Syrian billionaire ‘very keen’ on Melbourne CBD hotel opportunity
Geoff York, who runs Syrian-born billionaire Ghassan Aboud’s Crystalbrook Collection of luxury hotels, says Melbourne is the “missing piece” in the group’s $1 billion portfolio, a gap he is working hard to fill.
“We’re in early conversations with people on a hotel opportunity in Melbourne,” Mr York told The Australian Financial Review.
“Our chairman [Ghassan] likes Melbourne and is very keen on a hotel there. It’s just eluded us to date. We’re fairly positive about the opportunity [we are pursuing],”
While unwilling to elaborate further, Mr York hinted Crystalbrook was keen on a hotel in the city’s east, often referred to as the “Paris end”.
“We don’t want to be in the Docklands area or at the Spencer Street end of town,” he said.
A move into the Victorian capital is part of an expansion drive that will see Crystalbrook open its first hotel in Adelaide in two years’ time and develop a flagship property at The Rocks in Sydney. Discussions are also advanced on another hotel opportunity in the Sydney CBD.
A move into New Zealand is also on the cards. Mr York and his team identified two “real development opportunities in Queenstown” following a visit last year.
“We’re trying to progress one of those,” he said.
The 200-room Adelaide CBD hotel being developed on Halifax Street by Samaras Group will be the first to be operated by Crystalbrook under a hotel management agreement – part of a strategy to move away from a pure ownership model.
“Central to growth is moving into HMAs and undertaking co-investment,” Mr York said.
He said to be selected as the operator of the Adelaide hotel – to be called Crystalbrook Sam – was testament to the group’s robust operating platform and its strong track record as a hotel owner.
“Because we own hotels, we get valuations and cap rates and developers really like that. We’re not just another hotel operator,” he said.
Middle East family business
A second HMA deal is “98 per cent” finalised in Sydney, Mr York said, while it was also open to HMA deals in markets such as the Gold Coast.
Financing this expansion is Dubai-based Mr Aboud, whose GA Group is one of the biggest family businesses in the Middle East with operations spanning automotive, retail, hospitality, food, logistics, catering, media and healthcare.
The Adelaide hotel will be Crystalbrook’s eighth property. Its portfolio includes three hotels in Cairns and one each in Byron Bay, Sydney, Newcastle and Brisbane.
“We are delighted to expand our footprint into South Australia, delivering a new style of luxury, innovation and sustainably led hospitality to the state,” Mr Aboud said.
Alongside a move into Adelaide, Crystalbrook is set to expand its presence in Sydney in the coming years when it undertakes a “top-to-toe” refurbishment of the former Rydges Sydney Harbour at The Rocks, which it bought for $100 million in 2022.
The 176-room hotel was last week debranded as a Rydges and will operate as the Sydney Harbour Hotel.
“We’ll run it as the Sydney Harbour Hotel this year, but the bigger play is a complete repositioning [as a Crystalbrook property], which will require closure of the hotel for a year,” Mr York said,
Crystalbrook’s plans include putting a restaurant and bar on the hotel’s rooftop, which looks out over the Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge.
“It’s in an incredible location and the hotel has great bones. It trades in the mid- to high-80 per cent occupancy range and is at the top of its comparative set in terms of average daily rate. But it needs a new lease of life,” he said.
