Apex Hotels has acquired Meldrum House Country Hotel and Golf Course in Aberdeenshire for an undisclosed sum. It will be Apex Hotel’s 10th hotel within their UK portfolio, since the purchase of the Pine Trees Hotel in Pitlochry last July. The acquisition follows another strong financial year for the group, supported by a £60 million refinancing package with Barclays.
Norman Springford founded the Apex Hotel Group in 1996 when he opened his first hotel in Edinburgh’s Grassmarket. Since then, the company has grown into one of the UK’s leading independent hotel groups with a portfolio of ten hotel spanning five cities – Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dundee, Bath and London, employing more than 1,000 staff.
Chief Executive Officer of Apex Hotels, Angela Vickers said, “After a strong trading period across our portfolio, the acquisition of Meldrum House represents an opportunity to continue to diversify Apex Hotels, giving our guests even more choice of a city or countryside option. This is an exciting time for the company and after getting to know the team at Meldrum House it was clear they share the same aims and ambitions we have at Apex. Meldrum House will be one of our flagship hotels and we are delighted to be the next custodians of this historic property.”
Jordan Charles will remain as Managing Director, supported by his existing team of 150 staff. He said, “This is a great opportunity for Meldrum House as we have had a couple of record years of performance and solid economic growth. The new owners have great plans, vision and ambitions and I look forward to helping them drive the business forward with our team.”
Meldrum House has a long and rich history dating back nearly 800 years. The last Laird, Robin Duff, was instrumental in turning it into a hotel in the 1950s. Bob Edwards, together with brothers David and Terry Buchan, bought the hotel and estate back in 1993 turning it into one of Scotland’s leading hotels. A multi-million refurbishment in 2009 was followed by further investment in 2016 which created more bedrooms and a ballroom for up to 200 guests.
Over the years the hotel has won a number of awards including a Visit Scotland Scottish Thistle for ‘Best Hotel’ as well as being named as one of The Times Top 100 UK hotels. It also claimed a Catey Award for ‘Best Marketing Campaign’ in front of industry leaders in London for their luxury dining domes, which were launched in July 2020.
Bob Edwards said, “After 31 years of owning Meldrum House, it is the perfect time for a new chapter, where the hotel and estate will become part of Apex Hotel’s expanding portfolio. As a family owned and run business, we are delighted that Apex have the same principles and passion for what we have created and together with David and Terry Buchan, I wish them the very best for the next 30 years of Meldrum.”
Picture: Jordan Charles and Bob Edwards