EXCLUSIVE BY JAMES WILKINSON IN HONG KONG
Mantra Group is set to make its long-awaited entry into Asia with the signing of a property in Bali’s Nusa Dua that’s set to open in December 2012.
Speaking exclusively to HM at the Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific (HICAP) in Hong Kong late last week (Oct 12), Mantra Group’s Director of Acquisitions Michael Moret-Lalli said the property would open under the Mantra brand and feature 172 rooms (including 24 suites), several food and beverage facilities, and extensive recreational and conference facilities.
“With the cut-through Mantra has with the Australian consumer, it’s a fantastic growth step for us,” he said.
“Over the years we have been looking to go offshore and we are very thrilled with this great signing.
“We have been up here at HICAP for the last few years looking at opportunities in the market and this is a perfect fit to bring the Mantra brand into Bali.”
Mantra CEO Bob East said the signing was a significant one for the Group.
“It is an exciting time for Mantra and we are so pleased to be opening our first Asian property in Bali, combining a familiar brand name with a popular destination for Australian travellers and further expanding our growing hotel network,” East said.
Moret-Lalli said interest in Mantra Group’s brands had been significant at HICAP over the last two years and the company was also looking at other opportunities across the South East Asian region.
“A number of developers in Thailand also see us as having compelling fundamentals to enter that space and leverage off our brand in Australia,” he said.
The Mantra Nusa Dua property was signed with notable hotelier Michael Burchett’s company MJB Hoteliers.
“The Mantra brand has excellent traction with the Australian market and to be the first Mantra hotel in Indonesia is a very exciting prospect,” Burchett said.
“The extensive distribution network and the dynamic marketing campaigns that Mantra has built around the association with Pat Rafter will create some amazing opportunities for us.”
The new Mantra property is set to be joined by two more Indonesian properties in the Group over the next two years under the Peppers brand in Lombok and Seminyak, Bali.
The announcement comes at the same time as new signings in New Zealand, with a Peppers property in Marlborough Sounds and a Mantra in Tekapo to join the Group at the end of 2012.
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