The Pig Hotels group, comprising eight acclaimed rural boutique hotels, has been acquired by Denver-based private equity firm KSL Capital Partners, in partnership with co-founder Robin Hutson.
The company announced that Hutson will continue as chairman and retain a stake in the business, working in partnership with an affiliate of KSL, previous backers of Malmaison, and Hotel du Vin. Former group operations director, Tom Ross, will be the managing director.
It has said it will use the backing of KSL to add additional Pig hotels to the group through the “acquisition and development of complementary properties”.
The Pig group was founded in 2011 with the first hotel in Brockenhurst, Hampshire and was the original “restaurant with rooms”. The company’s eight hotels are all located in southern England in rural or beachside locations and include The Pig at Harlyn Bay, Cornwall and The Pig near Bath in the Mendip Hills. Each hotel is based around a kitchen garden that supplies a restaurant with ingredients grown on-site or locally sourced. They typically have around 30 rooms in a historic building.
Robin Hutson said: “This is an exciting opportunity for us all at The Pig to focus on the future with an experienced team specialising in hospitality. KSL invests in some of the most iconic and well-known hotels in the world and has had great success preserving what makes each asset unique. The investment will allow us to continue to grow and expand our collection while offering our guests the same home away from home quality they expect at each of our hotels.”
Tina Yu, principal at KSL Capital Partners, said: “Having been admirers of what Robin has built over the last decade, we could not be more excited to work hand-in-hand with him and the entire team, and to help continue the growth of The Pig. The team at The Pig has created something truly unique and exceptional: hotels set in the English countryside which are dedicated to providing genuine hospitality and are at the forefront of environmental responsibility. We look forward to being part of this journey and supporting the management team.”
