The Hotel
Metropole London is one of the U . K .’ s largest convention hotels . up with the shuttered Ledra Marriott ( now Hyatt Regency ) in central Athens , bought jointly with real estate firm Hines at auction ; two of the U . K .’ s largest convention hotels , the London and Birmingham Hilton Metropoles ; and the historic Westin Paris- Vendôme , which it plans to redevelop .
After a flurry of activity in 2017 , last year was relatively quiet for Henderson Park . But lately Weber has been drawn to student housing , and he is weighing potential expansion into hotels in Spain , where the firm has office and student housing holdings , and Germany . “ We have five hotels now . Could we own 10 or 15 in the next five years ? Sure , but only if we see the right opportunities for us . We have plenty of capital to grow , but it ’ s really situation-led .”
HIGH-PROFILE , UNDER-INVESTED If Henderson Park has a niche , it ’ s high-profile assets in European gateway cities that need a little love , Weber says . “ We try to find assets that for one reason or another have perhaps been under-invested , not managed as aggressively as they could have been or in need of a greater transformation through a brand change or redevelopment ,” he explains . A history of strong cash flow is another plus .
Hotels represent only about a quarter of
Henderson Park ’ s portfolio , and their primary appeal for Weber is simple : cash flow . “ Our two U . K . Hilton hotels generate over £ 100 million in annual revenue , and the Meridien Etoile delivers around € 80 million ,” he says . “ We always anticipate some capital gain , but if you run a hotel well it can often generate a pretty nice cash flow for your investors .”
The downside is market fluctuations — Brexit , or another SARS-type outbreak , for instance — that impact travel . “ It ’ s not like owning an office building with a single tenant like an IBM or other multinational that pays you every quarter ,” he says .
Henderson Park ’ s conservative mindset means its deals depend less on leverage — about 60 % to 65 %, Weber says . “ You still need to work hard and perform , but you ’ re not going to lose your asset if you follow those rules .”
The 47-year-old CEO , a Princeton alum , sharpened his real estate skills during nearly 15 years at Goldman Sachs . Goldman ’ s team culture , strong mentoring and an emphasis on integrity made a lasting impression , as did his exposure to international markets and different transaction types . “ I was able to work in debt , in equity , in all sorts of asset classes and across jurisdictions ,” he says . Later , with Mount Kellett , his real estate team racked up strong returns from distressed debt and equity investments . He also helped engineer the sale of the Jurys Inn chain to Lone Star Funds .
CLOSE-KNIT , FAST-PACED At his own shop , Weber stresses collaboration . The relatively compact team — under 30 employees — huddles every Monday morning for two to three hours to hash over deals and strategy . “ We have a very close-knit culture and a flat organization ,” he says . “ It ’ s a fast-paced , high-energy place , and we don ’ t believe in sharp elbows , we don ’ t believe in loners , we don ’ t believe in anything other than working as a team . That ’ s probably one of the hardest things to get right ,” he observes .
Weber values passion and willingness to share and learn among team members . “ There is no such thing as a dumb question in this firm ,” he says . “ We encourage everyone to have an open dialogue , ask questions and challenge each other .”
“ That team effort , combined with clear goals and objectives , are the key ingredients to success . When you mix talented people with strong morals and a shared vision , you can create something pretty powerful and special .”
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