the book of voco - loyaltylobby.com · This unique and playful attitude, ... sits at the heart of our brand. Welcome to voco. ... or tips for local experiences

WhyA different opportunity

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HowA different mindset

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WhatA different identity

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WhenA different way

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WhyA different opportunity

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Welcome

We’ve created a new hotel brand, that gives

people a different choice. Hotels to count on, but

different enough to be fun. Unstuffy hotels, where people

feel comfortable to relax, and just get on with relaxing.

Hotels that stand out from the crowd.

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From big comfy beds, to invigorating showers. Luxuriously long lie-ins,

to saying yes! to a nightcap.

We’ve been in the business long enough to know how to make a night

away, a break from the norm.


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So, with our latest brand, we’ve created somewhere that combines familiar comforts, with the indulgences of a hotel. Somewhere

that’s dependable, but not vanilla. Somewhere that’s upscale, but with a laidback spirit.

Somewhere reliable, but different.

It’s about the perfect mix of reliability and difference. The important things you can depend on, with things that make staying in a hotel different each time.

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Our new family of hotels are connected by their individual characters, that make memorable

travel dependable.

We are the upscale hotel with years of experience in delivering

True Hospitality.

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We call our hotels voco™. It means ‘to invite’ and ‘call together’ originating

from Latin – representing our thoughtful, unstuffy and charming nature.

Guests tell us that voco sounds fun without being vanilla, trendy

without being alienating, and premium without being stuffy.

This unique and playful attitude, combined with a consistent level of quality,

sits at the heart of our brand.

Welcome to voco.


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We combine characterful hotels with a name that you can trust.

The security of a bigger brand, without the vanilla experience. An informal

attitude, with charming touches you’ll remember long after check out.

We call our way of doing things

DifferentReliably


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Be distinctive

We take a distinctive approach to

our design and guest experience.

Brand values

Always dependable

We can always be relied on

to provide upscale quality.

Respect individuality

We are sympathetic to local

provenance, place and community.

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For every occasion

voco hotels work for lots of different moments. Quiet weekends away, important work trips, get-togethers

with the girls or family reunions. Whatever you have in mind, we make sure you’ll have everything

you need (and more).

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HowA different mindset

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Different for guests, different

for owners, and different for

the hotel industry.

Here’s how.

voco offers something different.

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Easier to work with

Our versatile new brand celebrates what

makes an existing property successful

in its own right. By focusing investment

where it matters, it lets you make the

most of all the support and knowledge

the IHG© family offers, with dedicated

teams ready to help.

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Everything as it should be

We know the little extras mean little

to our guests when the fundamentals

aren’t right. We make sure the basics

are in place, so that everything’s as

it’s expected to be in an upscale hotel.

All backed by the reassurance of IHG.

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Celebrating individuality

All voco hotels have their own sense of

style and individual character – and that’s

something we make the most of. Each

hotel celebrates what’s great about what

they are, both through their design, and

by championing local flavours and tastes.

But while every voco hotel has its own

memorable personality, we also make

sure they still feel part of the family with

familiar touches that are warm, inviting,

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Everyone’s a host

At the heart of every great stay is

a great host. We think the trick to hosting

is taking the time to understand what your

guests need, and want. So, before they

arrive, we find out more about them and

how we could make their stay even better.

And while they’re with us, we give tempting

recommendations of our favourite drinks

or desserts, or tips for local experiences

that they won’t find in a guidebook.


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Sleep, eat and everything in between

A hotel stay should be a break from the

demands of the day to day. So, we go beyond the

fundamentals of a great hotel stay by adding our

charming hallmarks. Little touches that make

a world of difference for our guests, giving them

the time and space to really indulge and enjoy.


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WhatA different identity

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Thoughtful UnstuffyCharming

These personality traits guide all aspects of our brand. It helps us

look, feel and act differently to other hotels, and makes sure guests leave

with plenty of stories to tell.

Here’s how we bring the brand to life.

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Getting the basics

right

G E T T I N G T H E B A S I C S R I G H T

The voco brand sitson a succinct set of

standards that guests told us they expect at an upscale price point.

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G E T T I N G T H E B A S I C S R I G H TG E T T I N G T H E B A S I C S R I G H T

Upscale quality, in great condition

Genuine welcome experience

Premium sleep experience

Hot, good quality breakfast & upscale

F&B offer

Tech friendly & flexible guest room lighting

High quality shower

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G E T T I N G T H E B A S I C S R I G H TG E T T I N G T H E B A S I C S R I G H T

Upscale quality, in great condition

• Excellent Upscale condition throughout,as evaluated by IHG Balanced Scorecard

• Room size is market dependent, but targeting22sqm-30sqm gross

Genuine welcome experience

• Efficient and hassle free check in process• Warm and personal welcome

Premium sleep experience

• Mattress, mattress topper, bedding package and linenin line with a Project Aries defined set of standards

• Blackout curtains or blinds required• Guest room to comply with IHG acoustic standards

Hot, good quality breakfast

• Hot buffet breakfast, with limited selection of a la carte items

Tech friendly• Must comply with IHG WI-FI performance

thresholds/specifications (e.g. free, universallyavailable, min bandwidth speed of 5Mb)

• Ability to easily charge 3 devices in guest-room;Extended cord USB/Charge dome permitted

• Guest room TV target at least 42” Smart TV

Upscale F&BOffer

• Must provide hot food options throughout the dayand have out of hours provision; delivery

method flexible by location• Must have barista served coffee

•Must have bar

High quality shower experience

• Flow rate and temperature per IHG standards• Base min area of 0.8sqm with min width of 0.75m

• Showers over bath permitted, provided bath size is at least 0.7m by 1.5m• Shower head must be from IHG approved

supplier and height adjustable• Shower area must be enclosed by shower screen

Flexible guest room lighting

• Guest room lighting must achieve specified lux levels at keymoments (e.g. bedside, deskside)

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I H G F O U N D AT I O N A L S TA N D A R D SI H G F O U N D AT I O N A L S TA N D A R D S

Compliant with existing IHG FLS Standards

Opera PMS

IHG CSR and data security standards

Core IHG Engineering Requirements

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Our guest experience hallmarks

For a guest experience that stands out, we add touches of charm with our memorable

hallmarks. They’re easy to deliver, but hard for guests to forget.


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Come on in

It’s true what they say about first impressions, so we make sure to get them right.

We start with a warm welcome and a swift and simple check-in, in instantly familiar

surroundings, making sure to cover any special requests or personal preferences.

And then, to make it really special, we give every guest a welcome treat inspired

by each hotel and its location.

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Me time

We know a lot of our guests are looking forward to a break from the day-to-day when they

visit us. So, we add a few little things to our rooms to encourage them to take a moment for themselves.

Extra cosy beds and bedding for long lie-ins, luxury bathroom amenities that go perfectly

with our super-rejuvenating aerated showers, great viewing content with our Smart TVs

and fast Wi-Fi in every room.

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voco life

From morning lattes to that just-before-bed nightcap, voco hotels always have room for

guests to relax and enjoy themselves. We make sure our bars and lounges work for different moments of the day, so whether it’s a quiet

coffee in the morning, catching up with friends over afternoon tea, or kicking off (or ending)

their evening, we’ve got the perfect place for it.


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Our brand identity is bold and distinctive – but has been designed to flex across softer

hotel touchpoints, so it’s always sympathetic to an existing hotel’s

character. We have two application systems, Bright and Bold, which

use our identity in different ways to complement different types of hotels.

A distinctive identity T

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We’ve crafted a distinctive and characterful logo, carrying

elegant letter forms which reflect our upscale positioning.

The rounded nature and composition of the name gives lifts and nods to our welcoming

and unstuffy nature. Just like our hotels our logo feels relaxed

yet sophisticated too.

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Bright

Ideal for heritage properties, which suit a more delicate application:

Use of colour is lighter and more subtle.

Fresh and open feel overall.

A yellow thread provides pops of intrigue without overwhelming.

Brushstrokes are softer, but still full of personality.

Bold

Suits more contemporary properties, which

can carry a more striking application:

Higher contrast of light and dark colour for impact.

A yellow thread provides highlights and flair.

Bold brushstrokes feel dynamic.

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Pleasantly chatty, distinctive

and unique in colour, with a relaxed,

easy glide. Finches represent

the warm welcome and simple

check-in guests get as soon as

they enter our hotels – as well

as the little extra touches they

discover once they start exploring.

Tranquil and serene, well groomed,

and partial to a bit of time alone.

The owl represents our bedrooms,

where cosy bedding, hot showers,

luxurious amenities and tempting

room service encourage our

guests to relax, and enjoy

moments to themselves.

Bold, interesting, and up for

a party. Flamingoes love spending

time in pairs, families or larger

groups – making them the perfect

mascot for our characterful

bars and lounges, where guests

can meet, eat, work and play

throughout the day.

Hallmark mascots

We use three mascots within our hotels to add marks of quality, character and personality.

Highlighting our important hallmark moments, they feel distinctive and charming.

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Brushstrokes

Our textured, handcrafted brushstrokes add charm and an element of surprise for guests

to discover. They bring our characterful and unique personality through to our visual identity.


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Untuckedphotography

We describe our photography style as untucked. It’s the perfect mix of reliability and difference – curated editorial

imagery that feels dependable but relaxed, balanced with a documentary style that highlights and celebrates

difference, telling us stories through real moments.

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The look and feel of our hotels is one of the most important ways of helping our guests to settle in.

We make sure each property feels like part of the voco family by uniting them with our Yellow Thread – interior elements that

bring our character to life.

A sympathetic style


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Hotel environment

We choose versatile elements that bring our unstuffy, thoughtful and charming character

to life across all of our hotels.

This encompasses interior finishes, key furniture and lighting pieces, accessories, soft furnishings,

and artwork; all in a contemporary traditional style that suits every property.

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Colours & materials

Our colour and material palette has been designed to work across a varied estate. We call this the

‘Yellow Thread’ that creates a sympathetic design style that works with the character of each hotel.

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Small changes, big impact

Bold and distinctive, our identity flexes across softer hotel touchpoints, so it always works with,

and to enhance, an existing hotel’s character.

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Artwork & accessories

All the artwork and accessories in our hotel help tell our story, bringing a hotel to life with character and charm.

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BRUSHSTROKES

TEXTURAL

EXPRESS IVE

M IN IMAL

GESTURAL

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Respectinga hotel’s history

When they have particular historical value or standing within the local area, we make sure

to respect the heritage of our original hotel names by incorporating them into signage and online use. These original names work together with our voco

wordmark, so each hotel still feels part of the brand family, but links to its history, too.

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We’re here to host

If there’s one thing we know, it’s that a great host is at the heart

of every great stay.

And it might be stating the obvious, but at home or in a hotel, we think the trick to being a great host is

understanding what your guests want.

Our guests are by and large pretty unstuffy and laid-back. But while they might not be looking for us to hang on their every word, they do want us to

be there when they need us.

So, we find the right balance. The perfect mix of easy-going but

attentive service, that just lets guests get on with it.

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Style guideAt voco we have a different approach to uniform:

it shouldn’t be ‘one size fits all’. Our hosts should feel like part of our hotel – but still feel like themselves, too.

That’s why our style guide lets them choose from items that suit them, just as well as they suit voco.


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And, as a quick guide, if they’d be happy wearing their outfit on a first date, they’re ready to meet our guests.


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WhenA different way

Becoming part of the voco family

Our flexible approach is guided by you and your hotel – doing what we need to do

to deliver consistent high quality experiences and help you drive returns in the most

efficient way.

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Sympathetic evaluation

We look at each hotel on a case-by-case

basis – every property and location is

different. We want to take the best of what a

hotel is already offering with the added layer

of our highly distinctive brand identity and

signature hallmarks. We take a pragmatic

and sympathetic approach, working with our

owners and using our extensive guest insight

to determine where extra investment is

necessary and where it will add value. That’s

why we’ve simplified our upscale quality

standards down to the ones we know that

really make a difference to our guests.

Accelerated conversion

We’ve simplified and accelerated the hotel

conversion process, making it quicker and easier

for owners to become part of the IHG family

and driving stronger returns once they do. With

a focus on delivering our signature standards

and hallmarks, this means less downtime during

the conversion process, and missed revenue

opportunities. Owners have the reassurance of

a dedicated team of experts ready to turn around

hotels at pace with our New Hotel Openings

(NHOPs) team’s years of experience in

converting hotels.

Ahead of opening under the voco flag, hotels

can access our system and drive returns by

operating under our SP chain code as a “white

labelled” hotel within our websites and controlled

distribution channels. This means getting the

benefits of our scale ahead of time, subject

to compliance with minimum FLS and IHG

foundational standards.

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Performing from day one

We offer comprehensive tools to enhance

sales and operations but we’re not here

to overwhelm. We’ve bundled up all the

essentials into a digestible package,

meaning less time spent poring over

screens and paperwork and more time

delivering great performance.

Ongoing support

voco is a key strategic priority for IHG and

we’re putting in significant effort to ensure

the brand builds momentum. We have

dedicated marketing plans for the brand,

ready to be deployed at a global, regional

and market-level. You also have access

to expertise from the pool of knowledge

across IHG from sales and marketing to

operations support. Because we’re guided

by guest feedback and providing a high

quality, upscale experience, we’ll focus

our quality evaluation and compliance

programmes on the guest experience

delivered, as much as the standards and

specifications that enable them.

Powered by the knowledge and strength of IHG®

In a segment with room for growth, voco

will benefit from the formidable strength

and scale of IHG’s systems — from the

world’s largest loyalty programme to our

best in class technology and capabilities.

The global upscale segment presents

a significant opportunity and, with our

owners, we are perfectly placed to take

advantage of this potential.

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Help us write the next chapter.

www.vocohotels.com

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Documents

the book of voco - loyaltylobby.com · This unique and playful attitude, ... sits at the heart of our brand. Welcome to voco. ... or tips for local experiences