TORONTO, ONTARIO— AFM Hospitality Corp. has inked a deal to acquire Boutique Hotels & Resort, which will broaden the Canadian hotel owner/operator’s reach into a new area of the hospitality market with global distribution and systems. Although specifics of the transaction were not disclosed, AFM said it would continue to operate the acquired business under the Boutique Hotels name as part of a newly formed division called Premier Alliances, which will be headed by Boutique’s Chairman/CEO and founder Martin Buehler. “The transaction will provide us with the means to penetrate the independent upscale segment,” said Lawrence Horwitz, AFM chairman/CEO. “This is sufficiently different than what we have been doing, so it really makes this transaction unique and a good strategic fit.” The new Premier Alliances division was created by AFM just prior to the acquisition in a “sort of one-two-step” aimed at allowing the company to identify and pursue other businesses that fit in the upper tier of the hotel industry, said Horwitz. Boutique will be the first of several new entities to fall in the newly created luxury division under the AFM umbrella, he said. Boutique Hotels & Resorts is a global membership organization. It is comprised of independent, selected boutique hotels and resorts from around the world, ranging in size from as few as 12 rooms to as many as 180 rooms and suites. The membership agreements with upscale and luxury hotels are as far-reaching as Grand Cayman and Thailand. However, the common thread that runs through all of the properties is the sophisticated amenities and personalized service that help define a boutique product. By assembling independent hotels in one collection, Boutique is able to enhance each property’s reach through the latest technology and marketing systems. And now with a powerhouse such as AFM behind the collection, those operational benefits are expected to grow exponentially, said Buehler. “We anticipate we will be able to grow more quickly under AFM than we would have been able to on our own. In addition, we will be able to do so in the manner that has made us so successful. One of the things that attracted us to AFM most was that when they acquired a company, they left the entity intact and allowed it to do what it does best. We really were attracted to that philosophy,” Buehler said. Currently, the Boutique brand consists of 45 hotels and executed agreements worldwide. Given the resources of AFM, Buehler said he anticipates being able to boost the number of hotels affiliated with Boutique to approximately 250 within the next two to three years. “Not only will we grow faster, be we anticipate that AFM will offer our existing hotels better resources, and more quickly than in the past,” Buehler said. “We’re a public company that brings vast resources to this eclectic organization. We believe we can offer benefits in several back-of-house areas such as accounting, finance and marketing. In addition, we have a large staff that will explore cross-selling opportunities to some major accounts and at the various shows our sales staff attends,” said Horwitz, adding that the company was attracted to Boutique for its global presence and innovative technology. AFM plans to maintain the entire executive team at Boutique Hotels once the transaction is complete, which is anticipated to take place by the end of April. As part of the plan to keep as much of Boutique’s resources in place as possible, the company’s offices in Miami, FL and Switzerland will also remain intact. “We want to keep the integrity of the brand and its management intact. We like the management team and are committed to growing the brand with them. The experience and philosophy of Boutique Hotels’ founder and executives is a big part of the reason we were interested in this deal,” said Horwitz. “Martin put together a great brand through an alliance of hotels that has worldwide reach.” Until now, AFM was limited mainly to C