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BridgeStreet Worldwide embraces new Quality in Tourism Serviced Apartment Grading System |
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| Tuesday, June 05, 2007 |
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London, 1st June 2007 - BridgeStreet Worldwide, the UK's largest serviced apartment provider with over 20 years' industry experience, has announced plans to grade its 1,000 apartments under Quality in Tourism's new Serviced Apartment Grading System.
The company, whose portfolio includes apartments in key UK locations such as Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester, Heathrow and London, will initially grade 300 of its serviced apartments, with the remaining 700 apartments being assessed before the end of 2007.
As Director of Sales & Marketing Jo Layton explains, BridgeStreet Worldwide was keen to pioneer the new grading system. "The idea of an industry-wide grading system emerged when we met with Quality in Tourism more than two years ago to discuss the grading of The Atrium by BridgeStreet Worldwide Apartments in Manchester," she says. "Our discussions with Quality in Tourism led us to conclude that the industry would benefit from a formal grading system against which all providers could be measured. The concept, championed by BridgeStreet, was presented to the Association of Serviced Apartment Providers, who immediately adopted the idea and has spent the last two years developing the system with Quality in Tourism."
As with the hotel industry, the grading system provides universal frames of reference for the intrinsic quality of apartments' fixtures and fittings, cleanliness and general services. Check-in and arrival processes, as well as health and safety systems, are also tested to ensure they reach a recognized industry standard.
"The new system is less about achieving the highest number of stars for our apartments," comments Jo Layton, "but more about offering travellers an independent, reliable and objective rating against which to judge each serviced apartment provider. We at BridgeStreet believe that over time corporate buyers will only entertain working with serviced apartment providers who have submitted their inventory to scrutiny in this way, especially as each grade also affords an instant indication of the property's quality and price ratio."
"We fully endorse the new grading system and are thrilled to have our name at the forefront of the rollout of what is a significant step forward for the industry as a whole," she concludes.
BridgeStreet Worldwide is a leading international provider of corporate housing. BridgeStreet and its network of Global Partners offer over 10,000 corporate apartments located throughout the United States and 50 cities internationally. An award winner both in the U.S. and Europe, BridgeStreet properties meet uncompromising standards of quality, comfort and service. For more information about the company or to learn more about how BridgeStreet is Making Serviced Apartments Easy, visit www.bridgestreet.co.uk or call 1-800-BSTREET.
Based in Dublin, Ireland, Sorrento Structuring is a leading provider of wealth management products and services, focused primarily on return on equity transactions. Formed in 2004, Sorrento's strength comes from its ability to structure high quality, off-market residential and commercial property transactions with guaranteed yields and full management, giving investors turn-key investment solutions. The company's investment products and services include a significant property portfolio in the U.K., Ireland, Europe and the U.S., structured products and private finance transactions, equity investments and pre-and post-retirement funds.
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