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Exclusive: Sir Richard Branson Eyeing Atlanta Entry For Hotel Chain

A piece of Sir Richard Branson's empire could be coming to Atlanta. The hotel piece.

Diego Lowenstein Lionstone Development
Photo credit: Lionstone Development

Miami developer Lionstone Development has been tapped by Virgin Hotels to expand the new concept throughout the US, including possible locations in Metro Atlanta.

We learned the news from Lionstone CEO Diego Lowenstein, who developed Virgin's debut hotel in Chicago last year. Diego says its plans in Atlanta are preliminary. The firm has scouted sites, but has yet to firm up a location.

Virgin Hotel Chicago
Photo credit: Virgin Hotels

Part of Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group companies, the Virgin Hotels concept is a lifestyle hotel that comes with some unique twists, including early check-in and late check-out, mini-bars with “fair prices” and rooms that separate lounge, dressing and bathrooms into mini-suites. It's a brand that Diego says could see upward of 40 locations—with between 200 and 300 units each—in the US and Canada.

Virgin Hotels Chicago
Photo credit: Virgin.com

For now, the most imminent Virgin expansion is likely in South Florida—Lionstone's home turf—where the developer is scouting sites for at least two Virgin hotels, including in Miami Beach, Downtown Miami and Fort Lauderdale, Diego says. The debut location in Chicago opened inside the historic Dearborn Bank Building (here), a 27-story Art Deco redevelopment, in 2015.

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