PERSONALITIES
AEPPEL MAKES
BIG MOVE with MOB
By JEFF WEINSTEIN , EDITOR IN CHIEF
With a CV that lists developing and building hotel brands , raising capital , asset managing and investing for , among others , Marriott International , Le Meridien and Andre Balazs Properties , it is fair to say Glyn Aeppel is well connected . Over the past six years the South Africa-born hotelier has been growing her own Glencove Capital , a Southport , Connecticut-based investment and advisory firm focused on the lifestyle segment . After trying to buy the Standard brand from Balazs and Mama Shelter from
Cyril Aouizerate , she is now working s to develop the emerging MOB Hotel brand created by Aouizerate , the Frenchman and former Sorbonne professor who sold his Mama Shelter shares to AccorHotels .
MOB defines itself as an affordable , approachable urban hotel movement with an edge ; it has a focus on well-being and hospitality , “ designed to be conducive to the emergence of new ideas and sharing of cultures .” Aeppel likes to call it lifestyle with a soul . This appears to be no flash-in-the-pan development either , with a list of partners that includes Michel Reybier , creator of the La Reserve brand ; designer Philippe Starck , and Steve Case , co-founder of AOL and founder / CEO of venture capital firm Revolution LLC .
“ This is more about investing in Cyril and his unbelievable assessment of people ,” Aeppel says . “ It ’ s sort of Marxist , and ‘ of the people ’ brand . He wants to serve interesting people coming together in a forum , and the forum is the vibrant hotel .”
Through Glencove ,
MOB will continue to be scaled in primary and secondary markets in the United States and Europe within communities going through a renaissance . Current MOB projects include Paris and Lyon , France , Pittsburgh , Washington , D . C ., and Los Angeles . Aeppel is focused on North American development and is working on deals in Brooklyn and the Bronx in New York and Boston . She adds the partners want to do at least 10 MOBs for starters and grow from there .
Aeppel says development costs are about US $ 200,000 per key in the U . S ; lower in Europe . Aouizerate is setting up the management team in Paris .
Aeppel also wants to invest in two or three other entrepreneurs focused on lifestyle concepts and currently has investments in four other hotels and two restaurants . Among these are two irreplaceable , historic churches in uberhot Silver Lake ( Los Angeles ) that will be developed into unique lifestyle hotels .
“ THIS IS MORE ABOUT INVESTING IN CYRIL AND HIS UNBELIEVABLE ASSESSMENT OF PEOPLE ."
— GLYN AEPPEL
January / February 2017 hotelsmag . com 21