Bypillow, the Spanish hotel company, has opened its first Italian property, a 3-star in Florence.
“We are thinking of adding new three to five hotels every year”
Albert Duran and Marc Molas
The young hotel company founded by Albert Duran and Marc Molas recently acquired the former Hotel Goldoni, located in the piazza of the same name, a hotel with more than a century of history. Once renovated, the new Bypillow Goldoni will have 20 rooms and be a 3-star boutique hotel with the official opening planned for the second half of 2024.
This is only the first step in an ambitious expansion plan for Italy. “We are thinking of adding new three to five hotels every year, much as we did in Spain,” says Molas. We are aiming for the so-called Big 4 cities, but we also do not disdain secondary destinations. As long as they are close to an airport and enjoy international demand.”
“We plan to open a 40-45 room property in Rome”
The objectives are therefore properties with at least twenty rooms, located in the centre of cities such as Rome, Florence, Milan, Venice (the Big 4), but also Bologna and Naples. Bypillow has already set up an Italian office and the development team is currently in negotiations for further acquisitions. "We are in the exclusive due diligence stage for a 40-45 room property in Rome," adds Molas.
Expanding in many European countries
The company currently boasts a portfolio of 18 boutique hotels in Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Cadiz, Bilbao, Girona, Malaga and Vilanova i la Geltrú. A further six are in the pipeline with contracts already signed and openings scheduled by 2025 (the majority of the properties are managed with long-term leases. Ed.), and group also aims to expand in Portugal, Malta and Greece.
