Bolsa de Madrid
A 1996 split of the company into two separate businesses, one for hotel ownership (Inmotel) and another for management (Sol Meliá, which listed on the Bolsa de Madrid), was reversed three years later amid major consolidation in the industry. Gabriel Escarrer Sr. subsequently stepped down from the chief executive role, replaced by his sons Gabriel Jr. and Sebastian, who became deputy CEO. The following year brief takeover talks were held with Hilton International, but Sol Meliá instead chose to make an acquisition of its own, paying €360 million for smaller peer Tryp Hotels. Tryp had come close to being purchased by rival chain NH Hoteles a year earlier. Tryp continued to exist as a separate brand within the Sol Meliá group. Rights to the Tryp brand were sold to Wyndham Worldwide in 2010, but Sol Meliá continues to own and operate the hotels under a licensing agreement.