How do you open a Staybridge Suites franchise in the United States?
A new Staybridge Suites hotel must open within 24 months after the License date unless Holiday Hospitality Franchising, LLC approves a written extension. The system does not disclose one complete timeline for every transaction type: conversions, changes of ownership, and re-licensings follow property-specific Property Improvement Plan and Attachment B milestones. The practical path is therefore milestone-based, ending only with written IHG opening authorization.
Legal franchisor: Holiday Hospitality Franchising, LLC; direct parent Six Continents Hotels, Inc.; ultimate parent InterContinental Hotels Group PLC.
Disclosure basis: Staybridge Suites 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document, issued April 2, 2026.
Official paths: New Development, Conversion, Change of Ownership, and Re-Licensing under a site-specific License Agreement.
Timeline mode: Milestone-only across all paths, with an official outer deadline for New Development.
Documents reviewed: Items 1, 5-12, 15-17 and 20; Franchise Application; License Agreement; Attachments A-C; relevant technology and service agreements.
Date checked: July 15, 2026. See the official IHG hotel development site and official Staybridge Suites brand site.
FDD references in this article are plain-text citations because no matching franchise-controlled public copy was verified. Contract terms should be checked against the final License, Attachment A, Attachment B, state addenda, and every required participation agreement.
Before a binding agreement or covered payment.
Each uses one License with path-specific work.
Key Programs training may run up to this length.
The License normally grants no exclusive territory.
Sources: 2026 FDD cover; Items 1, 11 and 12; License Attachment A. The federal timing rule is explained in the FTC Franchise Rule Compliance Guide and codified in 16 CFR 436.2.
What are the actual steps from inquiry to opening authorization?
The sequence below separates applicant actions, Holiday or IHG approvals, and outside dependencies. Approval of one stage does not automatically satisfy the next stage.
Define the transaction and proposed hotel
Action: Identify the brand, address or proposed site, suite count, development type, site control, management approach, financing plan, and estimated opening date.
Actor: Applicant.
Blocker: A proposal may be rejected if it does not fit IHG brand strategy or the applicant cannot document the project.
Receive and review the FDD before applying with payment
Action: Sign the FDD receipt, review the disclosure and agreements, and observe the federal pre-sale period before submitting the signed application and Application Fee.
Actor: Applicant and Holiday.
Next dependency: The application package must be complete enough for evaluation.
Submit the qualification and project package
Action: Provide ownership records, resumes, hotel experience, financial statements, guarantor information, financing sources, site-control evidence, projections, competitive data, and project-cost estimates.
Actor: Applicant and each required owner or guarantor.
Blocker: Incomplete, inaccurate, or materially changed information can delay or defeat approval.
Obtain committee approval and execute the governing documents
Action: After IHG Franchise Approval Committee approval, execute the site-specific License, Guaranty if required, and applicable affiliate or service agreements.
Actor: Holiday, Licensee, guarantors, and named affiliates.
Blocker: Conditional approval may be revoked if its stated conditions are not met; the Application Fee becomes nonrefundable after approval.
Secure site rights and assemble the approved project team
Action: Maintain possession rights, obtain approval for any lease or management arrangement, and retain an approved architect, interior designer, general contractor, and required consultants.
Actor: Licensee, landlord, consultants, and Holiday.
Blocker: IHG site review is not a legal, zoning, commercial-viability, or fitness approval.
Complete design review and the path-specific work
Action: Attend required design and construction sessions, submit plans, obtain written plan approvals, then build or complete the PIP without unauthorized design or vendor substitutions.
Actor: Licensee team and IHG Plan Review or Openings personnel.
Blocker: Construction cannot begin before required final-plan and pre-construction accessibility submissions are accepted.
Install systems, procure required products, hire, and train
Action: Deploy the approved PMS, reservation, payment, Wi-Fi, signage, safety, and other systems; complete mandatory supplier arrangements; hire management and staff; complete required training and certifications.
Actor: Licensee, SCH, suppliers, trainers, and employees.
Blocker: Uninstalled technology, untrained managers, missing insurance, permits, or supplier approvals prevent readiness.
Pass readiness review and obtain written permission to open
Action: Complete the Hotel, submit certificates and notices, pass IHG's opening inspection, resolve deficiencies, and receive written approval establishing the Opening Date.
Actor: Licensee, architect, fire/life-safety professional, government authorities, and IHG.
Blocker: Inspection, training, or construction completion alone does not authorize Brand System operation.
Sources: 2026 FDD Items 1, 5, 8-12, 15 and 17; Franchise Application pp. 1-12; License paragraphs 1, 3, 8, 9 and 13.J; Attachments A-C.
What must an applicant qualify for and disclose?
The 2026 FDD does not publish a universal minimum credit score, fixed net-worth threshold, or liquid-capital threshold for every Staybridge Suites applicant. Holiday evaluates the proposed licensee using the application, credit and background information, hotel and operating experience, financial capacity, project financing, market feasibility, prior dealings, and any conditions imposed by the IHG Franchise Approval Committee.
The application requires the ownership chain and percentage interests, with personal financial statements from each sole proprietor, general partner, managing tenant in common, owner holding at least 25%, and additional guarantor. It also asks for entity formation documents, resumes, hotel quality reports where applicable, bankruptcy and litigation disclosures, lender and equity information, site control, development responsibility, operating projections, competitive hotels, and estimated project costs.
The Guaranty form contains blank fields for deal-specific net-worth and liquid-asset covenants. Before signing, verify who must guarantee the License, the exact thresholds inserted, whether the value of the Hotel is excluded, and whether those covenants continue throughout the term. Meeting any stated threshold does not require Holiday to approve the application.
Holiday requires direct management control but does not generally require the owner to manage the Hotel personally. The License may instead require an acceptable management company or a General Manager and Director of Sales with specified hotel experience. Holiday's written consent is required before entering a hotel lease, management agreement, or similar operating arrangement.
Sources: 2026 FDD Item 15, pp. 80-82; Item 17, pp. 82-85; Franchise Application pp. 1-12; License Guaranty. The published application establishes requested evidence, not guaranteed approval criteria.
Which disclosed deadlines control design and construction?
The License inserts property-specific dates in Attachment A. The FDD also discloses three process periods that help a buyer test whether the proposed schedule is internally workable; they are deadlines or limits, not an opening forecast.
Bar length compares months only; each label states its own contractual trigger.
Interpretation: design submissions are front-loaded, while the construction limit uses a different start event. The periods must not be added as though all work were sequential.
Source: 2026 FDD Item 11, pp. 65-66. Attachment A may state stricter project dates; Attachment B requires uninterrupted progress after construction starts, subject to its terms.
An extension is not automatic. IHG must approve it in writing, the Licensee pays processing expenses, and extensions can trigger stated fees. Failure to perform the Work or meet Attachment A and B milestones is a material breach and may support termination and liquidated damages under paragraph 13.J.
How does the opening path change for a conversion or hotel acquisition?
New Development
Attachment B contains the full design, Ground Break, construction, furnishing, certification, and opening-readiness sequence. Prototype plans must be adapted by an approved architect, and construction starts only after required approvals.
Verify: every date inserted in Attachment A, site-possession evidence, plan-review lead times, permits, financing conditions, and extension terms.
Conversion
Holiday inspects the property before the application so it can prepare a Property Improvement Plan. The PIP becomes Attachment B and states required renovations, plan dates, milestones, completion dates, and the opening deadline.
Verify: whether the building can satisfy brand, accessibility, life-safety, technology, suite-layout, and supplier requirements before committing to the property.
Change of Ownership
The buyer submits a new application and fees, must be approved under current criteria, signs the then-current License and Guaranty, and completes the property-specific PIP or deficiency work required for continued Brand System operation.
Verify: whether uninterrupted operation is permitted, which systems must be replaced, and which seller obligations remain unresolved.
Re-Licensing
Re-Licensing is discretionary after a prior License expires. It is not a renewal right. Holiday may require a new License on materially different terms, current upgrading work, updated technology, approvals, and new guaranties.
Verify: the exact condition of the Hotel, remaining work, term, inserted financial covenants, and any gap in authorization to use the Marks.
Sources: 2026 FDD Items 1, 5, 11, 15 and 17; License Attachment B for New Development and the separate Attachment B form for Change of Ownership, Conversion and Re-Licensing.
Who controls each opening dependency?
No single party controls the whole schedule. Holiday controls franchise approval, brand-plan review, supplier exceptions, inspection, and written opening authorization; the Licensee controls financing, site rights, project delivery, staffing, and submissions; outside parties control permits, construction execution, professional certifications, and many system installations.
Applicant / Licensee
- Complete application and disclosures
- Obtain financing and site rights
- Hire the project and hotel teams
- Submit plans, certificates, and notices
- Finish Work and cure deficiencies
Holiday / IHG / SCH
- Evaluate and approve the application
- Issue the License and project requirements
- Review brand compliance of plans
- Provide disclosed training and systems support
- Inspect and grant written opening approval
Third parties
- Landlord or seller provides property rights
- Lender funds under its own conditions
- Authorities issue permits and occupancy approval
- Architect and life-safety expert certify work
- Contractors and suppliers deliver the Hotel
Interpretation: IHG assistance does not shift the Licensee's responsibility for legal compliance, commercial viability, financing, construction, employees, or third-party performance.
Sources: 2026 FDD Items 8, 10, 11 and 15; License Attachment B. For federal accessibility background, see the U.S. Department of Justice ADA Title III primer.
The License applies to one approved location and normally grants no exclusive territory. Holiday may reject a site for brand-strategy reasons, but its review does not determine market feasibility, zoning, code compliance, utility sufficiency, or fitness for hotel use. Those remain applicant and third-party dependencies.
What must be complete before IHG can authorize opening?
The opening condition is broader than passing a physical inspection. The Licensee must have the approved Hotel constructed or upgraded, all opening equipment and systems installed and working, accounts current, required insurance documented, governmental approvals in place, accessibility and fire/life-safety certifications submitted, management employed, required training completed, and written notice delivered that the Hotel is ready.
Required participants include the General Manager and the entire hotel staff for Key Programs pre-opening training. The General Manager, Front Office Manager, Director of Sales, Executive Housekeeper, designated food-and-beverage colleagues, Hotel Experience Champion, and other specified department heads must complete applicable certification or role-based training. Holiday does not hire the Hotel's employees.
Pre-opening procurement also includes approved signage, the designated Cloud PMS and reservation connection, IHG Concerto access and training, payment systems, IHG Connect, required property technology, approved uniforms, mandated food-and-beverage programs, and other Standards-controlled products. Non-approved vendors or products require prior written approval and may add review time.
Sources: 2026 FDD Items 5, 8 and 11; License Attachment B, pp. B-1-B-4; Exhibits G-1 through G-11 as applicable to the Hotel.
What can delay or prevent the Staybridge Suites opening?
| Dependency | What must be verified | Opening consequence |
|---|---|---|
| Application conditions | All committee conditions, owners, guarantors, and financial evidence remain accurate. | Approval can be revoked; the approved Application Fee is nonrefundable. |
| Site and financing | Possession rights, lender conditions, zoning, utilities, permits, and project funding align. | Plans, construction, or occupancy may not proceed. |
| Plan and vendor approval | Only approved plans, architects, designers, signs, systems, and required suppliers are used. | Work may stop; products may require removal or re-review. |
| Construction or PIP milestones | Attachment A and B dates, progress reports, extensions, and cure obligations are satisfied. | Fees, default, termination, or liquidated damages may follow. |
| Opening readiness | Training, staffing, insurance, certifications, systems, accounts, and inspection issues are closed. | IHG can withhold written authorization or require Additional Work. |
IHG may allow a conditional opening with unfinished Additional Work, but this is discretionary, must be documented, and does not erase the remaining deadlines. A buyer should not model a conditional opening as an entitlement or assume that an extension request will be approved.
What should a buyer confirm before committing?
The verified path is FDD receipt and review, complete application, committee approval, License and guaranty execution, site and project-team control, design or PIP approval, construction and systems deployment, staffing and training, inspection, and written IHG authorization. The total timeline is undisclosed across all four paths, although New Development carries a contractual outer opening deadline. The main applicant-controlled dependency is a financeable, fully documented project delivered to approved plans; the main outside dependency is coordinated permitting, construction, certification, supplier, and IHG review. Before signing, confirm every inserted Attachment A date, Attachment B milestone, extension condition, guarantor covenant, and opening-authorization requirement.