It will be the “first of its kind in the UK” in a major rebrand and refurbishment of the landmark hotel building
The hotel has one of the most prominent sites in Manchester(Image: Jason Roberts /Manchester Evening News)
One of Manchester’s most imposing buildings is set to be transformed into a “first-of-its-kind” hotel in the UK. The Mercure Piccadilly Hotel is a city landmark, looming as it does 12 storeys above Piccadilly Gardens.
Now, plans have been submitted to Manchester Council which reveal it is to be rebranded as a new Lyf Hotel, with an application to start with a major new look to the entrance on Portland Street.
The huge building, part of the brutalist Piccadilly Plaza development, first opened as the five-star Hotel Piccadilly in the 1960s and was known for hosting glitzy events in its ballroom as well as welcoming visiting superstars.
Over the years it has rebranded to become the Ramada Piccadilly, the Jarvis Piccadilly, and is currently the Mercure Piccadilly Hotel.
But the new plans have revealed it is become a new brand for the UK – Lyf – which is established in other global cities like Singapore and Paris. On its company website, Lyf (pronounced life) is described as: “an experience-led social living for digital nomads, technopreneurs, creatives and self-starters to “live your freedom” in a dynamic environment.”
It continues: “The rooms, social spaces and experiential programmes at lyf properties are designed to connect like minds and create communities.”
The application has been submitted to the council by Venus Hotels Ltd, who has operated the Mercure hotel brand at the site for over a decade. They are the current occupiers of the hotel, with a long lease agreement in place with Schroders who are the landlord of the wider City Tower asset.
The hotel has an imposing location looking out across Piccadilly Gardens(Image: Jason Roberts /Manchester Evening News)
The application states: “Whilst the current occupiers have seen success of the hotel, and utilisation of other offerings such as events and meetings space, the Applicant are seeking to introduce a new hotel brand, ‘Lyf’, which are already established in major cities across the world including Singapore and Paris.”
It adds: “Lyf Manchester will be the first of its kind in the UK.”
The application talks of “extensive plans in place for full internal refurbishments to create an interiors-led and sophisticated hotel for next-generation travellers, which aligns with the hotel’s brand and the local context of Manchester.”
It adds: “As part of these refurbishment works, full planning permission is sought from Manchester City Council to upgrade the ground floor front entrance, used by pedestrians only, by way of introducing new materials and appropriate advertisement.”
This is how the entrance to the Mercure Piccadilly hotel currently looks(Image: Jason Roberts /Manchester Evening News)
The new look proposed will mean a new sophisticated look for the existing entrance of the hotel on Portland Street. Bosses want to make it look slightly more glitzy with copper cladding.
The application concludes: “The proposed development will improve the streetscape significantly, when comparing the new designs against the current and existing design.
“The proposals are also essential for wayfindingand is entirely compatible with the incoming occupier’s brand identity, whilst respecting the localcontext of Manchester.
“In summary, the proposals will create a well-designed hotel entrance which will contribute positively to the streetscape.”
The hotel is currently still branded as Mercure Piccadilly (Image: Jason Roberts /Manchester Evening News)
They are seeking for “approval without delay” which suggests the rebrand is imminent for the hotel – although no timelines on the refurbishment have yet been given.
In the meantime, the hotel is still operating as the Mercure Piccadilly, and features the Mercure logo on large lettering along the side of the hotel and on the white box on top.
The planning application is currently out for consultation until December 12, after which they will be considered by the council’s planning committee.