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Malaysian Reserve
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Malaysian Reserve
The RM1.7b revival of Hotel Provençal
French Riviera Hotel that hosted Charlie Chaplin and Ernest Hemingway reborned as luxury homes, attracting rich Americans by SARAH RAPPAPORT THE French Riviera needs little introduction. It's long been beloved as a vacation destination, with the jet-set flocking to the Cannes film festival in May, partying at the beach clubs of St Tropez and staying in storied resorts like Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc. But on some parts of the coast, the glamour has faded. Take the striking white art deco Hôtel Provençal on the western end of Cap d'Antibes, built for American railway heir Frank Jay Gould, which opened its doors in 1927. It had drawn names like Charlie Chaplin, Ernest Hemingway and Pablo Picasso as guests before closing for good in 1977 and sitting vacant ever since. Billionaire British mobile phone mogul John Caudwell, a frequent visitor to the area, said he'd often pass the empty building on his cycle route and admire it. 'I had seen the Hotel Provençal be derelict for decades, and I used to think that it's a magnificent property,' said Caudwell, speaking exclusively to Bloomberg. 'It dominates the entrance to Cap D'Antibes, and I could just see that the building could be really beautiful.' A little more than a decade ago, Caudwell decided to ring a number on the board outside the hotel and make an offer. Caudwell finalised the purchase in 2014. He said he spent about £300 million (RM1.74 billion) to buy the building and renovate it. 'I didn't want to make it a hotel again. I wasn't a hotelier,' he said. 'But I knew I could make beautiful residences.' So he turned the 290-room hotel into a 41-unit luxury residence renamed Le Provençal, with a furnished four-bedroom apartment listed for €9.75 million (RM48.46 million) and a penthouse for sale for €40 million. Turning an art deco hotel into luxury apartments took the better part of a decade, and the building's doors will reopen in July for the first residents to move in. The common areas of the building feature an Ottoman-style domed gold-leaf ceiling, an art deco-inspired cinema for residents and a 2,155 sq ft health spa with a sauna, vitality pool and cold plunge. Outside are six acres (2.43ha) of landscaped gardens with a 98ft long showpiece swimming pool. Caudwell enlisted Richard Martinet of Parisian architecture and design studio Affine Design, known for his work on the Hôtel de Crillon, to work on the renovation. 'It's always a bit crass to say no expenses were spared, because that could indicate that you're just being blingy for the sake of it, but we have certainly not cut any costs at all,' Caudwell said. 'If something was needed for the quality of the building, we have invested in that. The goal is to make it the best on the coastline.' He said that the renovation took time because he wanted everything to be perfect, and that the project was a labour of love for him. Caudwell says the renovation took time because he wanted everything to be perfect and the project was a labour of love There will still be a hotel connection in Le Provençal's second life, however. A partnership agreement with the neighbouring Hôtel Belles Rives, will give Le Provencal residents access to its amenities, including concierge service, the private beach club and the Michelin-starred restaurant La Passagère. Caudwell said these kinds of services and perks are what the buyers of ultra-luxurious residences want now. 'It's a real chic hotel with its own beach and jetty,' he said. 'And it's just across the road, so the partnership is a perfect fit for us.' Rooms at Hôtel Belles Rives start at about €600 a night in June. Around 25% of the apartments in the building have sold so far, Caudwell said. Experts said there's not much like it in the area, which is dominated by villas and single-family homes in the luxury space. 'Demand for new build is huge, because there is hardly anything on the market,' said Savills French Riviera and French Alps ED Alex Balkin, adding that clients will certainly be drawn to a renovated historic art deco building with all new interiors. As to who is buying, Caudwell said it's been a mix of Brits and Europeans, though he's also seen strong interest coming from the US. That makes sense, according to Balkin, who said a lot of the demand at the top end on the French Riviera is coming from Americans, who've had a love affair with the region for a long time. Hôtel Provençal was originally built for an American millionaire after all. Balkin added that demand at the top end has increased significantly since US President Donald Trump returned to office. 'There's always been a real love story between Americans and the South of France,' said Balkin. 'But we've seen much more demand this year than last year or the year before. We've seen a real pickup since the election.' Other brokers have noticed the same trend. 'The Cote d'Azur is really coming back, especially in the high end, because we have seen many more American buyers flooding back into the market,' said Sotheby's International Realty France-Monaco chairman and CEO Alexander Kraft. 'There's a lot of movement, especially between US$10 and US$50 million (RM218.5 million) [properties].' Americans have really come back to the market in force, Kraft said, and not just from one end of the political spectrum. 'They have been of either political persuasion, either trying to get away from Trump or Trump supporters who are optimistic about the future and want to place their money into real estate.' 'The South of France is the number one destination worldwide for second homes,' he added, 'and seen as a safe place for wealth.' — BLOOMBERG This article first appeared in The Malaysian Reserve weekly print edition
Travel Daily News
27-05-2025
- Business
- Travel Daily News
Hôtel Belles Rives to oversee concierge services at Riviera Residence Le Provençal
Caudwell partners with Hôtel Belles Rives to deliver luxury concierge services, lifestyle amenities, and exclusive experiences at Le Provençal, French Riviera. ANTIBES, FRANCE – Luxury developer Caudwell has agreed a partnership with the five-star Hôtel Belles Rives to manage the concierge at Le Provençal on the French Riviera, providing residents of the new £300 million plus (GDV) luxury residential address with concierge, lifestyle services, valet parking and the benefit of privileged reservation at the diverse gastronomy, activities and well-being on offer at Hôtel Belles Rives including its one-star Michelin restaurant, famed cocktail bar, spa corner and private beach club. At the gateway to Cap d'Antibes, located adjacent to Hôtel Belles Rives on Boulevard Edouard Baudoin, Le Provençal is the landmark former Hôtel Provençal, built in 1926-27 by architect Lucien Stable for American millionaire Frank Jay Gould, now converted to provide 41 residences, all with secure garaging. Complete with Art Deco styled public areas, cinema, health spa, restaurant, children's playroom, retail boutiques and six acres of landscaped gardens with a 30-metre swimming pool. Le Provençal offers gracious luxury living and amenities unrivalled on the Cote d'Azur. Under the new partnership Hôtel Belles Rives, which is renowned for its luxury and outstanding hospitality, will provide Le Provençal with a range of concierge services that are included in the service charges. The concierge staff will have bespoke uniforms designed to complement the restored iconic building. Managed from a dedicated concierge room the services include concie welcoming guests, valet parking, managing post and deliveries and operating and booking the health spa. Residents at Le Provençal will benefit from privileged reservations, subject to availability, at each of the restaurants at the Hôtel Belles Rives, from the Michelin-starred La Passagère, its beachfront La Plage, the famous Bar Fitzgerald, and Paseo, the convivial all-day dining at Hôtel Juana, as well as beach chairs available at the private beach. In addition, the luxury Swiss skincare house, Valmont, offers a jewel-box of a spa at the hotel where facials and body treatments are on offer. With snacks and drinks served at the water's edge the private beach includes loungers, and a pontoon with a private landing for tenders ferrying guests arriving from superyachts berthed in the Bay of Golfe-Juan. With professional lifeguards on duty daily the private beach can also provide on a tariff basis Le Provençal guests with swimming lessons, water-skiing, pedalos and paddleboards. On a tariff basis, residents of Le Provençal can also benefit from apartment cleaning, bed linen clean and turn down and the provision of flowers. Other concierge services include restaurant bookings, the organisation of museum visits, day trips and cultural tours; the hire of a chauffeur driven Bentley Flying Spur or Mercedes S-class limousine for airport transfer or other Riviera journeys; access to an exclusive collection of Ferrari, Mercedes and BMW sportscars that can be rented during a stay and the hire of skippered motoryachts. Golf enthusiasts can have access to the world-renowned Mougins Golf & Country Club and Golf Club Cannes-Mandelieu whilst teenagers and children can benefit from personalised sports and leisure activities including tennis lessons, dance, games, gym, art classes and French language lessons. The new partnership reunites two iconic buildings which have a unique shared heritage. Hôtel Belles Rives and Hôtel Provençal (now Le Provençal) helped provide the glamorous backdrops for American author F. Scott Fitzgerald's life on the French Riviera during the 1920s and 1930s, which had a key influence on The Great Gatsby, completed in 1925, ironically celebrating the centennial of its release this year, and Tender is the Night which he penned between 1925 and 1933. Hôtel Belles Rives was originally a private residence known as Villa St. Louis which was rented in the summer of 1926 by Fitzgerald, his wife Zelda and their daughter Scottie where the couple socialised with their bohemian circle who included Gertrude Stein, Picasso, Dorothy Parker and Ernest Hemingway. One evening Fitzgerald persuaded musicians performing at a restaurant in Juan-les-Pins to come to Villa St. Louis and perform until dawn, an event that helped to inspire the creation of the hotel's famous Bar Fitzgerald. In 1929 the Villa St. Louis was extended and remodelled into the now iconic Hôtel Belles Rives. The adjacent Hôtel Provençal, opened in 1927, provided another Riviera setting where Fitzgerald, Zelda, and their famous friends liked to socialise, the cocktail bar hosting the Fitzgeralds, Picasso, Ernest Hemingway and Sir Winston Churchill. Hôtel Provencal closed for refurbishment in 1977 and never reopened, its future uncertain until it was acquired in 2014 by luxury developer Caudwell. For the restoration Caudwell has worked alongside Parisian architecture and interior design house Affine Design, renowned for the renovation of celebrated hotels such as the Hôtel de Crillon, Hôtel de Paris and Hôtel Shangri-La Paris. Le Provençal is scheduled for completion in summer 2025 with the building's restored public areas including a porte cochère, grand reception lobby and a rotunda with an Ottoman style domed gold leaf ceiling. There is also an Art Deco inspired 16-seat cinema and a 2,155 (200 sq.m.) health spa. Inside the spa a serene sanctuary of wellness beckons with a semi-circular tinted mosaic spa pool with a feature waterfall and jets, an inviting Jacuzzi, vitality pool and submersed beds. Complemented by a sauna, a hammam, a cold plungepool, an ice fountain, hydrotherapy jets and soothing hot stone benches for a deeply rejuvenating experience. There is also a gymnasium, treatment room, fitness studio and a separate female steam room and sauna in the ladies changing rooms. Residents will be able to book health, beauty and spa treatments and private fitness and gym coaching through the concierge. The 41 residences are up to 9,440 (877 sq.m.) in size, and include lateral apartments, penthouses and garden houses/villas. Most of the residences offer outside terraces and views of the sea, with most also benefitting from views of the Alps. Located across the 8th to 11th floors the three penthouses, each with six bedroom suites, all have a private mosaic lined swimming pool and offer panoramic views along the French Riviera including views of Cap d'Antibes, Nice, Monaco, Cannes and the Alps. John Caudwell, British businessman, philanthropist and Founder of Caudwell says: 'The partnership with the Hôtel Belles Rives provides Le Provençal with outstanding 5-star concierge and lifestyle services, valet parking and the benefit of privileged reservation at the Hótel Belles Rives restaurants, cocktail bar and private beach. The concierge security and services such as apartment cleaning, bed linen clean and turn down and airport transfer provide Le Provençal with the perfect lock-up-and-leave offering for second home owners and a premium buy-to-let opportunity for investors.' Stéphane Vuillaume, Director & General Manager at Hôtel Belles Rives, says, 'For nearly a century, Hôtel Belles Rives has embodied the golden age of Riviera hospitality, where timeless elegance meets the refined art of personalized service. Our conciergerie upholds the storied tradition of the grand hotels of Europe, anticipating every need and crafting experiences that capture the effortless glamour of the Côte d'Azur. Residents of Le Provençal will have access to this unparalleled level of service, along with world-class wellness, leisure, and cultural offerings—including our renowned private beach, a cherished retreat on Cap d'Antibes that has welcomed discerning travelers for generations.'
Bloomberg
26-03-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
John Caudwell on What to Watch in UK Spring Statement
John Caudwell, British entrepreneur and founder of Phones4U, on the UK Chancellor's Spring Statement and how the UK can reinvigorate growth. Caudwell speaks with Bloomberg's Tom Mackenzie on "The Pulse." (Source: Bloomberg)
