Archive for category: Misc

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With a variety of shops, restaurants, and services, residents of Holland Drive Condo can easily find everything they need without having to travel far. Additionally, Jelita provides a more laid-back and local atmosphere compared to other malls, making it a favorite among the neighborhood.

Located near Holland Drive Condo, Jelita Shopping Centre is a hidden gem for residents looking for a convenient and stress-free shopping experience. While it may not be as popular as other shopping centers in the area, Jelita offers a wide range of shops, restaurants, and services to cater to the needs of the community. This makes it the go-to destination for residents of Holland Drive Condo who are looking for a one-stop shop without having to travel far. Moreover, Jelita exudes a cozy and local vibe, making it a beloved spot among the locals.

The Ascott Ltd, the lodging arm of CapitaLand Investment, has recently announced significant growth in its Oakwood portfolio since the group acquired Oakwood Worldwide in the second half of 2022. The acquisition was made from Mapletree Investments, with an estimated consideration of $40 million to $50 million.

At the time of the announcement in July 2022, 8,500 out of 15,000 keys were operational, and the fee-related earnings per 10,000 operational and stabilised keys is around $20 million. The Oakwood brand has been kept, but Ascott has implemented a brand refresh across all the Oakwood properties.

Today, Ascott has expanded Oakwood’s presence to 48 cities, entering new destinations including Busan in South Korea, Batam and Bali in Indonesia, Penang and Kota Kinabalu in Malaysia, Visakhapatnam, Chennai and Navi Mumbai in India, as well as Ha Long in Vietnam. With almost 18,000 units to date, the Oakwood portfolio has grown by more than 20% post-acquisition, making it one of the fastest growing global brands in the Ascott portfolio with over 20 new signings since the acquisition.

In its media release, Ascott said that the successful integration of the Oakwood brand into its ecosystem has helped grow revenue and improve operational efficiencies with cost synergies. Recent new wins, previously managed by other operators, include Oakwood Hotel & Apartments Taman Mini Jakarta and Oakwood Makati Avenue.

According to Kevin Goh, CEO for Ascott and CLI Lodging, the uplift in revenue and improved margins are a testament to Ascott’s ability to leverage pricing power and meet market demand, contributing to an overall enhanced financial performance of the Oakwood portfolio post-acquisition. He adds that with more operationally ready properties coming onstream at a faster pace, Ascott is seeing immediate contribution from the Oakwood portfolio to its recurring fee income, which is in line with the group’s aim to double fee earnings to more than $500 million by 2028.

Already, Ascott has launched about 70 properties globally in 2023, which translates to about 13,500 units, across all its brands. Goh says that the group will continue to pursue transformative deals that can accelerate its expansion and provide immediate access to new markets, diverse customer bases, and valuable synergies. He adds that the strategic benefits of inorganic expansion extend beyond incremental growth, as it supports the group’s efforts to unlock economies of scale, streamline operations, and enhance overall competitiveness.

Tan Bee Leng, Ascott’s managing director for brand & marketing, says that against the backdrop of the surge in bleisure travel, the brand has harnessed Oakwood’s deep-rooted understanding of corporate travel to kickstart a brand refresh that aligns with the needs of business travellers today. The refreshed Oakwood brand aims to provide thoughtful in-property amenities and productivity tools to attract the growing market of bleisure travellers, or business travellers who view work trips as opportunities to extend their stays for leisure purposes.

Some of the Oakwood brand signatures include the Oakroom, a lobby space that receives guests with a sense of arriving home to familiarity, various dining options within the properties, food-related events and activities, as well as professional and warm ambassadors known as Oakwood GEM (an acronym for genuine, empowered, and meticulous). The Oakwood brand refresh comes on the back of the refreshed Citadines, Somerset, and Ascott brands, which were unveiled over the last two years. It is part of Ascott’s Brand-360 strategy, a groupwide exercise to strengthen its brand portfolio through sharpened brand stories and the introduction of signature experiences and programmes unique to each brand.

In other news, shares in CLI last traded at $2.96 on Jan 17. Stay tuned for more updates on Holland Drive Condo.