Hyatt Hotels Corporation has announced the planned acquisition of lifestyle hotel group Standard International.
The transaction is anticipated to close later this year, subject to customary closing conditions, and will see the group acquiring Standard International’s brands and most of its affiliates. The move builds on Hyatt’s organic growth and a series of acquisitions that quintupled the number of lifestyle rooms in its global portfolio between 2017 and 2023.
With the transaction, Hyatt will form a new dedicated lifestyle group that will be headquartered in New York City. Led by Standard International’s Executive Chairman Amar Lalvani, the lifestyle group will leverage Hyatt’s operational and loyalty infrastructure while assuming distinct leadership across key functions including experience creation, design, marketing, programming, public relations, restaurants, nightlife and entertainment. The new lifestyle group will be made up of the Standard International team as well as Hyatt colleagues.
The planned acquisition will continue Hyatt’s evolution to a brand- and experience-driven company. The acquired portfolio will be 100 percent asset-light and includes management, franchise and license contracts for 21 open hotels with approximately 2,000 rooms, including The Standard, London, The Standard, High Line in New York City, The Standard, Bangkok Mahanakhon and boutique properties like Hotel Saint Cecilia in Austin, Texas and Hotel San Cristóbal, Baja California, Mexico.
Following the closing of the transaction, Hyatt plans to integrate these hotels into World of Hyatt, bringing the portfolio of lifestyle properties to the program’s 48 million loyalty members.
Upon closing, the sale will cap a successful investment for Sansiri PLC, which acquired a majority position in Standard International in 2017 and facilitated the company’s international expansion. Sansiri will continue to own several properties that will be managed or franchised under the acquired brands.
Hyatt will pay a base purchase price of $150 million, with up to an additional $185 million over time as additional properties enter the portfolio. Stabilised fees associated with the base purchase price are anticipated to be approximately $17 million and, to the extent the contingent purchase price is paid, additional stabilised fees are anticipated to be up to approximately $30 million.
“The team behind Standard International has created a unique and award-winning portfolio of brands and properties that turn the status quo on its head and have attracted a loyal following among the most discerning lifestyle guests for the past 25 years,” says Mark Hoplamazian, President and CEO of Hyatt. “These properties truly drive the zeitgeist, creating destinations unto themselves with celebrated and talked-about programming and events, such as the Met Gala afterparty. We are thrilled to welcome Standard International’s properties and team to the Hyatt family with the newly created lifestyle group and draw on their brilliance, creativity, culture and innovation.”
Upon closing, Lalvani will take on the role of President & Creative Director of the lifestyle group, overseeing the integration of the brands to be housed within the group while ensuring and enhancing the integrity, innovation, creativity and growth of each individual lifestyle brand. “We waited a long time to find the right company with whom to join forces,” he says. “In choosing Hyatt, we tap into a powerful global infrastructure and loyal guest base. I am very proud that our team has delivered on the potential we saw with The Standard and Bunkhouse Hotels and am honored that Hyatt appreciates how special our brands, properties, and – most importantly – our people are. We have a shared vision for the enormous potential that still lies ahead. I would be remiss not to express my gratitude to Hyatt for taking this bold step forward and to Sansiri who has been instrumental in supporting our efforts.”
The acquisition includes more than 30 projects with a signed agreement or letter of intent, including new properties expected to open over the next 12 months: The Standard, Pattaya Na Jomtien, The StandardX, Bangkok Phra Arthit, as well as Bunkhouse Hotels Saint Augustine and Hotel Daphne. Standard International has also developed a robust residential business, with Standard Residences under development in Miami, Lisbon, Phuket, Hua Hin and Mexico City as well as completed Bunkhouse Residences at the Hotel Saint Cecilia in Austin.
