Originally published on businesstraveller.com 01/11/2012   RSS

The Times is reporting that plans to rollout Shoreditch’s Hoxton Hotel concept as a chain of properties have taken a step forward, with the hotel’s private equity owners understood to have agreed terms to acquire a former BT office block in Holborn.

According to the report there are plans to convert the building into a 200-room hotel using the Hoxton name, with the original hotel possibly changing its name to Hoxton East and the new property being called Hoxton West.

Originally called the Hoxton Urban Lodge, the trendy hotel in London’s Shoreditch area opened in 2006 (see online news August 31, 2006), and was billed as the Square Mile's first "luxury budget" hotel.

The concept for the hotel was created by Sinclair Beecham, co-founder of the Pret a Manger chain, and was a forerunner for services including free wifi and landline phone calls, and empty fridges in place of expensive minibars. To read Business Traveller’s review of the hotel (published in 2007), click here.

The Hoxton Hotel also runs regular £1 room offers, which have been trailed on this site and discussed on our forum.

For more information visit hoxtonhotels.com.

Report by Mark Caswell