Niels Fennet (born 1944) is a Danish engineer and businessman best known for founding the low-cost hotel chain Cabinn. He is also the owner of the historic inn Store Kro in

Fredensborg Fredensborg () is a railway town located in Fredensborg Municipality, North Zealand, some 30 kilometres north of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is most known for Fredensborg Palace, one of the official residences of the Danish Royal Family. As of 1 Janua ...

Early life and career

Fennet was born in 1944 in

Valby Valby () is one of the 10 official districts of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is in the southwestern corner of Copenhagen Municipality, and has a mixture of different types of housing. This includes apartment blocks, terraced housing, areas with single ...

North Zealand North Zealand, also North Sealand ( da, Nordsjælland), refers to the northern part of the Danish island of Zealand which is not clearly defined but generally covers the area north of Copenhagen. The Danish tourist authorities have recently in ...

but grew up with his mother in the Vesterbro district of Copenhagen after his parents divorced. His mother was a teacher and later became the principal of several primary schools. Fennet studied engineering and opened his own engineering consultancy at age 24. The company grew to have 45 employees.

Founding of the Cabinn chain

In the late 1980s, Fennet conceived the idea for the CABINN chain and decided to use his experience with cost-efficient construction projects in a new venture and sold his company to the employees in 1989. His first hotel opened in Copenhagen in 1990.

Other investments

Fennet also owns a portfolio of other properties. In 2013, Fennet purchased the historic inn Store Kro situated next to

Fredensborg Palace Fredensborg Palace ( da, Fredensborg Slot; ) is a palace located on the eastern shore of Lake Esrum (Danish, ''Esrum Sø'') in Fredensborg on the island of Zealand (''Sjælland'') in Denmark. It is the Danish Royal Family’s spring and autumn ...

Personal life

Niels Fennet lives with his wife Lise Fennet on the

Hegnsholt Hegnsholt is a country house an estate located at Grønholt, between Fredensborg and Hillerød, North Zealand, some 40 km north of Copenhagen, Denmark. The first main building on the estate was built in 1815 to designs by Christian Frederik Hansen ...

estate at Fredensborg north of Copenhagen. They have three daughters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fennet, Niels 20th-century Danish businesspeople Danish company founders People from Gribskov Municipality 1944 births Living people