Entering the Chicago market
Manga Hotel Group has completed the acquisition of the Royal Sonesta Chicago River North, a 261-room property at 505 North State Street in downtown Chicago. The hotel has left the Sonesta brand and been renamed Hotel 505 River North, an independent operation set to become a new TOOR Hotel.
The asset is located in River North, one of the city’s liveliest districts, surrounded by restaurants, entertainment venues, shops and cultural institutions. It also enjoys direct access to the Magnificent Mile, Chicago’s main shopping thoroughfare.
The group has disclosed neither the transaction value, nor the identity of the seller, nor the timetable for the conversion to the TOOR Hotel brand.
A third market for the TOOR brand
The acquisition is part of a sustained run of growth in the United States. Manga Hotel Group acquired the SoHo 54 Hotel in New York last year, followed by The Chelsean New York Hotel in June, and is now opening a new front in Chicago.
Sukhdev Toor, President and CEO of Manga Hotel Group, said the group was delighted to reach another important milestone in the ongoing development of TOOR Hotel. He described Chicago as a major hotel market and the deal as a strategic choice to add another major city to the TOOR brand, alongside Toronto and New York.
The TOOR brand was born in Toronto, where the group developed its first lifestyle property combining a hotel and residences. With Chicago, it is set to span three major North American cities.
An asset geared to leisure and business
Hotel 505 River North offers 261 rooms and suites, along with more than 740 sq m of meeting and event space across 10 rooms. The property also has a fitness centre, an indoor swimming pool and on-site dining.
This mixed profile allows it to capture both leisure guests and business demand, a balance much sought after in an urban market where the MICE segment plays a structural role.
A strategy of acquisition and repositioning
Analysis – The pattern followed by Manga Hotel Group repeats from one deal to the next: acquire existing assets in central districts of major cities, then reposition them under its proprietary brand. This conversion-led approach allows the group to roll out TOOR quickly, without bearing the lead times and risks of a ground-up development.
The hotel’s exit from the portfolio of Sonesta, the eighth-largest hotel company in the United States, also illustrates the mobility of mid-sized urban assets, which are becoming prime targets for owner-operators looking to build their own brand.
At a glance by The Hospitality Tribune
Manga Hotel Group acquires Royal Sonesta Chicago River North
261-room hotel at 505 North State Street, downtown Chicago
Rebranded as Hotel 505 River North, an independent property
Slated to become the next TOOR Hotel, after Toronto and New York
Third U.S. acquisition after SoHo 54 Hotel and The Chelsean New York
More than 8,000 sq ft of meeting space across 10 rooms, indoor pool and fitness center
