Flagship Novotel Liverpool Paddington Village hotel gets ready to open with leadership team in place

Legacy Hotels & Resorts has announced senior appointments for the opening of its new Novotel Liverpool Paddington Village hotel, due to open in Liverpool this summer on July 4.

General manager, Howard Lewis, will lead the team responsible for launching the 16-storey, 221-bedroom hotel located in the heart of Knowledge Quarter Liverpool, a world-leading innovation district and home to some of the world’s most influential players in science, health, technology, education, music, and the creative performing arts.

As the highest hotel in the city centre, Novotel Liverpool Paddington Village has been chosen as the flagship hotel for the new £1bn Paddington Village development. Constructed by Morgan Sindall Construction, the Liverpool City Council-owned hotel is franchised by Accor and will be managed by Legacy Hotels & Resorts on the council’s behalf. The hotel has been designed by Ryder Architecture, with Faithful+Gould acting as project managers.

Howard Lewis has almost 30 years’ experience working with hotel brands across the country, including 10 years with Hilton Worldwide. His previous role was general manager at Crewe Hall Hotel. Joining Howard is Sara Mullins as the hotel’s director of sales; Sara comes with over 20 years’ experience in the hospitality industry at director level. Kieran Maxwell also joins the leadership team as head chef, after over 20 years at Hilton.

Howard Lewis, general manager, said: “Novotel Liverpool Paddington Village will be a game changer for Liverpool and will bring something new and exciting to the already world-class hospitality offer the city is renowned for. As one of the first brands to be part of the £1bn Paddington Village development, we also find ourselves in a unique position of being a main player in the city’s vision to be an international destination of significance for life-science, healthcare, and technology industries.

“We are more than just a hotel, and I cannot wait for guests to come through our lobby for an unforgettable hospitality experience, complete with that world-famous Scouse welcome! I want this hotel to be a destination that the local community can be proud of and can call their own.”

Councillor Sarah Doyle, Liverpool City Council’s cabinet member for economy and development, said: “The opening of the city’s new Novotel will be a big moment for Paddington Village and the wider Knowledge Quarter. I wish the hotel every success and all who are employed to work there. Successful regeneration schemes deliver opportunities that change not just the economy but people’s lives and careers, and that is exactly what Paddington Village is doing.”

Stephanie Rowe, Accor VP Marketing for Novotel in Northern Europe, said: “We’re thrilled to have this experienced and accomplished leadership team at the helm of Novotel Liverpool Paddington Village. People are the hospitality industry’s greatest asset and the hotel’s opening will generate a number of career opportunities for the community in this much-loved industry.

“A flagship for the Novotel brand, the hotel will offer state-of-the art facilities for business and leisure travellers, from meeting and conferencing facilities to a children’s recreational space in the lobby. It is the first hotel in the UK to feature the brand’s new global design concept by the internationally renowned Sundukovy Sisters, which encapsulates elegance, modernity, and simplicity in a welcoming social hub open to visitors and locals alike.”

Unique to Novotel Liverpool Paddington Village is its 32 long-stay, apartment-style accommodation – the first property in the UK to feature this new, modern concept – and designed in partnership with key health and education stakeholders in the Knowledge Quarter, specifically for patients, students and relatives attending the nearby hospitals and universities. These include Royal Liverpool University Hospital, Liverpool Women’s Hospital, and the new Clatterbridge Cancer Centre.

International design and architecture studio, The Sundukovy Sisters, have created one of the four designs for these rooms, incorporating a business-oriented approach to co-living that’s mindful of every guest’s wellbeing.

Richard Potts, Liverpool area director for Morgan Sindall Construction, said: “It’s been a privilege for our team to help create yet another landmark for Liverpool. This new Novotel will form a crucial part of the Knowledge Quarter and will allow visitors to our city to see more of this wonderful new innovation district. The success of this project is testament to the highly collaborative nature of its delivery with all partners engaged from the earliest stages to champion a ‘right first time’ and value-added approach to design and delivery.

“Throughout our build programme, we’ve worked with local partners to create employment and training opportunities within the community, championing a local procurement strategy where relevant. Now, the completed building will help make our city even more attractive to visitors from around the world, with all the economic benefits that entails. Its approach to creating a hospitality setting that supports the city’s health and education offer is to be applauded and is yet another example of what makes the Knowledge Quarter so special.”

Paul Bell, partner at Ryder Architecture, said: “Novotel is a bold new addition to Liverpool’s Knowledge Quarter and a commanding presence at the city’s eastern gateway. As a business based in the Knowledge Quarter ourselves, Ryder is proud to have delivered this flagship hotel alongside Liverpool City Council and the project team. We are delighted to see it complete and ready to welcome visitors into the region from around the world, as well as supporting the local economic recovery following the Covid-19 pandemic.”

Anthony Irvine, associate director, Faithful+Gould, said: “It has been a delight to work on this project and the team has worked collaboratively to overcome the challenges a major city centre project generates, particularly with the construction phase commencing at the beginning of the pandemic. Our involvement on this project has been instrumental to Faithful+Gould’ s growth within the region. The nature of the project is also critical to our hospitality sector strategy. We are proud to be part of the team delivering the new Novotel hotel, which will play a key part of the ongoing success of Paddington Village and be one of the first landmark buildings visitors to the city will see as they enter via the eastern gateway.”