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SWOT analysis of Premier Inn (Premier Inn SWOT)

SWOT analysis of Premier Inn (Premier Inn SWOT)

This is a detailed SWOT analysis of Premier Inn (Premier Inn SWOT). It aims to examine the strengths and the weaknesses of Premier Inn. It also aims to explore some of the opportunities that the hotel should take into consideration for further growth, and the threats that it should pay attention to devise suitable strategies.

 

Premier Inn is a British hotel chain and is the largest hotel and restaurant group in the UK. It offers affordable accommodation and excellent services to both business and leisure travellers. It is a Whitbread owned brand.

 

Strengths of Premier Inn

 

Occupancy rate

With an occupancy rate of more than 68.3%, Premier Inn is in a very good position in its industry (Lock, 2022). Many guests like its pillows, cosy duvet, and blackout curtains.

 

Strong presence in the UK

Premier Inn has over 840 hotels in the UK containing over 83,000 rooms. It serves over five million customers every month (Whitbread, 2023). It has a good number of hotels in Germany as well that provide affordable accommodation for customers.

 

Locations

Many of the Premier Inn hotels are located near airports and great tourist attractions. Some of the hotels are near universities as well. This allows different customer segments to stay near the places where they need to be.

 

Brand Image

Premier Inn has established a very good brand image over the years. Kid-friendly and bike-friendly image coupled with free Wi-Fi 24/7 has been a great selling point for the hotel. It was voted the ‘Best UK economy hotel brand’ several times at the British Travel Awards.

 

Premier Inn was named the Best Budget Hotel Brand at the Business Travel Awards 2021 (Premier Inn, 2023). Indeed, it has won several accolades such as Best Business Hotel Brand, and Traveller’s Choice Awards awarded by some of the prestigious organisations in the UK.

 

Commitment to sustainability

Premier Inn is committed to reducing its environmental impact and promoting sustainability.  It uses 100% renewable energy to power its properties, and has solar panels installed on over 180 of them. It has also planted roof gardens on some of the properties to help support local biodiversity (Premier Inn, 2023).

 

Premier has set a plan to reduce carbon emissions intensity by 50% by 2025. It also donates surplus food to communities. Its restaurants are accessible and inclusive, and it works with responsible suppliers.

 

Weaknesses of Premier Inn

 

Limited global presence

Limited global presence is a weakness of Premier Inn. Compared to some other market giants, Premier Inn operates in a very limited number of countries.

 

Refund Issues

Premier Inn has been accused of refusing to refund some customers who booked to stay in parts of Wales which came under strict local lockdowns. This has made many customers unhappy.

 

Big issues with hygiene

 An undercover filming by channel 4 reporters several years ago found housekeeping staff (agency workers) hired by Premier Inn using the same guest towels to clean the entire bathrooms, including the toilets. In the same programme, the trade union Unite expressed concerns for Premier Inn’s exploitative work practices.

 

Opportunities for Premier Inn

 

New markets

The first opportunity to discuss in the SWOT analysis of Premier Inn (Premier Inn SWOT) is the exploration of new markets. After a successful entry in Germany, Premier Inn has finally got into the Republic of Ireland as well. Exploring more countries and regions is worth the effort.

 

Further growth in Germany

Premier Inn has 28 hotels in Germany. The country offers further growth opportunities for the hotel as it is one of the most visited countries in Europe, and in fact in the world.

 

New décor

Some properties have been trialling an upmarket room design and décor which is a nice surprise to guests in the budget hotel segment.

 

Threats to Premier Inn

 

Competitors

The first threat to discuss in this SWOT analysis of Premier Inn is competition. While the main competitors of Premier Inn are Holiday inn, Easyhotel, and Ibis within the same category of budget hotel segment, there is strong competition from Marriott as well as many other small and independent hotels.

 

Legal threats

Due to some of the issues mentioned in the weaknesses section above, there is a risk of legal actions against Premier Inn if it does not take actions when required, arguably from trade unions and from health and safety executives.

 

Lockdowns

Lockdowns have decimated many businesses around the world in the last few years. Premier Inn was affected badly as well. Similar situations in the future may turn out to be extremely challenging.  

 

Summary of SWOT analysis of Premier Inn

From the research conducted, it can be argued that Premier Inn is going to remain the leader in budget hotel segment in the UK. The competition pressure is mainly price-based, with some of the competitors going as low as £19 per night and breakfast as low as £2.95.

 

However, as the hotel, restaurants and coffee shops complement each other, Premier Inn has a competitive model which is hard to emulate by others. Indeed, it is an excellent choice for travellers looking for affordable, comfortable, and convenient accommodation. Its commitment to sustainability, excellent customer service, and consistent quality of services makes it a preferred choice for many of them.

 

We hope the article on the ‘SWOT analysis of Premier Inn (Premier Inn SWOT)’ has been useful.  Please share the article link on social media to support our work.

 

You may also like reading Marketing mix of Premier Inn (7Ps of Premier Inn). Other relevant articles for you are:

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Last update: 10 March 2023

References:

Lock, S. (2022) Premier Inn hotel room occupancy rates in the UK, available at: https://www.statista.com/statistics/739831/premier-inn-hotel-occupancy-rates/ (accessed 10 March 2023)

Premier Inn (2023) Our awards, available at: https://www.premierinn.com/gb/en/why/awards.html  (accessed 10 March 2023)

Whitbread (2023) About us, available at: https://www.whitbread.co.uk/about-us/ (accessed 10 March 2023)

Photo credit: Premier Inn

Author: Veeren Gowrea

Veeren Gowrea is a lecturer in Tourism & Hospitality management. He holds an MBA in Strategic Management and MSc in Human Resource Management from the University of Wales, UK. He also holds a Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education (PgceHE) from Birkbeck, the University of London. He works as a visiting lecturer at a number of institutes in London.

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