Europe’s Meininger Hotels Mulls Going Public: Report

Cox & Kings-owned Meininger, a hybrid hostel/hotel chain, is planning to go public, according to a report in the Times of London.

If successful, the mooted listing is understood to value the business at around $437 million (€400 million). The Times reports that investment bank Zeus Capital is targeting a floatation on AIM, a sub-market of the London Stock Exchange, in the next four to six weeks.

Mumbai-headquartered Cox and Kings is currently subject to insolvency proceedings following months of financial struggles. A number of its overseas businesses have closed or found new owners. Reports in India indicate that accountancy firm PwC is working on a forensic audit.

Join Us at Skift Forum Europe in Madrid on March 24–25

Meininger Hotels made a pretax profit of $17 million (£13.1 million) for the year ended March 31, 2019, a decline of 25 percent on the prior year. Revenue rose 26 percent to $126.7 million (£98.1 million). The accounts for Meininger Hotels Limited, which were signed off in December 2019 and filed at the United Kingdom’s Companies House registry in January 2020, acknowledge the financial problems at its major shareholder.

“Management believe that the group will remain unaffected by the ongoing concerns in Cox & Kings due to the group being ringfenced at Holidaybreak Limited level, the immediate parent company of Meininger Hotels Limited,” the accounts said.

The Times reported that the public offering is though Holidaybreak. Cox & Kings owns 51 percent of Meininger through Holidaybreak Limited. An entity known as Borita Global Limited is the other shareholder.

Last year Bloomberg reported that Cox & Kings was exploring a sale of Meininger.

Founded in 1999, Meininger operates a hostel model that is a hybrid low-cost hotel. It’s due to open its first hostel in the United States, in Washington, D.C., later this year.

Skift contacted Meininger and Zeus Capital but is yet to hear back.

Skift Editor’s Note: This article was updated to clarify details on the potential public listing.

Register now for Skift Forum Europe in Madrid on March 24–25