Topland Group
Topland Group is a British property and investment company. In 2014, Topland was described as one of the world's largest privately owned property and investment groups.[1]
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Founder | Sol Zakay (Founder and CEO) |
| Headquarters | , |
| Website | www.topland.co.uk |
The company head office is at 105 Wigmore Street, London.[2]
History edit
Topland Group is one of the world's largest privately owned property and investment groups. The company owns property in the UK and in 2013 bought 12 out of the 15 hotels (all in the UK) owned by the bankrupt Menzies Hotels for about $135 million.[3] They own a number of other UK hotels, including Bath's Royal Crescent Hotel, the Hilton Brighton Metropole, the Glasgow Hilton and several Thistle Hotels, six in central London and one in Edinburgh.[4][5]
Between 2000 and 2020, Topland amalgamated and sold a number of large retail and supermarket portfolios through sale & leaseback transactions; these include a £500m Marks & Spencer portfolio, a £950m Tesco Supermarket portfolio, and a £300m deal with Spanish retailer Eroski. [6][7]
According to The Sunday Times Rich List in 2023 the founders' net worth was approximately £3.5 billion.[8][9]
In 2012, The Guardian reported that Topland was being sued by the UK's Ministry of Justice, having "conspired with a property agent in 2002 to extract inflated rents from the government on one of its central London buildings which houses the main London divorce courts". The UK government has accused Topland of "deceit, fraud by bribery, dishonest assistance and breach of confidence".[10] The case was "settled out of court on confidential terms".[11]
Although Topland has diversified into natural resources and renewable energy,[12] it's principal activity remains commercial real estate, with a portfolio of over 220 properties, valued in the region of £3.5 billion. In 2019, Topland sold the 26 property Hallmark Hotels portfolio for £250m.[13] Topland also has a hotel portfolio consisting of 40 hotels which includes the Royal Crescent Hotel,[14] in the Royal Crescent in Bath, the Hilton Brighton Metropole, the Glasgow Hilton and several Thistle Hotels, six in central London, and one in Edinburgh.[4][2]
Development edit
In January 2022, Topland purchased several sites and assembled a development pipeline of £850m.[15] In July 2022 Topland began the development of a £165m sustainable office scheme in the City of London, which they subsequently pre-let to Tik Tok.[16][17] In 2023, Topland agreed to a £160m forward funding with Blackstone-owned iQ Student Accommodation for a student housing and co-living campus next to the University of Warwick.[18]
Philanthropy edit
In 2010, Topland held a business lunch at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London in conjunction with Jewish Care, at which £241,000 was raised for the charity's causes.[19]Topland has hosted and continues to host the event annually.[20]
References edit
- ^ "Topland Group merges Hallmark and Menzies hotels under..." The Caterer. 2015-09-07. Retrieved 2020-04-27.
- ^ a b "Topland relocates to "newly refurbished and prestigious" central London HQ". Bdaily Business News. Retrieved 2023-05-09.
- ^ "Zakay Brothers's Topland Group Buys Menzies UK Hotel Chain for $135 Million". Jewishbusinessnews. Retrieved 31 October 2014.
- ^ a b "Zakay Brothers's Topland Group Buys Menzies UK Hotel Chain for $135 Million". Jewishbusinessnews. Retrieved 31 October 2014.
- ^ "Topland Group plc". Companies House. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
- ^ "Sol Zakay Property entrepreneur", Catherine Boyle, The Times, 21 July 2008, p. 39.
- ^ Hanscomb, Harry (2 Jul 2013). "Topland - General - UK, Sol Zakay set to return to UK to lead Topland investment drive". propertymall. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
- ^ Times, The Sunday. "Rich List 2020: profiles 21-50, featuring Salma Hayek and Sir Richard Branson". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 2020-07-09.
- ^ "The Sunday Times Rich List 2023". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
- ^ Ramesh, Randeep (6 April 2012). "Firm sued by ministry is Tory donor". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
- ^ Bar-Hillel, Mira (26 September 2012). "The Brothers". thelondonmagazine. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
- ^ "The World's Billionaires (2016 ranking): #688 Eddie & Sol Zakay". Forbes. 1 March 2016. Retrieved 2017-01-03.
- ^ "Topland Sells Hallmark Hotels Business for £250m". Hotel News Resource. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
- ^ "The Royal Crescent Hotel & Spa". royalcrescent. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
- ^ "Topland Assembles £850 Million Development Pipeline". CoStar. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
- ^ "Sustainable City of London office development receives £165m investment". BDaily. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
- ^ "TikTok Signs for Major London Office Prelet". CoStar. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
- ^ "iQ Student Accommodation acquires £160m Warwick PBSA". EGI. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
- ^ Lord Mandelson helps to raise £241K for Jewish Care. Jewish Chronicle, 15 November 2010. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
- ^ "Topland". JewishCares. Retrieved 8 January 2024.