Fragrance Group buys Grade II-listed hotel for £12.5m

Fragrance Group has acquired the Grade II-listed Townhouse Hotel in Manchester city centre from Harcourt Developments for £12.5m.

The property on Portland Street dates back to 1870 and was formerly a cotton warhouse before opening as an 85-bedroom hotel in 1982.

An extensive refurbishment programme in 2010 created the current four-star boutique hotel offer, with a brasserie, bar and self-contained business centre.

The hotel is, close to Manchester Piccadilly station, Palace Theatre and Manchester Art Gallery.

Fragrance Group was represented by real estate adviser Savills.

Martin Rogers, head of UK hotel transactions at Savills, said: “We are very pleased to have acquired this well-established hotel on behalf of our client.

“The hotel investment market in the North is performing strongly with transactions totalling £304m in the first half of this year alone.”

Under its new ownership, the property will be managed by Bespoke Hotels. Harcourt Developments was represented by Lambert Smith Hampton.

Alistair Greenhalgh, a director at LSH Hotels, said: “The sale of the Townhouse Hotel in Manchester illustrates the current appetite for prime city centre hotels as, yet again, we have seen competitive bidding on a prime asset.

“The Brexit referendum and subsequent slump in the value of the pound is attracting overseas investors in their droves, many of which are keen to take advantage of the currency trade off by pursuing UK hotel opportunities.”