KUALA LUMPUR (March 27): The Holiday Inn Express hotel in the Kuala Lumpur city centre has been put up for sale by its privately owned owner Winbond Group, according to real estate firm Colliers.

The proposed sale of the 384-room hotel includes office and retail space within the 21-floor main building and four-floor annex building with parts leased to specialty restaurant operators, Colliers said in a statement. The two-storey retail and two-storey office have a total net lettable area of 17,957 square metres, or over 190,000 square feet.

Potential buyers would have to sign a non-disclosure agreement and submit an expression of interest by April 26, 2024, Colliers noted.

The reserve price was not disclosed.

“This freehold mixed-use development offers a rare opportunity to acquire an existing operational hotel asset with renowned international operator generating stabilised cashflow together with strong rental income from office and retail leasing,” said Zoe Zhou, a director of Colliers based in Singapore.

The investment also comes with “the potential of a new tower to accommodate both residential and commercial use, maximising the existing land use”, she added.

Winbond Group, owned by hotelier Datuk Tang Yong Chew, signed an agreement in 2015 with InterContinental Hotels Group to manage the property built on the site of the former Menara ING office tower in the city's central business district as well as for another Holiday Inn Express hotel in Ampang.

Winbond also has two other ibis hotel projects — ibis KLCC, a 678-room hotel in Jalan Yap Kwan Seng, and the 249-room ibis Melaka within the Unesco World Heritage protected zone, according to the company's website.