History
The company's origins go back to 1972 when British Caledonian Airways acquired the Copthorne Hotel at Copthorne, West Sussex, near Gatwick. The Copthorne Hotels brand was launched in 1985 and a number of new hotels opened in the UK, France and Germany. In 1989 Singapore based CDL Hotels International acquired 6 hotels in Asia and in 1993 CDL made its first move outside Asia – purchasing the 548-room Gloucester Hotel in London. In the same year CDL took control of a 13-hotel chain in New Zealand. In 1994 CDL made its entry into the US with the purchase of the Millenium Hilton in New York and acquired the Millennium Broadway in New York’s Times Square district in December. In 1995 Copthorne Hotels was acquired by CDL Hotels and the enlarged concern became Millennium and Copthorne Hotels. The company was first listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1996. In 1999 it acquired Regal Hotels of the US.
In 2001 M&C expanded into the Middle East with several management contracts secured in the United Arab Emirates and the first of six new hotels in China opened in 2008.
Read more about this topic: Millennium & Copthorne Hotels
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