Sri Lanka’s Serendib Hotels expands presence in leisure sector by taking over boutique villa chain in the south
Sri Lanka’s Serendib Hotels, which is a subsidiary of Hemas Holdings Group, has reportedly stated that it has taken full control of a boutique villa chain on the south coast by raising its stake in a strategic move to expand its presence in the sector.
A stock exchange filing at the Colombo Stock Exchange has stated that Serendib Hotels has bought a 48.85% stake of Frontier Capital Lanka (Private) Limited, owning company of the Lantern Beach Collection, raising its stake to 100%, having acquired a stake of 51.15% recently.
“The acquisition of the Lantern Beach Collection was a strategic move made by Serendib Hotels to strengthen our commitment in the villa space, which we made an initial foray into a few months ago,” Managing Director of the Leisure, Travel and Aviation Group of Hemas Holdings, Malinga Arsakularatne has been quoted as saying.
With the acquisition of the Lantern Beach Collection, Serendib Hotels adds to its portfolio three properties, Lantern Boutique Hotel and two Ubuntu Beach Villas by Lantern located in Mirissa.
They will be managed by Serendib Leisure Management Ltd, a fully-owned subsidiary of Serendib Hotels PLC.
“Moving into the space of villa management was a strategic decision made by us after realizing there was potential in this sector. There is an increasing number of discerning travelers who are looking for authentic experiences in a more intimate setting, and we felt we should capitalize on it,” Arsakularatne has added.
Serendib Leisure already has a portfolio of four hotels – AVANI Bentota Resort and Spa, AVANI Kalutara Resort, Club Hotel Dolphin and Hotel Sigiriya.
OSL take:
The expansion of Serendib Hotels into boutique villas in the south of Sri Lanka is an indication of the business confidence in the growing tourism sector in the country. Other local companies could explore opportunities in Sri Lanka’s tourism sector and consider expanding its portfolio by entering into partnerships with foreign companies as well. The Sri Lankan tourism industry is a continuously developing sector that foreign businesses/investors could also look at as profitable business ventures.
Article Code : | VBS/AT/11042018/Z_6 |