Hyatt Hotels Corporation has confirmed its planned acquisition of the brands and most of the affiliates of pioneering lifestyle company Standard International, parent company of The Standard and Bunkhouse Hotels brands. The newest addition to The Standard’s portfolio is The StandardX Melbourne which opened this month in the Victorian capital.
Hyatt says this latest deal enhances the group’s position as “the leader in the industry’s premier lifestyle space, building on both its organic growth and a series of acquisitions that quintupled the number of lifestyle rooms in Hyatt’s global portfolio between 2017 and 2023”.
With this transaction, Hyatt will form a new dedicated lifestyle group that will be headquartered in New York City. Led by Amar Lalvani, Executive Chairman of Standard International, the lifestyle group will leverage Hyatt’s best-in-class operational and loyalty infrastructure while assuming distinct leadership across key functions including experience creation, design, marketing, programming, public relations, restaurants, nightlife and entertainment. The new lifestyle group will be made up of the talented Standard International team as well as Hyatt colleagues.
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The acquired portfolio will be 100% asset-light and includes management, franchise and license contracts for 21 open hotels with approximately 2,000 rooms, including The Standard, London, The Standard, High Line in New York City, The Standard, Bangkok Mahanakhon and boutique properties such as Hotel Saint Cecilia in Austin, Texas and Hotel San Cristóbal in Baja California, Mexico.
Following the closing of the transaction, Hyatt plans to integrate these hotels into World of Hyatt, bringing this portfolio of lifestyle properties to the program’s 48 million loyalty members.
“The team behind Standard International has created a unique and award-winning portfolio of brands and properties that turn the status quo on its head and have attracted a loyal following among the most discerning lifestyle guests for the past 25 years,” said Mark Hoplamazian, President and Chief Executive Officer, Hyatt.
“These properties truly drive the zeitgeist, creating destinations unto themselves with celebrated and talked-about programming and events, such as the Met Gala afterparty. We are thrilled to welcome Standard International’s properties and team to the Hyatt family with the newly created lifestyle group and draw on their brilliance, creativity, culture and innovation.”
Upon closing, Lalvani will take on the role of President & Creative Director of the lifestyle group, overseeing the integration of the brands to be housed within the group while ensuring and enhancing the integrity, innovation, creativity and growth of each individual lifestyle brand.
Lalvani led the global development of W Hotels and then in 2010 partnered with André Balazs on The Standard brand. In 2013, Lalvani formed Standard International and acquired The Standard brand from Balazs and followed that with an acquisition of a majority stake in The Bunkhouse Group from its founder Liz Lambert and her partners. Thereafter, Lalvani spearheaded the transitions of both companies from founder-led start-ups to globally recognised brands through the development of landmark properties.
“We waited a long time to find the right company with whom to join forces,” said Lalvani. “In choosing Hyatt, we tap into a powerful global infrastructure and loyal guest base. I am very proud that our team has delivered on the potential we saw with The Standard and Bunkhouse Hotels and am honoured that Hyatt appreciates how special our brands, properties, and – most importantly – our people are.”
In addition to The Standard and Bunkhouse Hotels brands, Standard International’s brand portfolio includes Peri Hotels and its two newest additions, The StandardX, which launched this month in Melbourne, Australia, and The Manner, which launches next month in Soho, New York in time for New York Fashion Week.
Beyond its hotel brands, the portfolio includes world-class restaurant and nightlife concepts including The Boom Boom Room, The Standard Grill, The Standard Biergarten, Café Standard, Lido Bayside Grill, Jo’s Coffee as well as iconic rooftop venues including Le Bain, Decimo, Sweeties, UP, Ojo and Sky Beach.
The acquisition includes more than 30 projects with a signed agreement or letter of intent, including new properties expected to open over the next 12 months: The Standard, Pattaya Na Jomtien, The StandardX, Bangkok Phra Arthit, as well as Bunkhouse Hotels Saint Augustine and Hotel Daphne. Standard International has also developed a residential business with Standard Residences under development in Miami, Lisbon, Phuket, Hua Hin and Mexico City as well as completed Bunkhouse Residences at the Hotel Saint Cecilia in Austin.
Upon closing, Hyatt will pay a base purchase price of US$150 million, with up to an additional US$185 million over time as additional properties enter the portfolio. The transaction is anticipated to close later this year.
Meanwhile, that news comes just days after Hyatt completed the sale of the 1,641-room Hyatt Regency Orlando and adjacent parcel of land for approximately US$1.07 billion, while retaining a long-term management agreement under the Hyatt Regency brand.
Hyatt Regency Orlando is the fourth largest Hyatt hotel globally by room count. The new owners, RIDA Development Corporation and an Ares Management Real Estate fund, have earmarked the adjacent vacant land for a new Grand Hyatt hotel under a separate long-term management agreement with Hyatt.
The Grand Hyatt Orlando is expected to have approximately 2,500 rooms and be developed in multiple phases. The development of Grand Hyatt Orlando is positioned to create a combined total of more than 4,000 rooms across Hyatt Regency Orlando and Grand Hyatt Orlando at the Orange County Convention Center.
