Outrigger to sell resort

The Outrigger Resort, Ettalong Beach, will be re-branded as a Mantra Resort in mid-December, following the sale of its management rights to Stella Resorts.

Outrigger Enterprises Group recently entered into an agreement to sell selected operations in Australia and New Zealand to MFS Limited, a publicly-held Australian investment firm.

The transaction was expected to close before the end of the year, according to public relations representative Ms Corina Ammann.

The transaction includes the sale of management and letting rights, and associated real estate interests, for 13 properties Outrigger manages in Australia and New Zealand, plus the management rights for six additional projects currently under development.

Stella Resorts general manager of marketing Mr Keith Stanley said that the Outrigger Resort Ettalong would be re-branded during the middle of December, once the sale had been finalised.

Mr Stanley said the company was expected to "spend quite a bit of money marketing that brand" but that the cost of the re-branding would vary from property to property.

Mr Stanley also noted that all those people currently employed at Outrigger Resort Ettalong would retain their jobs under the sale.

Senior vice-president operations Mr Dave Lawrence who moved to Australia from Hawaii in 1998 to expand the Outrigger brand in the South Pacific, said the transaction was a strategic move in line with the company's long-term expansion activities throughout Australia and Asia Pacific region.

"The Outrigger brands, or the right to use them, are not part of the transaction with MFS; each resort will be re-branded from an Outrigger resort to a brand within MFS's Stella Resorts Group," Mr Lawrence said.

"We will use the proceeds to acquire other assets and to continue to position Outrigger Enterprises Group as a regional leader in hospitality, retail and developments."

Ms Ammann said MFS would retain all Australia and New Zealand employees who wish to continue working with the new owners.

Outrigger will continue taking reservations for the properties until operations are transferred to MFS at the end of the year.

Mr Lawrence said the company would be working closely with MFS to ensure a smooth and seamless transition to the new management group on behalf of both its employees and guests.

"Our on-property associates have been responsible for the outstanding performance of the 13 resorts involved in this transaction and we are very pleased that MFS wishes to retain all staff, and we are extremely confident they will continue to deliver the highest standard of hospitality," Mr Lawrence said.

Outrigger originally entered the Australian and New Zealand markets in 1998 as part of a broader expansion into the South Pacific.

Outrigger Hotels and Resorts and OHANA Hotels and Resorts are divisions of Outrigger Enterprises, Inc., Hawaii's largest locally owned hospitality-company, managing over 50 properties with more than 12,000 rooms in Hawaii, Australia, Micronesia, Fiji, Tahiti and New Zealand.

The Stella Resorts Group manages and markets more than 60 branded properties throughout Australia and New Zealand including Bale Resorts; Peppers Retreats, Resorts and Hotels; Mantra Hotels, Resorts and Apartments; BreakFree Hotels, Resorts and Apartments; and Ambia Villas and Apartments.

Lyle Stone, October 24, 26