Hind Group pays $38m for Rendezvous Sydney Central Hotel
Naumi Hospitality, which is part of Hong Kong’s Hind Group, has paid $38 million for the Rendezvous Sydney Central Hotel from pubs magnate Bruce Mathieson.
Property records reveal the four-star hotel in Sydney’s Haymarket was purchased in July by Gaurang Jhunjhnuwala, who controls the the Naumi Hospitality stable within The Hind Group.
A major player with holdings throughout Hong Kong and Singapore, The Hind Group also owns the Ovolo Hotels, which is one of the most active entrants into Sydney hotel circles, buying two hotels in two years including Hotel 1888 in Ultimo and the Blue Hotel in Woolloomooloo.
Naumi is yet to establish a presence in Sydney, although the group’s website advertises its first Sydney hotel as “coming soon”.
The deal comes at the end of a frantic 18 months during which large-scale Southeast Asian groups including Far East Organisation, Hiap Hoe and Aspial have emerged as the buyers behind some of Australia’s largest hotel sales.
A flurry of development activity in Sydney’s CBD — such as large projects at Darling Harbour, Barangaroo and Sydney’s Circular Quay — are improving conditions for hotels, according to JLL Hotels and Hospitality managing director Mark Durran said, who brokered the deal. “With over $4 billion being invested in and around the International Convention Centre Sydney development, which is set to open in late 2016, surrounding hotels such as the Rendezvous are likely to be key beneficiaries,” the agent said.
Located opposite Central Station, the Rendezvous is five minutes walk from the new convention centre precinct.
It has 116 rooms in addition to conference facilities, retail and a restaurant and bar, and currently operates under Toga Far East’s TFE Hotels brand.
Melbourne showed stronger growth than Sydney with revenue per available room increasing by 6.5 per cent for the year to July.
But fortunes in Sydney could be improving, with recent transactions including The Westin Sydney, Hilton Sydney, Sheraton on the Park, Blue Sydney and Clocktower Square complex including Rendezvous Hotel The Rocks, all brokered through JLL Hotels & Hospitality Group.
“The Sydney hotel market continues to show strong growth with latest year-to-date July data showing occupancy rates of 87 per cent and RevPar growth of per cent driven mainly by solid average room rate increases,” Mr Durran said.
Source: The Australian, Samantha Hutchinson, 27th August 2015
Originally published as: Hind Group pays $38m for Rendezvous Sydney Central Hotel
