SAMHI Hotels acquires 156-room hotel from Ahmedabad’s Shree Siddhi Group

SAMHI Hotels acquires 156-room hotel from Ahmedabad’s Shree Siddhi Group

By Anuradha Verma

  • 30 Dec 2015

Hospitality firm SAMHI Hotels Pvt Ltd has acquired the 156-room Ganesh Meridian hotel from Ahmedabad-based Shree Siddhi Group.

Financial details of the deal haven’t been disclosed. However, media reports said the deal value was around Rs 135 crore (about $20.3 million).

The five-star property is a little over one-year old and will be rebranded with an international upscale brand shortly, according to a press statement. SAMHI acquired the hotel through wholly owned unit Caspia Hotels.

The hotel will be SAMHI’s third property in Ahmedabad, after Four Points by Sheraton and Formule 1. Opened in May 2014, Ganesh Meridian has two restaurants as well as health and fitness facilities such as pool, spa and gym. The hotel is part of a mixed-use development project.

SAMHI was founded by Ashish Jakhanwala and Manav Thadani. Sam Zell-led Equity International, GTI Capital Group and International Finance Corporation own a controlling stake in the company.

Last year, SAMHI raised around $21 million from the World Bank arm IFC via convertible debentures. It also raised Rs 126 crore from founders and existing investors like GTI Capital and Equity International. In 2012, SAMHI had raised $100 million from Equity International and GTI Capital. Of this, $75 million came from Equity International.

This year, the hotel investment firm has acquired two hotels and opened four properties. The company has 25 hotels with 3,900 rooms managed by five brands including Marriott, Starwood Hotels, Accor Hotels and Hyatt in its portfolio, according to its website.

JLL India was the exclusive advisor to the deal.