Graduate Hotels

Last updated
Graduate Hotels
Company typePrivate
IndustryHospitality
Founded2014;10 years ago (2014)
Founder Ben Weprin
Headquarters
Nashville, TN
,
United States
Number of locations
33
Area served
United States
England
Parent AJ Capital Partners
Website graduatehotels.com
Cornell Tech campus Graduate Hotel and The House jeh.jpg
Cornell Tech campus

Graduate Hotels is a collection of hotels located in college towns, primarily in the United States, launched in 2014 by Nashville-based real estate company AJ Capital Partners. [1] [2] Each hotel reflects the culture and charm of the nearby university. [1] [3] There are currently 31 operating hotels in the United States and two in England. [4]

Contents

The Graduate Providence originally opened in 1922 as the Providence Biltmore Biltmore Hotel Providence RI 2017.jpg
The Graduate Providence originally opened in 1922 as the Providence Biltmore

History

Graduate Hotels was founded in 2014 by Nashville-based real estate investor Ben Weprin and his firm, AJ Capital Partners. [5] The company launched the Graduate Hotels brand by acquiring and remodeling hotels in university-anchored towns across the country. [6] The first hotel opened in Athens, Georgia in 2014, centered around the University of Georgia. [7]

Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. agreed to buy Graduate Hotels in March 2024. AJ Capital Partners will retain real estate ownership of the existing Graduate properties under new long-term Hilton franchise agreements. [8]

Locations

United States

HotelLocationOpening YearNearby University
Graduate Annapolis Annapolis, Maryland 2019 United States Naval Academy
Graduate Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, Michigan 2016 University of Michigan
Graduate Athens Athens, Georgia 2014 University of Georgia
Graduate Berkeley Berkeley, California 2017 University of California, Berkeley
Graduate Bloomington Bloomington, Indiana 2018 Indiana University
Graduate Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, North Carolina 2020 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Graduate Charlottesville Charlottesville, Virginia 2015 University of Virginia
Graduate Cincinnati Cincinnati, Ohio 2020 University of Cincinnati
Graduate Columbia Columbia, South Carolina 2019 University of South Carolina
Graduate Columbus Columbus, Ohio 2019 Ohio State University
Graduate East Lansing East Lansing, Michigan 2021 Michigan State University
Graduate Eugene Eugene, Oregon 2019 University of Oregon
Graduate Evanston Evanston, Illinois 2020 Northwestern University
Graduate Fayetteville Fayetteville, Arkansas 2019 University of Arkansas
Graduate Iowa City Iowa City, Iowa 2018 University of Iowa
Graduate Knoxville Knoxville, Tennessee 2020 University of Tennessee
Graduate Lincoln Lincoln, Nebraska 2017 University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Graduate Madison Madison, Wisconsin 2015 University of Wisconsin-Madison
Graduate Minneapolis Minneapolis, Minnesota 2017 University of Minnesota
Graduate Nashville Nashville, Tennessee 2020 Vanderbilt University
Graduate New Haven New Haven, Connecticut 2019 Yale University
Graduate Oxford Oxford, Mississippi 2015 University of Mississippi
Graduate Palo Alto Palo Alto, California 2022 Stanford University
Graduate Providence Providence, Rhode Island 2020 Brown University
Graduate Richmond Richmond, Virginia 2017 Virginia Commonwealth University
Graduate Roosevelt Island New York (Roosevelt Island), New York 2021 Cornell Tech
Graduate Seattle Seattle, Washington 2018 University of Washington
Graduate State College State College, Pennsylvania 2019 Pennsylvania State University
Graduate Storrs Storrs, Connecticut 2020 University of Connecticut
Graduate Tempe Tempe, Arizona 2014 Arizona State University
Graduate Tucson Tucson, Arizona 2020 University of Arizona

England

HotelLocationOpening YearNearby University
Graduate Cambridge Cambridge 2021 University of Cambridge
The Randolph Hotel Oxford 2021 University of Oxford

Future

HotelLocationOpening YearNearby University
Graduate Auburn Auburn, Alabama 2024 Auburn University
Graduate Austin Austin, Texas 2025 University of Texas
Graduate Dallas Dallas, Texas 2024 Southern Methodist University
Graduate Princeton Princeton, New Jersey 2024 Princeton University

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References

  1. 1 2 "This college town boutique hotel chain is the anti-Airbnb". CNBC. 2018-02-20. Retrieved 2020-04-28.
  2. "Graduate Hotels graduates into a bigger chain". USA Today. Retrieved 2019-10-15.
  3. "Visiting Colleges? The Era of Staying in a Sad Hotel Is Over". Bloomberg L.P. Retrieved 2019-10-15.
  4. Felice, Selene San. "Loews Annapolis reopens as Graduate Annapolis following remodel". capitalgazette.com. Retrieved 2019-10-15.
  5. Brown, Abram. "The Revivalist: Young Hotelier Ben Weprin Has An Eye For An Aged Luxury Gem". Forbes. Retrieved 2019-10-15.
  6. Rosman, Katherine (2018-07-14). "The Education of a Brotelier". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2019-10-15.
  7. "Boutique Group Graduate Hotels Finds Its Niche in University Towns". Skift. 2017-05-30. Retrieved 2019-10-15.
  8. Clark, Patrick (14 March 2024). "Hilton Agrees to Buy Graduate Hotels Brand for $210 Million". Bloomberg. Retrieved 14 March 2024.