Club Med has recently inaugurated a new resort at Sanya Bay of the southern China island, its fourth in China since the French resort brand was acquired by Chinese conglomerate Fosun International.
“The fifth Club Med resort in China will be launched by the end of this year as Club Med is speeding up its expansion in China after its privatization by Fosun,” Fosun’s vice president Jiannong Qian told Di Yi Cai Jing Daily.
Other than the Club Med project, Fosun is also involved in anther billion-yuan project in Sanya, namely the Atlantis. The projects form important components of Fosun’s tourist business unit that the conglomerate is building.
The privately-held conglomerate was known worldwide for its overseas acquisition spree but now it also wants a share of China’s growing consumer market.
Pilot scheme of Club Med
Club Med operates in development and management of hotels, resorts, leisure and entertainment facilities. Its first resort in China was launched less than six months after Fosun’s takeover.
Within two years after the Fosun acquisition, Club Med opened another two resorts in Guilin and Zhuhai’s Dong’ao Island. The French vacation resort operator plans to open its second ski resort in Changchun Jilin by the end of the year, according to Club Med’s president and CEO Henri Giscard d’ Estaing.
Club Med’s resorts in China are operated under a light-asset management model, which means the company manages properties for property owners and collects management fees. Mr. Qian was quoted as saying that Club Med’s resorts in China would continue with the light-asset model in the future.
Extending into the full chain of tourism industry
The Atlantis, a tourism project at Haitang Bay of the Hainan’s southern-most city Sanya, is initiated and invested by Fosun for more than RMB 11 billion. It is projected to be completed by the end of the year and launched next year.
The upcoming Atlantis is not just a hotel but also an integrated tourism development with 807 seaview apartments, 197 coastal villas as well as aquarium, dolphin bay, ocean world, restaurants and shopping centers.
Other than Club Med resorts and the Atlantis, Fosun has also invested in British global travel company Thomas Cook, which operates mainly in Europe and owns charter planes, luxury cruise ships, hotels and resorts. The London-based travel company has set up its Chinese office after Fosun’s investment and is also exploring distribution channels in China and operating chartered flights to the country.
Xinjun Liang, vice chairman and CEO of Fosun, told the reporter that the company was also considering spinning off its travel business unit for a potential IPO. (Translated by Jerry)
