming Radisson Blu.

The change of name follows the announcement earlier this year that Radisson SAS Hotels & Resorts was being rebranded as Radisson Blu Hotels & Resorts. The small, but significant name change marks the latest step forward in the Radisson SAS success story and reflects the natural end of Radisson’s links with the SAS Group following Rezidor’s IPO back in November 2006.

The Leeds hotel joins the other UK Radisson SAS hotels in becoming Radisson Blu, in addition to three properties that joined the portfolio earlier this year, opening as Radisson Blu hotels in Bristol, Brighton and Cardiff.

Radisson SAS was created in 1994 when SAS International Hotels (SIH) joined forces with the Radisson brand for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The resultant new, highly individual hotel brand grew rapidly and won a world class reputation for innovation, design and service concepts: many more recent Radisson SAS hotels, including the Leeds hotel, are “new breeds” – contemporary flagship properties with iconic architecture and bold design solutions – that have become increasingly synonymous with the brand.

Jonathan Huglin, General Manager, Radisson Blu Hotel, Leed said: “We are extremely proud to hoist the Radisson Blu flag and our new Radisson Blu signage outside the hotel. We will be celebrating our new name over the coming weeks with subtle displays of the name change within the hotel’s offers and promotions. At the end of the year we will officially celebrate the name change with an event for our guests and suppliers. For 2010, we look forward to marking the occasion further by introducing more significant themed promotions, special offers and events.”

Earlier this year Gordon McKinnon, Rezidor’s Executive Vice President of Brands, revealed that the name Blu emerged as the most natural choice from Rezidor’s intensively researched quest to find the right new visual differentiator to replace the familiar SAS ‘blue box’.

“The name Blu started life as the project’s working title. But it soon became apparent that it was actually the most natural of choices. It’s simple, it’s short, it’s relevant and we’ve applied it in a way that adds a certain modernity to the identity without taking it too far,” he said. “Most importantly it also promotes our specific brand heritage by preserving the graphic ‘blue box’ which has become the recognised symbol of the distinctive characteristics of the Radisson brand in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Radisson Blu preserves the continuity of our unique brand, while taking it that one essential step forward to more accurately represent its true position and future ambitions.”

For further information please contact:

Tel: +44 20 7269 7219 / 7171 / 7112 or Tel: +44 20 8283 2025 Or Email: natasha.rhymes@rezidor.com