The Thai owner of Singha beer is taking over Leicester’s Grand Hotel in a move that should see the iconic building restored to its former glory.
Singha Estate joined forces with Fico UK to buy the Jupiter hotels portfolio, which includes the Grand, in a deal worth £160 million.
The partners bought the 32 Jupiter hotels from RBS’s restructuring arm West Register and venture capital firm Patron Capital, after another Thai company, Tiesco, pulled out of the deal.
Boon Rawd Brewery, which makes Singha Beer, is Thailand’s oldest brewery dating back to 1933 and is owned by the Bhirombhakdi family.
Singha Beer is already well known in Leicester following its £4.6 million deal with Leicester City to become the Premier League club’s official beer.
Fico UK is part of the Thailand-based Fico group of companies owned by the wealthy Srichawla family.
The Grand, in Granby Street, has already benefited from a £1 million upgrading programme by Jupiter.
All its bedrooms and corridors have been redesigned and redecorated and the foyer and restaurant areas have had an extensive makeover.
It has also added a Marco Pierre White restaurant called Marco’s New York Italian. The investment created 20 jobs.
Further moves to improve the hotel’s appeal are already underway.
The lower ground floor former carvery has been closed so that the hotel can gut the 1,500 sq ft room and possibly split it for occupation by an up-market restaurant and a spa – to complement a gym on the first floor.
Stuart Bailey, the chairman of Leicester Civic Society, said: “The sale is very good news. The Grand is an iconic building of the Victorian/Edwardian period and it is a fascinating piece of architecture with its ornate wedding cake dome.
“Its public rooms such as the King’s Hall were lavishly built, though the private rooms need to be brought up to the standard that the modern market needs.
“We need to see the private rooms with full en-suites and the public rooms restored to their former grandeur. I hope the new owners will have the money for both.”
The Grand was built between 1897 and 1898 by architects Cecil Ogden and Amos Hall.
The hotel has 104 en-suite rooms and a Victorian ballroom called King’s Hall, and has attracted a string of famous guests over the years, including Winston Churchill, The Queen Mother and Princess Diana.
The Jupiter Hotels sale forms part of a process to wind down West Register, which has been in the public spotlight since RBS was rescued with £45.5 billion of taxpayers’ money in 2008.
The Grand, along with the other hotels in the Jupiter chain, is currently operated under the Mercure brand in a franchise agreement with Accor, the brand’s French owner.