Hong Kong group pays $40m for Brisbane’s Emporium hotel
One of Brisbane’s most iconic hotels, the stylish Emporium in Fortitude Valley, has been picked up by Hong Kong’s Ovolo Hotels group in a deal worth about $40 million.
Developed 10 years ago by Tony John of the Anthony John Group, the multi-award-winning hotel was sold in an off-market deal by CBRE Hotels national director Wayne Bunz in little more than four weeks.
Bunz refused to comment on the price but industry sources say the sale has been negotiated at about $41 million. The deal doubles Ovolo Group’s exposure to Brisbane to more than 150 rooms in just over 12 months.
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John took the difficult decision to sell the 102-room Emporium Hotel to focus on the opening of the Anthony John Group’s Southpoint Emporium Hotel, also in Brisbane.
Founded 15 years ago by Girish Jhunjhnuwala, Ovolo is one of Hong Kong’s largest independent hoteliers to remain family owned and privately operated. Ovolo runs four serviced hotels and apartments in Hong Kong, as well as three hotels in Sydney and Melbourne.
Ovolo chief executive and chairman Jhunjhnuwala says he is excited to take the Emporium to the next level with Ovolo’s luxury design interiors and all-inclusive hospitality concept.
Ovolo is buoyed by an expected increase in Brisbane’s tourism numbers given Brisbane Airport’s expansion plans, the city’s new international cruise terminal development and the redevelopment of the Queens Wharf precinct. The sale’s settlement will be finalised in April.
This article originally appeared on www.theaustralian.com.au/property.
