Maybourne Hotel Group

The Maybourne Hotel Group, formerly The Savoy Hotel Group has been operating luxury hotels in London with origins that go back 205 years. The group was renamed when the Savoy Hotel was sold off from the original group of four hotels; The Savoy, Claridges, The Berkeley and The Connaught.[1] The oldest hotel in the group is The Connaught which was originally built as the Prince of Saxe Coburg Hotel in 1815[2]. It was renamed The Connaught in 1917 after Queen Victoria's third son, Prince Arthur, the first Duke of Connaught. In December 2019 Maybourne acquired the Montage Hotel in Beverly Hills,California[3] and said the acquisition is part of a global expansion strategy.

The Maybourne name was formed when a group of Irish investors headed by Patrick McKillen bought the Savoy group of hotels from Blackstone and Colony Capital in 2003 for £750m. It was decided soon afterwards that the Savoy Hotel did not fit into the plans and was sold to Kingdom Holdings for approximately £250m. As the three remaining hotels were in a very poor state of repair, McKillen immediately set out on a grand plan to completely refurbish the properties beginning with The Connaught.[4] Finance for the purchase of the group was provided by Anglo Irish bank. When the financial crisis hit, Anglo Irish Bank was not able to survive and the group's fully performing loans were transferred to NAMA, a bad bank created by the Government of Ireland in response to the Irish financial crisis.

In a controversial move NAMA sold the loans which were the bank's best to the UK's Barclay Brothers while the company was finalising its refinancing away from Irish banks. This gave the Barclay Brothers a once in a lifetime opportunity to launch a hostile attack on the hotel company.[1] The Barclay Brothers owned the Ritz Hotel in London and always nurtured an interest in the three Maybourne hotels. They immediately set a pre-pack administration in motion in an attempt to eliminate McKillen's shares and take over the company. McKillen went to the High Court on the day the attack was launched and succeeded in blocking the takeover attempt.[5] This set in motion the most expensive High Court legal action of its time. The case became extremely bitter between McKillen and the brothers lasting 5 years and costing over £50m.

The Barclay Brothers amassed shares from original shareholders in the Maybourne Hotel group which McKillen claimed was illegal. McKillen lost every case in the marathon legal action but effectively wore down the Barclay Brothers and their interest in the company was successfully transferred to the Qatari royal family.[6] McKillen continues to have a substantial investment in the hotel group and personally manages the group on a day-to-day basis.[4]

The Connaught hotel on Carlos Place, Mayfair was closed for a year of restoration in 2008. It was reopened totally restored including a modern wing with 121 rooms, an Aman Spa, an underground swimming pool and a restaurant operated by 2 star Michelin chef, Helene Darroze. The chef, Jean George Vongerichten runs the hotel's all day dining restaurant and also the recently opened Connaught Grill. The Connaught bar has won international awards including World's Best Bar ( Tales of the Cocktail ) and is currently voted the best bar in Europe ( World's 50 Best 2019 ).[7]

Claridges opened in 1898. Designed by CW Stephens, it is located in the heart of Mayfair and became famous for its art deco design. By 2004 Claridge's with its famous Art Deco lobby was also in a poor state of repair. McKillen with the architect Michael Blair won a major planning permission to excavate a five level basement under the hotel by hand.[8] Remarkably the hotel is maintaining normal business while this work is being carried out. These works are due to be completed by 2021. In 2019, the hotel unveiled a new restaurant, Davies and Brook, run by chef Daniel Humm, former holder of World's best restaurant at Eleven Madison Park in New York.[9] The hotel is embarking on an ongoing series of room and suite restorations, recently unveiling a new Royal Suite, an award-winning Empress Eugenie Suite and Prince Alexander Suite.[10]

The Berkeley

The Berkeley, which was built on its present site in 1972 in Knightsbridge, has been completely renovated over the last few years. In 2017 a major contemporary front facade face lift was unveiled. It was designed by The Pritzker prize winning architect, Lord Rogers.[11] Michelin starred chef Marcus Wareing has his famous restaurant at the Berkeley, and it is home to the award-winning Blue Bar. Hong Kong based Designer Andre Fu completed a series of new pavilion penthouse suites at the hotel in 2018.[12]

On 20 December 2019 Maybourne acquired Montage Beverly Hills, its first hotel outside London.[13]