Introduction
The current paper presents the structure, strategy and values according to which Accor has been based upon and tries to find answers to one challenging question about the acquisition of Motel 6: where should Motel 6 fit into Accor's organization structure?
Operating in nearly 100 countries, Accor is the European leader in hotels and global leader in corporate services. The Paris based company, one of the world's largest conglomerates, consists of hotels, restaurants, travel agencies, car rental companies, and restaurant voucher firms. Since its foundation in 1967, Accor has grown nearly twenty percent annually. The success of the company has been due to the vision of its co-founders, Paul Dubrule and Gérard Pélisson.
Back in he 1960's the travel industry in France was growing and there was a clear need for an increase in lodging facilities. While most of the developments in the industry were concentrated only in major urban areas such as Paris, Paul Dubrule decided to do something different.
Noting the success of American lodging properties that were located in suburban areas and along major highways, Dubrule and Pélisson, who were both working in the computer business and living in the United States at that time, opened their first American-style Novotel hotel outside of Lille in northern France. The success of this 60-room hotel allowed them to continue and exploit the European highway marketplace, expanding to airports and popular holiday sites at seaside and in the mountains. This was only the beginning of what would become one of the largest hotel/hospitality companies in the world ? Accor group has at present over 3,800 hotels and 475,000 rooms in 90 countries and gathers the following brands Sofitel, Novotel, Mercu ...