Mr.

Accor est l'hospitalitй. The company is one of the world's leading hotel operators, owning or managing almost 4,000 properties in 90 countries throughout the world. It serves travelers through its upscale brands Lenфtre and Sofitel, as well as its midscale Novotel, Mercure, and Suitehotel, and economy chains Ibis and Formule 1. In North America it operates budget brands Motel 6 and Red Roof Inns. Accor also owns a 29% stake in resorts operator Club Mйditerranйe, and 34% of casino hotel company Groupe Lucien Barriиre. In addition, Accor operates or owns stakes in several hospitality and food services; its Accor services unit provides outsourced benefits services to more than 340,000 corporate customers.

Key numbers for fiscal year ending December, 2006:

Sales: $10,029.3M

One year growth: 11.1%

Net income: $661.0M

Income growth: 67.6%

Officers:

Company Perspectives:

With 158,000 people in 140 countries, Accor is the European leader and a global operator in its two core businesses, Hotels and Services. It also operates in travel agencies, casinos, restaurants, and onboard train services.

Key Dates:

* 1967: Gйrard Pelisson and Paul Dubrule open the first Novotel hotel.

* 1973: Sphere S.A. is created as a holding company.

* 1974: The first Ibis hotel is opened.

* 1975: The Mercure hotel chain is acquired.

* 1979: Novotel opens its first U.S. hotel in Minneapolis.

* 1980: Novotel-SIEH acquires a stake in Jacques Borel International, owner of Sofitel hotels.

* 1982: Novotel-SIEH becomes the sole owner of the Sofitel chain.

* 1983: The Novotel, SIEH, and JBI holdings are incorporated as Accor S.A.

* 1985: Accor partners with Lenфtre, a baking and catering company.

* 1990: Motel 6 becomes part of the Accor family.

* 1992: Accor buys a majority stake in Belgium's Wagons-Lits.

* 1994: Accor's Wagonlit travel agency and Carlson Travel form a partnership.

* 1997: Carlson and Wagonlit merge with Accor's travel business; company retains a half-interest in the new firm, named Carlson Wagonlit Travel.

* 1999: Accor acquires the Red Roof Inn chain in the United States.

* 2000: Accor launches the Accorhotels.com web site.

* 2001: Accor partners with the Beijing Tourism Group and Zenith Hotel International for expansion in China.

* 2003: Carlson Wagonlit Travel and France's Protravel S.A. merge.

* 2005: Several Accor properties are damaged by a devastating tsunami in Southeast Asia.

* Incorporated: 1983

NAIC: 721110 Hotels and Motels (Except Casino Hotels); 722110 Full-Service Restaurants; 722211 Limited-Service Restaurants; 561510 Travel Agencies; 713210 Casinos (Except Casino Hotels)

* Paris-based Accor S.A. is Europe's leading hospitality group with almost 4,000 hotels in 85 countries around the world. Accor provides hotels in every range, from the five-star Sofitel chain to budget-priced Formule 1, Etap, and Ibis in Europe, Motel 6 and Red Roof Inns in the United States, and midrange Novotel and Mercure in Europe and the Asia/Pacific Rim region. In addition to its hotel properties, Accor is active in travel and leisure through its half-interest in Carlson Wagonlit Travel, offering package tours and resorts in 33 countries. Accor also provides its worldwide customer base with foodservices (restaurants and employee vouchers), casinos, and onboard railway services (sleeping berths and dining).

* In 1967 Gйrard Pelisson and Paul Dubrule opened their first Novotel hotel on a roadside near Lille in northern France. Travel was booming in France in the 1960s and the hotel industry had not yet expanded to meet the demand. French hotels, in general, were either rural inns or luxury hotels in city centers. Dubrule decided to build American-style highway hotels in the medium price range and collaborated with Pelisson, a former head of market research at IBM-Europe. Through Pelisson's connections the partners were able to secure a bank loan, and the Novotel firm was launched. The company's ensuing success was in large part due to its being first to break into the unexploited European market for highway lodging. Each Novotel provided standardized rooms, ample parking facilities, and restaurants featuring local cuisine. Soon Novotels also were established at airports and popular vacation sites, such as the seaside and mountain areas.

* Pelisson and Dubrule developed their expanding company with a philosophy of decentralized management and a unique dual chairmanship. Although to comply with French law the partners took turns holding the official position of chairman, they made all decisions jointly and shared responsibilities, immersing themselves in all aspects of the business. The company's specialty became variety, providing hotel chains to fit every need. In 1973 Sphere S.A. was created as a holding company for a new chain of two-star, no-frills hotels, called Ibis; the first Ibis was opened the following year. During this time, the company also acquired Courte Paille, a chain of roadside steakhouses founded in 1961, which reflected many of the same priorities as Novotel: practicality, easy parking, consistent quality, and quick service.

* The acquisition of the Mercure hotel chain in 1975 pushed the company into metropolitan areas and the business traveler market, and these hotels varied according to regional demands in style, character, and restaurant offerings. By the end of the 1970s Novotel had become the premier hotel chain in Europe with 240 establishments in Europe, Africa, South America, and the Far East.

* In 1980 Novotel invested in Jacques Borel International, which owned restaurants and the luxury Sofitel hotel chain. Jacques Borel had begun his career with the establishment of one restaurant in 1957 and by 1975, when he took over Belgium's Sofitel chain, he was Europe's top restaurateur. After losses in the hotel business forced Borel to sell the Sofitel chain to