Ascott to build Citadines serviced residences in Brazil

SINGAPORE (April 4): CapitaLand’s wholly-owned serviced residences business unit, The Ascott Ltd, is expanding into South America with franchise agreements for two Citadines-branded serviced residences in São Paulo, Brazil.

The 92-unit Citadines VN Jardins São Paulo and 122-unit Citadines VN Faria Lima São Paulo are scheduled to open in 4Q2017 and 2020 respectively, both of which will be operated by a local real estate company, Vitacon.

Headquartered in Brazil, Vitacon has launched 40 residential and commercial projects delivering an estimated US$1 billion (S$1.4 billion or RM4.44 billion) in sales.

In a media release on Tuesday, CapitaLand reveals that Ascott and Vitacon have also signed an agreement with an intent to establish a portfolio of at least 5,000 Citadines branded units in São Paulo.

Following first two franchise properties in São Paulo, Ascott intends to expand into major cities including the capital of Brasília, Rio de Janeiro and Belo Horizonte, in addition to exploring opportunities in new markets such as Argentina, Chile and Mexico.

It aims to achieve a total of 10,000 units in South America, according to Ascott CEO Lee Chee Koon.

“Through franchise, Ascott can leverage the partners’ local know-how and widen our global network to even more geographies... Our strategic partnership with Vitacon provides further impetus for Ascott to expand, given their sizable landbank in prime locations across São Paulo, home to many of Brazil’s largest multinational corporations and the region’s financial hub,” says Lee.

“There is also a lack of quality accommodation to cater to the needs of expatriates and business travellers. Franchise, investments, management contracts and strategic alliances will continue to be key strategies to boost Ascott’s lead as we march towards our target of 80,000 units globally by 2020,” he adds.

Shares of CapitaLand closed 4 Singapore cents higher at S$3.67 on Monday. — theedgemarkets.com.sg

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