Singapore-Based Rendezvous Hospitality Group Targets 12,000 Rooms by 2020

The Straits Trading Company Limited has formed a wholly-owned subsidiary, the Rendezvous Hospitality Group (RHG).

RHG has been formed to combine the hospitality assets of The Straits Trading Company, together with its hospitality management arm, Rendezvous Hotels and Resorts International. This will result in a net asset base for RHG in excess of Sin$300 million (A$237 million), with 13 hotels currently under management and 4 additional properties under development.

Mr Iqbal Jumabhoy, who was brought on board in March 2009 to restructure the hospitality business of Straits Trading, will be responsible for driving growth plans and expanding RHG’s footprint beyond its current Australia and New Zealand base. He is supported by a senior management team comprising executives from RHI together with globally experienced new talent. The primary regions scheduled for development are Australia and New Zealand, South East Asia, East Asia, and India and the Middle East.

With its Corporate Headquarters based in Singapore, Mr. Jumabhoy said, “RHG intends to become the leading regional player in the business hotel segment in Asia Pacific. There are very few players who both own and manage hotel assets that are Asian based. We intend to firmly establish ourselves as the regional leader by growing to over 12,000 rooms in the region by 2020.”

As a first step in this process, Mr. Jumabhoy and his team have repositioned both the Rendezvous and The Marque brands as business hotels. “We have taken considerable care to properly understand what the business traveller is looking for in a hotel,” said Mr. Jumabhoy. “We will be introducing a number of unique initiatives to address both the hardware and the services that the sophisticated business traveller is seeking. These exciting initiatives will be announced over the coming months.”

RHG has redefined its product standards and will be investing over Sin$190 million (A$147 million) in its owned and leased properties to refurbish them to meet the new standards. The new look and feel to both the Rendezvous Hotel and The Marque Hotel brands will help provide a new base for development into new markets. RHG is also looking to make strategic investments in hotels/projects in gateway cities in its key markets.

Ms Chew Gek Khim, Executive Chairman of The Straits Trading Company Limited, said the launch of RHG signified a new direction in the way the diversified group would be managed, with strategic business units being “engines of profit and growth.”

She added: “I am delighted that Iqbal has agreed to take on the challenge of restructuring and building RHG. His successful track record in corporate, hospitality and property management will be an asset.”

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