But it will be a soft launch for landmark hotel amid Covid restrictions A Grand history

BIRMINGHAM’S historic Grand hotel is finally preparing to reopen after 18 years.

Closed since 2002 after falling into disrepair, the Post was the first to step inside and enjoy a preview of the newly restored Colmore Row landmark as builders put the finishing touches to the spectacular interior.

The 141-year-old hotel will have something of a ‘soft opening’ in gradual stages from November.

But it is hoped it will be fully up and running in the new year.

Despite the luxury £45 million hotel reopening amid the global Covid pandemic, its owners believe the future is bright – with hopes of a new ‘Roaring Twenties’.

Simon Willis, brand director at The Grand for operators Starwood Capital Group, told the Post: “The city and the world will come through the other side of Covid and there will be massive demand when the pandemic is over.

“The 1920s brought a decade of economic growth and prosperity, which came after recovering from the devastation of the First World War and the Spanish flu.

“After Covid we will have the 2020s.

“There will be a huge appetite for this hotel. Our job is to open the hotel now and celebrate everything that is wonderful about it while keeping everyone safe and being mindful that travel will take time to get where it used to be.

“The commercial reality is that at the moment Birmingham is not getting anything like the business travel that it was. This means in the week we won’t be as full as we would like to be.

“And social distancing means our event space and ballroom cannot be used to its full potential.”

It is hoped the hotel will eventually cash in on major developments, including HS2 and the 2022 Commonwealth Games, when Birmingham will be hosting an influx of international visitors.

Hortons Estate owned the hotel before partnering with Starwood and passing it on to the company to run. In 2016 it revealed its vision was to create a premier five star hotel, something that has been woefully lacking in Birmingham.

Mr Willis’s previous projects included the luxury five-star Kimpton Fitzroy London hotel near Russell Square.

He said The Grand “straddles four and five stars”, adding: “We are trying to convey ‘modern luxury’.

“Nowhere else in Birmingham has got the scale, the grandeur, the heritage and the money spent on it. No expense has been spared.” Home to 185 spacious rooms and suites, the hotel has retained the building’s mix of French

Staying at the Grand

Renaissance, Victorian and Art Deco features, while incorporating all the modern design touches you would expect from a high end hotel. This includes striking modern artwork dotted around the building.

The rooms and suites appear entirely modern.

Mr Willis added: “The idea was not to make The Grand a museum. It combines the best of the old with all the convenience and comfort of the new.”

One of the major additions is the ‘secret’ garden terrace in the central courtyard, a first in The Grand’s long history.

Original character features throughout the communal areas have been restored, including mosaic tiled floors and high ceilings.

The centrepiece of the renovation is the resplendent grand staircase and ornate Art Deco Grosvenor Room, featuring the fabulous chandeliers dating from the early 1900s.

Another highlight for non guests will be the stunning Madeleine cocktail bar, which will open as part of the soft launch.

Housed where the old Grand restaurant stood overlooking Church Street, it captures the essence of the restoration with no expense spared.

Mr Willis said: “Madeleine is inspired by Paris. It’s primary function is to be a gorgeous cocktail bar as you would find in grand hotels around the world.”

The Madeleine bar will be open to members of the public and hotel guests alike, though tables will need to be booked in advance.

During the early part of 2021, assuming business starts to return to the city centre, bosses hope to open other elements of the hotel, including a standalone independent restaurant situated on Barwick Street.

At the top of the hotel is one of its ‘grand suites’, with a balcony offering the grandest of views.

Mr Willis said: “All the 185 rooms are generously sized and characterful. There are no single rooms.

“The hotel offers suites with a view overlooking ‘Pigeon Park’, Church Street, the city skyline or our secret garden terrace.” The hotel was built in 1879 and has a rich history – not least being the place that Malcolm X gave his last speech in England. In its heyday it hosted the creme de la creme of society from across the globe. Other famous figures who have stayed there include Winston Churchill, Charlie Chaplin and The Rolling Stones. The building, designed in French renaissance style, closed in 2002 but in 2012 planning permission was granted to restore the building into a luxury hotel. ■ ■ ■ ■ For the soft opening in November, The Grand Hotel will have a special rate from £129 for Grand Double rooms. The Grand suites on the sixth ■ ■ floor will be from £449. In both instances, the rate is room only, inclusive of VAT. Hotel guests will be served breakfast and dinner in the salon – at the back of Madeleine. ■