For the first time in 30 years, Strawberry is now launching a new hotel chain. The hotel chain launch takes place in collaboration with property investor Slättö and is a complement to the four hotel chains the company already has.

The hotel chain has a focus on design, adapted to both short- and long-term accommodation, digitalisation, efficiency, sustainability and which is competitive on price. The target group is car-borne travelers, sports teams and people who temporarily or for a slightly longer period need accommodation. The new hotel chain is intended to fill a gap in the Nordic hotel market where domestic and intra-Nordic travel has increased sharply since 2019.

“With the new hotel chain, we are trying to challenge the image that the stops along the way are something boring, necessary and tiring and instead see it as an opportunity to recharge for the exciting things to come. We are incredibly excited about the opening of the first hotel next year and believe that we are presenting something new in a segment that has been forgotten for a long time,” says Petter Stordalen, owner of Strawberry.

Slättö sees the investment in hotels as a complement to the company's investment segments in housing, light industry and logistics, and community properties.

”Hotels need to constantly develop in order to attract a broad target group, in addition, hotels also need to be able to adjust quickly to meet new market needs and thus contribute both to good guest experiences and a stable and secure profitability for the business. The hotel chain is therefore developing as a versatile service destination to meet exactly these market trends,” says Erik Möller, Head of Hotels at Slättö.

The investment in the hotel chain has high sustainability and accessibility ambitions. For example, the ambition is to build in wood, renewable energy production with solar cells and geothermal energy, resource efficiency through digital solutions and strong environmental certification.

Sweden is the first market for the new hotel chain, but the ambition is for the chain to grow in the Nordic market in the coming years. Within ten years, the new hotel chain must consist of at least 20 hotels in the Nordic region.

One of the project's components is to offer the hotel's guests services and offers through external partners.

”The ambition is to offer, in addition to a bed and a breakfast, healthy and easily accessible food, a first-class gym and also fast charging of cars through good and innovative partners. The guests' needs will determine what we fill the hotels with and which partners we will enter into collaborations with,” says Stordalen.

The first hotel is expected to open in Q2 2025 in Falkenberg in western Sweden, with 151 rooms. The first agreements are signed with both landowners and strategic partners to fill the hotels with services and offerings.