Nearly a year on from the rebranding from AccorInvest to Essendi, a move meant to blend serious asset management with positive hospitality centred on people and ESG, its CEO Gilles Clavie comes back to IHIF EMEA in Berlin. He shares his views on the evolution of hospitality real estate in Europe and particularly one of its key markets, France.
Hospitality Investor: How do you view the current hospitality business climate in Europe, and more particularly in France?
Gilles Clavie: We are clearly operating in a period of heightened uncertainty, shaped by a complex geopolitical and economic environment. This naturally calls for caution. That said, if we look beyond the headlines, there are also solid reasons for confidence in hospitality, and in hotel operations in particular.
From a macroeconomic standpoint, growth forecasts for Europe remain positive despite ongoing challenges. In this context I, like many industry experts, expect hotel performance to remain resilient and, in some markets, even to outperform the broader economic environment. Demand fundamentals are holding up well, supported by both leisure and business travel dynamics.
France also presents a complex picture, notably given the political context and the upcoming elections. This tends to delay some investment decisions. However, underlying trends remain constructive. I believe both asset management and hotel operations have become significantly more agile to navigate uncertainty. This ability to adapt, optimise and actively manage assets is increasingly decisive in sustaining performance and value creation.
Hospitality Investor: How are the main drivers of value creation in hospitality evolving?
Gilles Clavie: This question fully resonates in a European hospitality market that is undergoing transformation. The pace of change is accelerating, and traditional value creation models are being challenged.
Three major dynamics are shaping this evolution.
First, we see a relocation of value creation. Investors want to understand what is really happening “within the walls” of an asset, not only on balance sheets, but in day-to-day operations, guest experience and long-term asset health.
Second, environmental and regulatory pressures are intensifying. They require a fundamental rethink of how hotels are designed, operated and renovated, particularly in terms of energy performance and usage efficiency.
Finally, customer expectations are evolving rapidly. Guests increasingly seek meaning, experience and positive impact. This is precisely what we aim to address at Essendi through Positive Hospitality.
In this context, our conviction is simple: value creation today is no longer driven solely by asset ownership, but by asset activation. Operational excellence, thoughtful repositioning and responsible transformation are, in my view, the strongest levers to create sustainable value.
Hospitality Investor: You will be joining a session on how hospitality drives value by redefining real estate innovation. How do you view hospitality’s role within the broader real estate market?
Gilles Clavie: As I just mentioned, value creation no longer lies solely in owning assets, but in bringing them to life.
Take Essendi as an example. We are a leading hotel platform in Europe, with more than 550 hotels and nearly 90,000 rooms, representing a portfolio valued at approximately €7.5 billion.
This means knowing our properties in depth, not only in terms of square metres or occupancy rates, but in terms of usage, perception and lived experience.
This dual role, as both owner and operator, allows us to act quickly, to innovate, and to adapt our assets to local realities. It gives us the ability to reinvest, transform and reposition our hotels over time, always with a responsible and long-term perspective.
Ultimately, our role as a hospitality player within the real estate ecosystem is to unlock potential. Because a hotel today must be more than a place to sleep. It should be a space that creates connections, movement and life.
That is our vision: Essendi unlocks Positive Hospitality by investing in places that thrive. As you can imagine, I look forward to sharing more in our session at IHIF.
Gilles Clavie will join the leaders panel ‘Shaping places: How hospitality drives value by redefining real estate innovation’ at IHIF EMEA in Berlin, exploring how hospitality influences other asset classes through innovative and adaptable concepts that meet evolving living needs while enhancing overall performance.