From left to right: Mr. Paul Wong, Chief Executive Officer of Lasseters International; Mr. Jeffrey Chew, Group Chief Executive Officer of Paramount Corporation Berhad; and Mr. Rio Kondo, Vice President Development and Executive Director, Indonesia – Malaysia, AccorHotels.
Petaling Jaya, 5 April 2017 : Paramount Corporation Berhad (Paramount) today put in place the final piece of its integrated offering at Utropolis Glenmarie, Shah Alam, with the announcement that Mercure Hotel would open its doors at the successful university metropolis township in 2019.
Super Ace Resources Sdn Bhd (SARSB)**, a joint-venture (JV) company owned by Paramount and Singapore-listed Lasseters International Holdings Limited (Lasseters), today signed an agreement with French multinational hotel group AccorHotels, owners of the Mercure brand, to operate the 230-key hotel, which will be equipped for both business and leisure stays.
SARSB was established in August 2016. The joint-venture sees Paramount, an investment holding company with interests in property development and education services, partner Lasseters, an investment holding group with interests in hospitality, health & wellness, gaming as well as property development, to own what will be Paramount’s first hotel venture.
The management agreement between SARSB and AccorHotels was signed today at the new Paramount Property Gallery at Atwater Section 13, Petaling Jaya. Paramount was represented by Group Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Chew, while Mr. Paul Wong, Chief Executive Officer represented Lasseters. Mr. Rio Kondo, Vice President Development and Executive Director, Indonesia-Malaysia signed on behalf of Accor Asia Pacific.
In addition to the hotel management agreement, a hotel consultancy services agreement was also signed between the two parties for AccorHotels to provide their expertise on the design and technical fit-out of the hotel.
In his briefing at the event, Chew said, “This deal marks two major milestones for Paramount in our mission to deliver consistent stakeholder value. The first is the impending completion of our first university metropolis, Utropolis Glenmarie. This integrated development already has residential, commercial and retail components, and the hotel management agreement we are finalising today will truly bring to life the Utropolis promise of being a self-contained, energised, urban address to meet the complete needs of its community and those of surrounding areas.
“The second milestone is our entry into hotel development and ownership, to extend our portfolio as a broad-based property development company. We have been working very hard to find the right partners and I believe we have found them in both Lasseters as a joint venture partner and AccorHotels as hotel operator,” added Chew.
He said the hotel would be ideally suited to meet the growing need for world-class 4-star accommodation in Glenmarie and Shah Alam, and will also act as a catalyst for growth in the area.
Speaking on behalf of Lasseters, Paul Wong commented, “The partnership with Paramount presents us with an excellent opportunity to expand our hospitality expertise by adding 230 hotel keys to our existing room portfolio whilst enabling the Group to diversify into a more defined geographical market, broaden our revenue streams and deliver long-term value to our shareholders. This is further enhanced by the collaboration with AccorHotels, who are world-renowned hoteliers with a deep understanding of the needs of the global business and leisure traveller.”
AccorHotels representative Kondo added, “Mercure Hotel at Utropolis offers an international standard of hospitality and a strong commitment to quality. The locally-inspired brand perfectly complements the urban energy of Utropolis, and we look forward to working together to create a new destination for residents and visitors to Glenmarie and the greater Shah Alam area.”
The establishment of the Mercure Hotel at Utropolis also presents Paramount with the unique opportunity to see further synergies between its property and education businesses.
Utropolis Glenmarie is anchored by Paramount’s KDU University College (KDUUC). The proximity of the hotel will provide KDUUC’s renowned School of Hospitality, Tourism and Culinary Arts (SHTCA) a real-world training ground in a myriad of areas.
“At Paramount, we are gearing ourselves to diversify beyond our traditional businesses, while staying true to our cornerstones of quality and value. We are upping the ante on innovation, offering more interesting lifestyle themes, and harnessing the synergies our property and education businesses offer. This is our unique differentiator that will give our businesses the impetus for growth, underpinning our performance in coming years,” concluded Chew.
