COMPANY·HISTORIES
NAIC 721110

Hotels and Motels (Except Casino Hotels)

How the companies in this industry began, and the forces that shaped them.

60companies1845–1997founding years60still active0no longer operating
§ 01

The industry over time

Companies foundedEconomyTechnologyEnvironmentHistory
FoundedFuller Smith & Turner P.L.C.
1845
FoundedThe Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries, PLC
1890
1903
TechnologyThe Wright brothers achieve powered flight.
FoundedFairmont Hotels & Resorts Inc.
1907
1914
EconomyWorld War I begins; global trade reorders.
FoundedJurys Doyle Hotel Group plc
1924
1929
EconomyThe stock market crashes; the Great Depression spreads worldwide.
FoundedMadden's on Gull Lake
1934
1939
EconomyWorld War II begins; wartime production surges.
1945
EconomyThe war ends; a long global expansion begins.
FoundedBoyne USA Resorts
1947
TechnologyThe transistor is invented.
FoundedSapporo Breweries Limited
1949
FoundedThe Rouse Company
1954
1958
TechnologyThe integrated circuit is demonstrated.
FoundedInterstate Hotels & Resorts Inc.
1962
EnvironmentSilent Spring launches the modern environmental movement.
FoundedBass PLCFoundedPierre & Vacances SA
1967
FoundedNew World Development Company Limited
1970
1971
EconomyThe dollar leaves the gold standard; currencies float.
1973
EconomyThe OPEC oil embargo triggers a global shock.
FoundedThe Trump Organization
1974
1975
TechnologyThe personal-computer era begins.
1979
EconomyA second oil crisis drives inflation higher worldwide.
FoundedReal Turismo, S.A. de C.V.
1980
1981
TechnologyThe IBM PC launches and sets a standard.
FoundedAccor S.A.
1983
1984
TechnologyApple ships the Macintosh; the GUI era begins.
1987
EconomyBlack Monday: markets fall sharply around the world.
1989
HistoryThe Berlin Wall falls; global markets open up.
FoundedMWH Preservation Limited Partnership
1991
TechnologyThe World Wide Web is released to the public.
FoundedLandry's Restaurants, Inc.
1993
TechnologyThe Mosaic browser brings the web to everyone.
FoundedMillennium & Copthorne Hotels plc
1995
TechnologyWindows 95 launches; the internet goes mainstream.
1997
EconomyThe Asian financial crisis rattles global markets.
EnvironmentThe Kyoto Protocol sets the first climate targets.
2000
EconomyThe dot-com bubble bursts.
2004
TechnologySocial media and Web 2.0 take hold.
2007
TechnologyThe iPhone launches the smartphone era.
2008
EconomyThe global financial crisis freezes credit worldwide.
2010
TechnologyCloud computing goes mainstream for business.
2015
EnvironmentThe Paris Agreement sets global climate targets.
2020
EconomyThe COVID-19 pandemic upends the global economy.
2022
EconomyInflation spikes; central banks raise rates sharply.
2023
TechnologyGenerative AI reaches mainstream business use.
§ 02

The companies

Fuller Smith & Turner P.L.C. →
Active · founded 1845 · United Kingdom
While its larger U.K.
Kohler Company →
Active · founded 1873
Kohler Company is one of the largest privately operated firms in the United States.
Whitbread PLC →
Active · founded 1889 · United Kingdom
Whitbread PLC is one of the leading players in the U.K.
The Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries, PLC →
Active · founded 1890 · United Kingdom
The Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries, PLC, popularly known as Wolves, is the United Kingdom's largest integrated…
Young & Co.'s Brewery, P.L.C. →
Active · founded 1890 · United Kingdom
1581: Humphrey Langridge operates the Ram Brewery.
Dr. August Oetker KG →
Active · founded 1902 · Germany
Dr.
Fairmont Hotels & Resorts Inc. →
Active · founded 1907 · Canada
Fairmont Hotels & Resorts Inc.
Suntory Ltd. →
Active · founded 1907 · Japan
Suntory Ltd.
The Broadmoor Hotel →
Active · founded 1918
The Broadmoor Hotel provides luxury accommodations for its guest with 700 rooms and suites, as well as fine dining and…
Odakyu Electric Railway Co., Ltd. →
Active · founded 1923 · Japan
Odakyu Electric Railway Co., Ltd.
Jurys Doyle Hotel Group plc →
Active · founded 1924 · Ireland
Jurys Doyle Hotel Group plc is Ireland's leading hotel group with a fast-growing international component as well.
Rallye SA →
Active · founded 1924 · France
Rallye SA is one of France's--and the world's--top retail groups.
Colonial Williamsburg Foundation →
Active · founded 1928
The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation operates the oldest and largest (174 acres) outdoor living history museum in the…
Madden's on Gull Lake →
Active · founded 1934
Minnesota-based Madden's on Gull Lake is a premier family and golf resort that has served guests for over 60 years and…
Icelandair →
Active · founded 1937 · Iceland
Icelandair (Fluglei'ir hf.), Iceland's largest publicly traded company, has played off its unique mid-Atlantic location…
Hilton Hotels Corporation →
Active · founded 1946
Hilton Hotels Corporation is a leading hospitality company that owns, manages, and franchises over 2,000 hotels across…
Boyne USA Resorts →
Active · founded 1947
Boyne USA Resorts is one of the leading operators of ski and golf resorts in North America.
Société Tunisienne de l'Air-Tunisair →
Active · founded 1948 · Tunisia
Société Tunisienne de l'Air-Tunisair (Tunisair) is Tunisia's state-sponsored international airline.
Compagnia Italiana dei Jolly Hotels S.p.A. →
Active · founded 1949 · Italy
Compagnia Italiana dei Jolly Hotels S.p.A.
Liebherr-International AG →
Active · founded 1949 · Switzerland
Liebherr-International AG is the Swiss holding company of the Liebherr Group, one of the world's leading manufacturers…
Sapporo Breweries Limited →
Active · founded 1949 · Japan
Over the course of its more than 120-year history, Sapporo Breweries Limited has evolved from a government-owned beer…
Japan Airlines Company, Ltd. →
Active · founded 1953 · Japan
Japan Airlines Company, Ltd.
Outrigger Enterprises, Inc. →
Active · founded 1953
Outrigger Enterprises, Inc.
The Rouse Company →
Active · founded 1954
One of the largest publicly held real estate development and management firms in the United States, The Rouse Company…
Sol Meliá S.A. →
Active · founded 1956 · Spain
Sol Meliá S.A.
Howard Johnson International, Inc. →
Active · founded 1961
Howard Johnson International, Inc., franchises approximately 465 hotels in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Malta,…
Interstate Hotels & Resorts Inc. →
Active · founded 1962
Interstate Hotels & Resorts Inc.
Motel 6 →
Active · founded 1962
Famous for its "We'll leave the light on for you" tagline, Motel 6 operates as the largest economy motel chain in North…
Genting Bhd. →
Active · founded 1965 · Malaysia
Genting Bhd.
Air Mauritius Ltd. →
Active · founded 1967 · Mauritius
Air Mauritius Ltd.
Bass PLC →
Active · founded 1967 · United Kingdom
Conceived as a single brewery in the late 18th century, Bass PLC was in the process of a historic transition at the…
Grupo Posadas, S.A. de C.V. →
Active · founded 1967 · Mexico
Grupo Posadas, S.A.
Hilton Group plc →
Active · founded 1967 · United Kingdom
c.
Pierre & Vacances SA →
Active · founded 1967 · www.pierre-vacances.fr
Pierre & Vacances SA has joined the top ranks of the European tourism industry--the French company claims the number…
Loews Corporation →
Active · founded 1969
Loews Corporation is a holding company with diversified interests in insurance, tobacco, offshore drilling, hotels, and…
Prime Hospitality Corporation →
Active · founded 1969
Prime Hospitality Corporation is a major owner, operator, and franchiser of hotels.
New World Development Company Limited →
Active · founded 1970 · Hong Kong
Since its founding in 1970, New World Development Company Limited has been a leader in Hong Kong's bustling commercial…
Shangri-La Asia Ltd. →
Active · founded 1971 · Hong Kong
Shangri-La Asia Ltd.
Virgin Group →
Active · founded 1973 · United Kingdom
Virgin Group is a diversified grouping of more than 200 privately held companies.
Mandalay Resort Group →
Active · founded 1974
Mandalay Resort Group is one of the leading hotel-casino companies in the United States, and is the largest such…
The Trump Organization →
Active · founded 1974
The Trump Organization presides over the assets of the Trump family and serves as the umbrella for the many business…
Henderson Land Development Company Ltd. →
Active · founded 1976 · Hong Kong
Henderson Land Development Company Ltd.
Hutchison Whampoa Limited →
Active · founded 1977 · Hong Kong
Mid-1970s:Hongkong & Shanghai Bank steps in to rescue the faltering Hutchison, taking a stake in excess of 20 percent.
Real Turismo, S.A. de C.V. →
Active · founded 1980 · Mexico
Real Turismo, S.A.
Hotel Properties Ltd. →
Active · founded 1981 · Singapore
Singapore's Hotel Properties Ltd.
Sandals Resorts International →
Active · founded 1981
Sandals Resorts International is world-renowned for its luxurious all-inclusive resorts dotting the Caribbean.
Accor S.A. →
Active · founded 1983 · France
Paris-based Accor S.A.
McMenamins Pubs and Breweries →
Active · founded 1983
McMenamins Pubs and Breweries owns and operates more than 50 establishments in Oregon and the state of Washington and…
The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C. →
Active · founded 1983
c.
Berjaya Group Bhd. →
Active · founded 1990 · Malaysia
Berjaya Group Bhd.
MWH Preservation Limited Partnership →
Active · founded 1991
The Mount Washington Hotel, the oldest frame building in New Hampshire, was built in 1902.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. →
Active · founded 1991
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.
Air Sahara Limited →
Active · founded 1993 · India
Air Sahara Limited is a leading private airline in India, owned by the diversified Sahara India Parivar group.
Landry's Restaurants, Inc. →
Active · founded 1993
Landry's Restaurants, Inc.
American Skiing Company →
Active · founded 1994
Bethel, Maine-based American Skiing Company (ASC) is a holding company that operates through various subsidiaries in…
Extended Stay America, Inc. →
Active · founded 1995
Established in 1995, Extended Stay America, Inc.
Millennium & Copthorne Hotels plc →
Active · founded 1995 · United Kingdom
In less than a decade, Millennium & Copthorne Hotels plc (MCH) has built one of the Asian region's largest hotel groups…
Thistle Hotels PLC →
Active · founded 1995 · United Kingdom
Thistle Hotels PLC is the fourth largest U.K.
Boca Resorts, Inc. →
Active · founded 1996
Boca Resorts Inc.
WestCoast Hospitality Corporation →
Active · founded 1997
WestCoast Hospitality Corporation is a public company located in Spokane, Washington, primarily devoted to the hotel…
Build It Today

Starting a hotels and motels (except casino hotels) company now

Each week we rebuild one of these stories for today's tools and capital.