Park Hotel Farrer Park relaunches under Holiday Inn brand

With new signing, global hospitality firm IHG now manages three of RB Capital's Singapore hotels

Sep 08, 2021

THE 300-room Park Hotel Farrer Park, owned by RB Capital and previously managed by Park Hotel Group, has been renamed Holiday Inn Singapore Little India, effective Tuesday.

Its new manager, global hospitality company IHG Hotels & Resorts, said that the hotel will undergo a renovation and relaunch "with a vibrant fresh identity and positioning".

With the new signing, IHG now manages three of RB Capital's Singapore hotels, totalling nearly 1,000 keys. The other two are Holiday Inn Express Clarke Quay, opened in 2014, and InterContinental Singapore Robertson Quay, opened in 2017.

IHG noted that the strategic and collaborative management structure across the trio of properties will enable greater synergies, shared expertise and support.

Rajit Sukumaran, IHG managing director for South-east Asia and Korea, said the company is ready to lead its hotels into recovery and beyond as travel returns.

Kishin RK, founder and chief executive of Singapore-based property group RB Capital, said he was confident the hospitality industry would bounce back strongly, as Singapore prepares to embark on the endemic Covid-19 roadmap with a gradual border reopening.

"It's the perfect time to relaunch this hotel with a new brand, new positioning and a design-led renovation so we are poised for recovery and ideally positioned to contribute to Singapore's success as the country reopens," he added.

Holiday Inn Singapore Little India will feature a new dining and workspace concept with a globally recognised food and beverage partner. This concept is part of the "next-generation" Holiday Inn brand, which the hotel will introduce to Singapore.

Holiday Inn has been evolving its brand experience globally in recent years, to meet travellers' needs.

IHG operates 11 hotels in Singapore across a range of brands including Regent, InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, Hotel Indigo and Holiday Inn.

Early next year, IHG will debut the voco Hotels brand in the city-state, with voco Orchard Singapore.

For Singapore-based Park Hotel Group, the Little India hotel appears to be the third management contract it has lost, out of six Singapore hotels in its portfolio. It also followed the recent winding-up of Park Hotel Management (PHM), which used to own Park Hotel Group until March this year.

On Tuesday, a Park Hotel Group spokesperson said that the change in management of Park Hotel Farrer Park arose from "differences in contractual interpretation between the group and RB Capital".

The two companies have parted ways amicably, "notwithstanding that both parties may take different positions on the potential legal issues arising from this development", the spokesperson said. Park Hotel Group "had always intended to fulfil our obligations to continue running the hotel up to the end-date of the original contract. Unfortunately, RB Capital decided not to proceed with this", the spokesperson added.

There had been a few more years remaining on the management contract for Park Hotel Farrer Park, but due to the current situation with PHM, RB Capital decided to sign on IHG to manage the property on a long-term basis.

PHM was wound up in early July over a S$5.2 million debt owed in relation to Grand Park Orchard, The Straits Times had earlier reported.

Regarding the Little India hotel, the Park Hotel Group spokesperson said on Tuesday it takes a long-term view and is "prepared to take developments such as this in our stride", given that the Covid-19 pandemic has had an unprecedented impact on hospitality and tourism worldwide. Its management and operations remain unaffected by the development involving Park Hotel Farrer Park, the spokesperson added.

Besides Park Hotel Farrer Park, the group is also no longer managing Park Hotel Clarke Quay, which has been renamed the Riverside Hotel at Clarke Quay, as well as Destination Singapore Beach Road.

Park Hotel Group’s website as at Tuesday continued to list Grand Park Orchard, Grand Park City Hall and Park Hotel Alexandra among its Singapore hotels.