Thai investor has DTGO has restructured ownership of its UK hotel portfolio, ahead of plans to expand and upgrade its holdings.
The group has owned 17 UK hotels since acquiring them in late 2019 from Marathon Asset Management. The properties are operated under DoubleTree, Hilton Garden Inn, Crowne Plaza, Indigo, Holiday Inn and AC Hotels branding, in UK regional locations including Birmingham, Liverpool, Glasgow and Manchester.
DTGO has reversed the portfolio into a Singapore-listed shell company, which has been renamed ProsperCap. While DTGO retains a majority shareholding in the new vehicle, the listing has enabled new investors to come on board, and provided flexibility as plans are laid for further growth of the portfolio. ProsperCap has said it is committed to a “long term value add investment strategy that focuses on innovation”.
As of early 2024, the portfolio includes seven Crowne Plaza hotels, three Hilton Garden Inn and three DoubleTree hotels, plus two AC by Marriott properties in Birmingham and Manchester, Hotel Indigo in Liverpool and Holiday Inn Peterborough West.
Plans for growth
Iqbal Jumabhoy, CEO of ProsperCap, explained in an interview: “We now look forward to further bolstering our presence as an owner and manager in the global hospitality and lodging-related market.”
Valor Hospitality has remained a long term manager of the properties, having previously handled them for Marathon. With new owner DTGO, they worked together through the pandemic period, maintaining the continued employment of staff in the firm belief that such a move would serve all parties well, once trading restrictions were over.
Starting in 2023, and moving into 2024, Valor has overseen a refurbishment of the Hilton branded hotels in the portfolio.
“As we begin this new journey with ProsperCap, we’re confident in future opportunities,” commented Euan McGlashan, global co-founder and CEO of Valor Hospitality. “We are keenly focused on our mutual growth aspirations and continuing to work with partners who are just as passionate about excellence as we are.”
Leveraging the network
Looking ahead, Jumabhoy said: “The group intends to leverage the extensive network of the DTGO Group as well as our relationships with this parties, to acquire currently operational and revenue-generating hospitality or lodging assets such as hotels, serviced apartments or purpose-built student or worker dormitories, all over the world.” He has also spoken of plans for “a number of asset enhancement initiatives” for the existing portfolio.
As a third party manager, Valor has added to its UK managed portfolio alongside the DGTO properties, and now operates 34 branded properties across the UK, as well as having contracts for two upcoming hotels in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
