Hotels are bought and sold during peak tourist season. This happened with Nobis in Palma’s historic quarter. Amancio Ortega, Spain’s wealthiest individual, acquired two entities this summer. The property is operated by a Swedish brand in Ciutat. The founder of Inditex did this through Pontegadea, a family office that gathers all of his real estate and business holdings.
The sale of Concepció and Nobis Hotel Palma by Nobis, even as renovations were nearing completion, was announced to the public by Genova Property Group on July 3. The Stockholm-based real estate company stated it would divest two hotel properties in Palma for about 35 million euros (roughly 410 million kronor). It was not disclosed who signed the agreement. It is practical to note that for a public company listed on Nasdaq Stockholm, selling assets that had lost strategic relevance is not uncommon.
Located on the same street, Concepció by Nobis is planned to open in 2021.
In 2016, Genova bought two stately houses on Concepció Street and Can Oliver on Les Caputxines Street with the intention of turning them into luxury hotels and renting them out after restoration.
Amancio Ortega, his wife Flora Pérez, vice president of Pontegadea, and his grandson appeared in a 2022 photo in connection with these developments.
This is how Nobis Hospitality came into play. The Swedish family operation was founded in 1987 by Alessandro Catenacci, an Italian by training who moved to Stockholm in the 1950s. It specializes in operating hotels, restaurants, bars, nightclubs, and meeting and event spaces in buildings that are world-class and historically important. In Mallorca, they focused on two country houses. The hotel division is described as neither a chain nor a franchise, emphasizing each property’s unique character. The portfolio includes nine distinct properties, with the flagship Nobis Hotel Stockholm housing 201 rooms, opened in 2010. There are six hotels in Stockholm, one in Copenhagen, and two in Palma.
The Mallorca debut came in 2021 with Concepció, a 31-room property. Last October Nobis Hotel Palma opened with the NOI restaurant, featuring the involvement of a renowned chef.
New ownership emerges
With Can Oliver reemerging as a boutique hotel, the two five-star properties that Nobis leased to Genoa on long-term contracts were already owned by Spain’s main real estate group, Pontegadea.
As far as is known, the tycoon already owns three properties in Ciutat; another is the Born building, purchased in 2014.
Swedish investors appear across the real estate value chain, spanning acquisitions, property management, residential projects, commercial spaces, and urban developments with rental housing, particularly in Stockholm and Uppsala. A July press release indicated that the two properties leased to Nobis Hospitality in Palma were under-leveraged, and the sale provided liquidity to reduce debt. Seven years after buying homes that were vacant in 2016 and turning them into luxury hotels, Genova holds a total leasable area of about 5,300 square meters. The CEO, Michael Moschewitz, noted that divesting these assets was financially rewarding. [Genova Property Group, press release, July 2024]
Business ties with Miguel Fluxá
In this market movement, Amancio Ortega effectively became the new landlord of the Italian-Swedish operator Alessandro Catenacci in Ciutat. Ortega, the founder of a global textile giant, is described by industry insiders as someone who buys buildings with existing tenants to ensure immediate profitability. The lease agreement extends for twenty years.
Entrance to the new Nobis Hotel Palma on the Can Oliver estate in Palma’s historic center is pictured in a recent photo.
The two hotels are expanding their stake in the Zara building in El Born, a property bought for 39 million euros in 2014. Ortega’s hotel portfolio continues to grow in and outside Spain, including the Iberostar 70 Park Avenue in New York, the brand’s only hotel in the United States, purchased for 61 million in 2016 while managed by the group. A daughter, Sandra Ortega, signed agreements earlier this year in Barcelona.