Important! This article is written by orangesmile.com editors and is protected by copyright law. The article can only be re-used with a direct link to www.orangesmile.com

Von Essen Portfolio is Completely Sold Out

The sale of the former von Essen portfolio in the UK is not completely finished. The last two properties, the 24-key Sharrow Bay hotel in Cumbria and the 22-key Ston Easton Park hotel in Bath have been purchased by James Caan, a BBC2 television personality. The price for the two hotels estimated £4.5 million (US$7.1 million).

The hotels are sold at a discount as their original price was £5 million (US$7.9 million) each. However, the properties were sold at steep discounts in the end. One of the reasons for that is a short leasehold at Sharrow Bay.

New owners of von Essen properties are now in the process of restoring and upgrading them. Caan has told the press he’s going to make some renovation works in the hotels and then turn them to boutique country house accommodations. He has also rearranged a new long-term lease for Sharrow Bay.

Von Essen portfolio consisting of 28 hotels went to administration in April 2011, when the company couldn’t cope with the raising debt of £295 million (US$468 million). When all von Essen hotels were sold, the money got for them was only £150 million (US$238 million). This is definitely not enough to cover all the debts of the company. The most expensive hotel from von Essen portfolio was the 41-guestroom Cliveden hotel in Taplow, England. The property was sold for £30 million (US$47 million).

Von Essen hotels were founded by London property magnate Andrew Davis. The company chose an aggressive acquisition strategy that led it to financial troubles.

17.09.2012

Previous article / Back to news index

Stay in touch with the latest news of a worldwide hotel industry. All up-to-date analytics, news, and reports about hotel business trends on OrangeSmile.com.