Starwood Capital pumps US$250m into Yotel

First Yotel in Asia to open in Singapore soon

A fund affiliated with private investment firm Starwood Capital Group will invest US$250 million in Yotel, a hotel company known for affordable rooms and innovation, and acquire a 30 per cent stake in the company.

The partnership with Starwood Capital Group comes as Yotel celebrates its 10th anniversary, after a year that saw such openings as the Yotel Boston and Yotel San Francisco in North America and Yotel Singapore, which will open on October 1 to become the brand’s first hotel in Asia.

First Yotel in Asia to open in Singapore soon

Adding to an ongoing partnership, the investment is expected to further enable Yotel’s worldwide expansion, with a specific focus on Europe, North America and Asia.

At the point of the announcement, Starwood had already secured city centre sites in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Amsterdam which are expected to open as Yotels by 2019.

Barry Sternlicht, chairman and CEO of Starwood Capital Group, said: “Yotel has global appeal and can be easily scaled up with key strategic acquisitions and developments in desired city centre and airport locations.”

Hubert Viriot, CEO of Yotel, commented: “Yotel is growing rapidly with 15 hotels currently at various stages of development. We look forward to leveraging Starwood’s investment, design, operational and technological expertise to expand our platform, attract talent and enter additional markets whilst continuing to work closely with our existing partners and fostering new relationships as we take our brand to the next level.”

Cody Bradshaw, managing director, head of European hotels at Starwood Capital Group and Sarah Broughton, senior vice president, Starwood Capital Group will join the Yotel board of directors, alongside representatives of the company’s major shareholders including the Jassim Al Bahar Group, IFA Hotels & Resorts, United Investment Portugal and Aqarat which jointly own 65 per cent stake in the company.

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