While there’s talk that London is not as attractive as it once was, a German-based firm is making its mark on the capital. PropertyWire talks to Robert Stafler of AMANO UK and Manex Properties, after it acquired a site for £20 million that will become its second hotel in the heart of the UK capital.
“Berlin flair” is a phrase that’s been used to describe the vision from AMANO, which owns 14 hotels across Germany. The company acquired Drury House in London’s Covent Garden in 2018, which was converted from office blocks into a hotel and began operating in 2022.
Now the company is doing it again, after spending £20 million to buy Waterman House, a building situated 50 yards from the first development at Aldwych & Kingsway.
So what is Berlin flair? “Dark and moody – it’s not white shiny marble,” explains Robert Stafler, director of AMANO UK and Manex Properties. “Of the 14 hotels in Germany the first five were in Berlin, so it’s a Berlin concept that’s exported to German cities as well as London.”
Berlin is known for its legendary nightlife, so the hotels look to bring some flair.
“On Saturday night there were three parties,” Stafler explains, referring to the Covent Garden location. “Each one had its distinct flair. This Saturday we had a Greek DJ playing Greek music and bringing his following. Also there was a Russian DJ and salsa night.”
Manex Properties and Drury House – the first London development
Hotel AMANO Covent Garden
Manex Properties is the company name for AMANO and Excellion Capital in partnership, with the name taking the ‘Man’ from AMANO and ‘Ex’ from Excellion.
Stafler co-founded Excellion as an investment firm with Raffael Johnen in London in 2007, and the company brings financial expertise to help the German-based AMANO invest and operate in the UK.
The board of Manex Properties is led by a combination of teams from Germany and London, including Stafler.
The linkup was established ahead of the 2018 acquisition of Drury House in London.
“AMANO until 2018 never had a hotel in London,” Stafler explains. “So we formed this idea, why don’t we bring the AMANO hotels to London?
“They said ‘let’s make it happen, you are going to make sure we have the correct licenses’. This was the beginning of the partnership.”
In 2018/19 they were granted planning permission for the conversion of Drury House into a hotel.
Office tenants had to depart, after which the roof was removed, two floors were built, and the roof was replaced, leaving the building with seven floors above ground.
It started operating in 2022 as the effects of the pandemic started to die down.
The location has 141 rooms with occupancy between 90-95% every year, which has given them confidence.
“If every room is always busy you back yourself to do another 70 rooms in that location,” Stafler adds.
Waterman House – the second London development
Waterman House
Stafler and co have been working on the acquisition of Waterman House for the past 10 months, owing to the complexity of the transaction.
The seller was Regal Hotels, a large company that operates with three listed entities on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The transaction required regulatory approval, a range of paperwork, and shareholder approval.
The £20m purchase was funded out of equity, because using a bank would have made things trickier due to the complicated nature of the seller. According to Stafler, the fact that the company didn’t need a bank meant they were able to close the deal with a lower offer than a competitor.
AMANO UK/Manex Properties considered buying Waterman House in 2018, before settling on purchasing Drury House.
“We looked at buying this as a package as they are on the same street,” Stafler explains.“At the time we said focus on one first, if somebody else buys Waterman House so be it. Our vendor bought the asset in 2019 because we decided not to buy it.
“They didn’t do anything with it; it’s derelict, closed, there were squatters in the building. There were all sorts of issues with it.”
Now the purchase has been completed the derelict nature of the building can be viewed as an advantage, as there are no tenants to evict before carrying out the conversion, so work can start quickly.
Given the close proximity of the two sites, the plan is to have an overlap of staff in both buildings.
Why London has potential
While a number of businesses are taking a more cautious approach to London investment, Stafler thinks that now is a real opportunity for investing in hotels in major cities.
“Business travel is coming back and tourism is very high,” he says. “In Asia you have a billion people who until this decade never had this disposable income to travel abroad.
“That billion people will all come to London, Tokyo, Paris, New York: There are certain cities that will have an influx.
“Many Americans have never travelled outside. Now after covid many say I don’t want to die without seeing London, Paris.
Historically it’s been common for Americans to go without passports, but applications surged after covid, both for US and secondary passports.
“I think tourism to London will continue to be strong. Nightlife in the West End is where people want to be because it’s shit hot!” Stafler adds with excitement.
AMANO UK/Manex Properties have achieved planning approval for Waterman House, and the aim is for the hotel to be operational by the second half of 2027.