Dixie Dean hotel will open next month

20 June 2019

Signature Living, the Liverpool based hotel operator and developer which has a portfolio of 10 hotels, has confirmed that it will open the £10m Dixie Dean hotel in Liverpool on the 12th July 2019.

The 100 bedroom boutique designer hotel has been built in tribute to Everton FC and England football legend Dixie Dean who was one of the greatest goal scorers of all time for his club Everton and England.

The project is a joint venture between Lawrence and Katie Kenwright’s Signature Living Hotel Group and the family of Dixie Dean; including his daughter Barbara Dean and Granddaughter Melanie Prentice.

Guests can expect a modern boutique style hotel which also embraces the iconic past and Grandeur of the Grade II listed Gothic Jerome & Carlisle building. With nods and cues to Dean’s prolific and historic career.

The Dixie Dean will feature a 160 cover restaurant aptly named “No.9” after the shirt that Dean wore whilst at Everton. “No.9” will have an extensive menu which will include unlimited breakfast buffet, afternoon teas, lunch menu and a la carte menu for the evening. “No.9” will stock premium spirits, a selection of wines and an extensive themed cocktail menu.

The interior will feature the original full length windows of the listed building which have been retained to ensure optimum light and air into the building. The bar and restaurant areas have a rustic industrial feel with original beams, wooden panelling and brickwork retained in a nod to its Gothic architecture.

Vibrant colours - including Everton FC Royal and aqua blue - feature throughout the interior with deep luxurious upholstered chairs, sofas and fabrics. Intelligent mood lighting highlights the innovative interior design and use of Gold and copper metals throughout. Images and memorabilia from the legendary footballer combine with subtle design cues in tribute to the life and career of Dixie Dean.

The DIXIE DEAN is situated on Victoria Street overlooking Signature Living’s flagship hotel The Shankly, which was built in tribute to legendary Liverpool Manager Bill Shankly MBE.

Shankly once described Dean as “The greatest centre forward there will ever be. His record of goalscoring is the most amazing thing under the sun. He belongs in the company of the supremely great, like Beethoven, Shakespeare and Rembrandt.”

Commenting on the forthcoming opening of the hotel, Dixie Dean’s Granddaughter co owner and Guest Relations Director Melanie Prentice said; “We are thrilled and excited to open the doors to the Dixie Dean hotel in July. My Grandad would be extremely proud of what we have achieved with the hotel. I think he would really approve of the interior design and a hotel celebrating his life. If he were here now he would take a seat in the corner of the hotel with a trusty pint of Guinness and have a laugh and a chat with the customers and fans coming to the hotel named in his honour.

"This is a really exciting time for all of us, my mum Barbara, Dixie’s daughter is absolutely thrilled as we all are to see what was the start of an idea blossom into a reality. Working with Lawrence and Katie Kenwright and Chris Carline - Bill Shankly’s Grandson - has been a real pleasure and we are so excited for the future. Without their help and support we wouldn’t have been able to make this a reality.”

Signature Living Chairman Lawrence Kenwright added; “I am thrilled and delighted that we will get to open the doors to the Dixie Dean on the 12th July. As a true Evertonian it is a particularly proud moment for myself and Katie to celebrate the life of Everton’s greatest goalscorer of all time. Once again we have breathed new life into one of Liverpool’s listed buildings to create a hotel that celebrates the footballing life of an icon and a legend.

"Our goal was always to build two iconic hotels that would represent the two greatest football teams in English football and to leave a lasting legacy to Everton and Liverpool football clubs. There is no country in the world that has two iconic hotels, side by side celebrating the rich history of their football teams and city with two revered footballing icons

"What made this even more unique - was not only the locations of each hotel being across the road from each other - but that we had the full support and blessing of Dixie’s family, without that we would not have been able to do justice to the project. There is no better person than Melanie as our Guest Relations Director. She adds real gravitas to the hotel, she is passionate about Everton and passionate about continuing the legacy of her Grandad.”

The legendary goalscorer - who scored 60 goals in a single season and 383 goals in his Everton career - set the benchmark for such modern football icons as Lionel Messi and Gerd Muller and a record which still stands today.

Signature Living is the UK’s leading football themed hotel operator with four football themed hotels including The Shankly Liverpool, The Shankly Preston, the soon to open Dixie Dean hotel and the George Best hotel in Belfast due to open later this year.

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