Starboard Hotels and Union Hanover Securities have teamed up to create a boutique hostel in Liverpool’s Cavern Quarter.
With funding from BridgePoint Ventures and IPINGlobal, the pair have bought Quintain’s Kansas Building on Stanley Street. The 23,000 sq ft property, which has been vacant for three years, is opposite the Cavern Club – famous for hosting The Beatles.
Under the new brand name of Evolution Hostels, the property is due to open in the summer of 2013.
The five-star hostel will comprise 244 beds and a food and beverage offering.
The hostel, which will be developed and managed by Starboard and Union Hanover, will comprise 49 multi-bedded dormitories, all with en-suite facilities, and will include accessible rooms, lifts and a bar and restaurant.
Bridgepoint Ventures chief executive Eric Jafari said: “During downturns, history has demonstrated that the demand for budget accommodation either strengthens or stays the same.
“We like the hostel sector because it is still in its infancy and has a lot of room for growth. Institutional investors have gone to great lengths in improving the quality of the sector, but it requires a lot more investment and competition to continue improving the standards. Furthermore, hostels have historically demonstrated very high net yields. By partnering with a seasoned and institutional grade operator, it is our objective to take a high yielding model, improve it and profit from the growth to come within the sector.”
samantha.mcclary@estatesgazette.com
