INDIA-born business tycoon MA Yusuff Ali’s LuLu Group has launched its new Great Scotland Yard Hotel in London with a £300-million investment.
The hotel is located within the premises of the old headquarters of the Metropolitan Police.
Ali’s business had bought the property in Whitehall area near Downing Street four years ago for Rs 10.25 billion (£109.34m) and further invested Rs 5.12bn or (£54.61m) towards its makeover into a luxury hotel.
The boutique offering has been created by LuLu’s hospitality investment arm, Twentyl4 Holdings.
The room tariffs start at £430 a night and will officially start functioning for business from next week.
The hotel is to be managed under the Hyatt Group’s Unbound Collection brand.
It is spread over seven floors with 152 rooms, 15 suites, a standalone two-storey townhouse as its presidential suite, and four restaurants serving international and British modern food.
The Great Scotland Yard Hotel marks the second luxury offering in the UK for Twentyl4 Holdings.
The company owns the historic Waldorf Astoria Edinburgh – The Caledonian in Scotland.
It had its formal inauguration this week with a formal ribbon cutting by UK secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sport Nicky Morgan and the Indian high commissioner to the UK, Ruchi Ghanashyam, and others.
The Great Scotland Yard building was once used as a shelter for visiting kings of Scotland during the Tudor period in the 15-16th century.
Later, it became the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service in the British capital until it was sold.
Adeeb Ahamed, managing director of Twentyl4 Holdings, said: “The Great Scotland Yard Hotel is a dream come true for us – transforming one of the world’s most historic addresses into an iconic hotel.
“This is a building that holds more tales than ever told and our approach has been multi-layered, with an emphasis on stories that are unheard, the hotel is a tribute to the intrinsic spirit of London.”
Shafeena Yusuff Ali, Director of Twentyl4 Holdings, has overseen the artistic side of the themed luxury hotel.
