Hyatt Regency Perth to close its doors after parent company Tuan Sing terminates management agreements

Hyatt Regency Perth will close its doors after 36 years, announcing it will no longer operate as a hotel or be affiliated with the Hyatt global portfolio. In a statement on Monday, Hyatt announced its parent company Tuan Sing had made the decision “as part of its long-term business strategy” to cease the hotel’s operations after August 31. Hyatt said it was working with Singapore-listed Tuan Sing to support affected customers and looking at opportunities to redeploy the hotel’s staff. “We extend our sincerest gratitude to our team, guests, customers, partners and the broader Perth community for their loyal support and patronage, which has laid the foundation for our success over the past three decades,” Hyatt Regency Perth general manager Thiva Kesavan said. “It is with much regret that Hyatt Regency Perth will cease to operate, but we are grateful to have had the privilege to serve and care for all who have come through its doors. “As we navigate this challenging period, our thoughts are with all those affected by the hotel’s closure and we are committed to ensuring they are supported.” Tuan Sing hospitality vice president Lim Guan Kiang said Hyatt Regency Perth, located on Adelaide Terrace, had been a hospitality institution in the CBD for decades. In a statement to the Singapore Exchange, Tuan Sing said its indirect wholly-owned subsidiary, HR Operations, entered into a deed of termination with Hyatt’s subsidiaries to end the hotel’s management agreements. Hyatt Regency Perth will cease to be a Hyatt-managed hotel on August 31, after which it will be repositioned and rebranded to commence business, Tuan Sing said. Tuan Sing said the move was part of its long-term strategy to expand its hospitality business, which currently includes Grand Hyatt Melbourne and the recently announced acquisition of Fraser Residence River Promenade in Singapore. The Singapore-based company said it expects to incur $S2 million ($2.2m) in costs and expenses from the termination of Hyatt Regency Perth’s management. Hyatt Regency Perth in 1988 joined Hyatt’s global portfolio and has welcomed former Prime Minister John Howard, Canadian pop star Justin Bieber and US rapper Kanye West in its time. Premier Roger Cook said the Hyatt had served West Australians greatly, and reminisced about the hotel’s opening after the 1983 America’s Cup victory. “Everyone was excited when we saw the architects’ renders and it really represented everything that Western Australia was going to be in that post America’s Cup world,” Mr Cook said. “We’ve all got fond memories of the Hyatt and obviously will be sad to see it go but we know that there is more tourism products being brought on stream day in day out as our tourism industry continues to grow.” Mr Cook denied the closure was tied to falling demand for hotel accommodation, saying the city was experiencing rising rates of visitation and tourist spending. Tourism Council WA chief executive Evan Hall said the Hyatt — with 366 guest rooms, a grand ballroom and multiple meeting rooms — was a “pretty iconic” building for the State. “It was really one of the first big five-star hotels, it’s what I call a classic 80s build and they don’t build them like that anymore with the big open atrium, for example,” he said. “There will be a lot of people of who have got very fond memories of the Hyatt and (for) a lot of people . . . it’s where they stay every time they come to Perth, in particular business travellers. “In terms of what happens for WA tourism, it depends what happens to the building so it could well be that it gets repurposed to other kinds of accommodations but it certainly going to cease being five-star branded.”