VANCOUVER — Sandman Hotel Group — Canada’s fastest-growing, privately owned hospitality company — is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.
Founded in 1967 by Bob Gaglardi, Sandman Hotel Group opened its first location, a 35-room inn, in Smithers, B.C. It built its success on providing accommodations to travellers seeking a road-side stop for a good night’s rest. Within nine years of opening its first location, Sandman opened 14 more inns in B.C. while expanding its list of accommodations.
“Sandman started from very humble beginnings, and over the last 50 years, our family has grown to include more than 50 hotels across Canada, the UK, and many more on the horizon,” says Tom Gaglardi, chairman and CEO of Sandman Hotel Group. “Our long-term goal is for Sandman Hotel Group to be Canada’s hotel chain of choice.”
In 1976, Sandman opened its first central-city location in downtown-Vancouver and also expanded into Alberta with a 150-room hotel in Edmonton. The company’s largest city-centre hotel to date is its downtown-Calgary location, which opened in 1981.
By Sandman’s 30th anniversary in 1997, the company had opened 20 more hotels across the nation, from B.C. to Quebec. On its 40th anniversary, the company established Sandman Signature Hotels & Resorts, which put the company in the four-star hotel market for the first time. Its first two signature-brand locations opened at both Vancouver and Toronto airports. Between 2010 and 2015, Sandman opened seven more hotels under the signature brand, including two in the U.K.
In the years to come, Sandman plans to open new locations in Sherwood Park, Alta.; Hamilton, Ont.; Ottawa; St. John’s; Plano, Tex. (which will mark Sandman’s first hotel in the U.S.); and Aberdeen, Scotland, as well as build an additional tower at its existing Calgary Airport location.
To celebrate a half-century of providing quality hospitality, Sandman is giving away five Epic Dream Vacations to anywhere the winner chooses. The company is also giving away a free room every day from Feb. 15, 2017 to Feb. 15, 2018 to guests who enter the draw by using the code ‘FIFTY’ in their direct reservations.
“With six new hotels currently being built, and many more prospects on the horizon, Sandman is an ever-expanding company,” says Taj Kassam, president and COO of Sandman Hotel Group. “We truly would not be where we are today without our guests, and for that, we thank each and every person who has ever stayed with us. Here’s to another 50 years.”
