New ownership group promises few changes for downtown mainstay Scott’s Inn

KAMLOOPS — Scott’s Inn and Suites, a hotel that has served travellers in Kamloops for more than four decades is getting a new owner. Invictus Properties recently announced it has acquired the 60-year-old establishment. The parent company with Rocky Mountaineer has had their employees stay at the hotel for the last 40 years. However, only a handful of them stayed at the inn last year, which was an inconvenience.

“Rocky Mountaineer found that was very disjointed for their employee group,” Bryan Pilbeam, Chief Operating Officer of Invictus Properties told CFJC Today. “The employee experience is super important. To have everybody together off of the train, spend the evening together and stay nightly at this hotel was super important.”

The hotel will be exclusively for Rocky Mountaineer staff from April to October. Invictus Properties says they will, however, keep all staff members and only make minor improvements to the restaurant.

“We’d just be doubling down on the enviroment that’s there, so maybe giving it more of a traditional diner feel,” Pilbeam said. “It would just be sort of the aesthetics there and keeping the real heart and legacy that has been there for so long.”

Former owner Al Patel, who first took ownership of the hotel in 1989, says Scott’s Inn was a family business focused on providing the best customer experience.

“It is what they take away from here and I think we’ve done a good job of it,” Patel said. “People write about it and they always tell me never found a better place in Kamloops than Scott’s [Inn].”

Despite the change in management, Invictus Group says there are no changes to the restaurant as it remains open to the public.