Garretts hire brings Queens Moat Houses to BLP

Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) has won new client Queens Moat Houses through Garretts lateral Andrew Little, who joined in May 2002 when the accountancy-tied firm collapsed.
Little, a former general counsel for Holiday Inn Hotels, had several key clients, including Muirgold, the Hilton Hotel Corporation and conference centre operator Hailey.
He has just advised Queens Moat Houses on a 10-year franchise agreement with Holiday Inn that provides for Queens Moat Houses to use the Holiday Inn branding.
Little and BLP hotels group partners Daniel Braham and Karen Nightingale advised. Holiday Inn was advised in-house by Godfrey Spickernell, the senior corporate counsel at parent company InterContinental Hotels Group.
Little said: "This deal shows the importance of hotel brands, particularly when trading conditions are difficult. In the United States about 70 per cent of hotels are branded, but in Europe the figure is nearer 20 per cent."