‘American Classic’ Motel 6 Being Sold to Overseas Hotel Operator for $525 Million

The iconic brand Motel 6, which was founded in California, is being sold to an overseas hotel operator in a huge cash deal.

The Associated Press (AP) reported on Saturday the chain is “being acquired by the parent company of Oyo, a hotel operator based in India.”

The investment firm known as Blackstone said Friday it will be a cash deal worth $525 million and include the sale of the Studio 6 motel brand. Blackstone owns the parent company of the motel chain.

The AP article continued:

Oyo, which launched in India just over a decade ago, has been expanding its footprint in the U.S. over the past few years. The company says it currently operates 320 hotels across 35 states and is aiming to add 250 more this year.

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Blackstone had purchased Motel 6 and Studio 6 in 2012 for $1.9 billion. Since then, the private equity giant says it has heavily invested in the brand and pursued a strategy that converted the chain into a franchise.

The Motel 6 franchise has over 1,450 hotels in 49 states and a few in Canada, the New York Post reported on Saturday, noting that the big cash deal is expected to close by the end of the year.

Motel 6 was founded in 1962 in Santa Barbara, California, and its original location is still open, the chain’s website reads. However, “a lot has changed for the motel chain that pioneered the first real economy motel designed for the no-frills traveler.”

The site noted the original nightly rate was $6.00 and deemed the chain “an American classic.”

“The promise of the iconic brand is to offer clean, comfortable rooms and great experiences at any of our locations in the US and Canada. Motel 6 is a household name, synonymous with quality and value. It enjoys the highest brand recognition factor of any U.S. economy lodging brand,” the website says.

In 2018, Motel 6 was forced to pay over $7.6 million to settle a class-action lawsuit claiming the chain gave guest lists to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, Breitbart News reported at the time.