Leading budget brands Travelodge and Lidl have announced they are combining to develop a joint hotel and supermarket site in Newcastle-Under-Lyme.
The development will see Lidl on the ground floor and Travelodge taking the top five floors, revitalising a site that has been redundant for many years.
The development represents a significant investment by both companies, who are seeking to capitalise on the current market conditions to grow their share.
The hotel will have 82 rooms, create 20 jobs and represents a £3 million investment. Travelodge, through the employment programme the Local Employer Partnership, has a commitment to employ staff from the local long-term unemployed
Lidl will be opening a 14,000 sq ft store, creating 25 jobs at a local level.
Paul Harvey, Managing Director for Development at Travelodge, said:
"The budget sector is the place to be in the current environment, with many people trading down as they seek to economise. We expect to see a structural change in the hotel industry over the next few years, with people realising that they do not need to spend a fortune on overpriced accommodation to get the quality they want in the locations they need.
"Given the market conditions, it is likely that we will be going into partnership on further sites with the budget supermarkets in the future".
Marco Ivone, PR Manager for Lidl, said:
"2008 has been a fantastic year for Lidl. We won the Which award for Best Value for Money Retailer 2008 and many of our products have won individual awards such as our Parmigianno Reggiano winning the Cheese category at the Quality Food Awards and our Cream Liqueur won the Liqueur category at the Quality Drink Awards".
"These awards show what our customers have known for a long time, that Lidl is where quality is cheaper. More and more people are beginning to realise that there has never been a better time to shop at Lidl".