EasyHotel to ditch orange in favour of ‘soft’ shades

EasyHotel, the budget hotel brand, is overhauling its portfolio with a view to phasing out easyGroup’s iconic orange livery and bringing in a “soft colour scheme”. It will launch an advertising campaign to support the changes.

The chain will roll out a new bedroom “concept” across its nine hotels from January. The rooms will also have wood-effect furniture and an “enhanced luggage holder”. It is hoped the changes will introduce a more “elegant” look to the rooms and differentiate them from easyCruise cabins.

Calum Russell, the chain’s commercial director, says the new concept will evolve the product and reinforce its value proposition as a “super-budget” brand.

EasyHotel currently has four hotels in London plus city hotels in Luton, Basel, Zurich and Budapest. It is opening its fifth hotel in London at Heathrow next month and hopes to expand to 25 hotels by 2010, including a property in Dubai.

Russell believes there is potential in Dubai despite its positioning as a luxury destination. He says: “As the credit crunch bites, there is tremendous opportunity for budget brands in premium destinations such as Dubai.”

To support the new look and expansion, easyHotel will launch a number of below-the-line campaigns, including social media, email marketing and digital advertising along with customer relationship management. In June, it revamped its website by introducing a three-step booking process, ahead of its expansion plans.