Las Vegas Sands has begun on a large-scale renovation of Sands Cotai Central in Macau aimed at transforming the 6,000-room, four-hotel resort complex with a new look and a new name: The Londoner Macao.
According to local news reports, billboards and other public displays have been erected in and around the Holiday Inn Macao tower announcing the work and featuring the iconic red-circle logo of the London Underground subway system along with images of an escalator with a sign that reads in English and Chinese, “Next stop, London.”
Wilfred Wong, president and COO of Hong Kong-listed Sands China, LVS’ Macau operating subsidiary, was reported last week to have confirmed the start of the revamp at a separate media event staged across the street at sister resort The Parisian Macao.
No price tag has been released for the project, but LVS said last fall it plans to spend US$2.2 billion on improvements to its Cotai resort cluster over the next few years, including The Londoner rebranding.
On the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call, President and COO Rob Goldstein promised a “magnificent success story” with The Londoner transformation, saying, “This is a game-changer for us.”
“It’s underway already. It’s a big challenge,” he said, speaking of the work launched at the Holiday Inn. “We’re taking a 1,200-room hotel and making it into a 600 rooms all-suite hotel.”
He said, “There will be some disruption,” but added, “We will not lose a table game or a slot machine in the portfolio. We have the ability to transfer assets in Sands Cotai Central as well as on to other gaming floors if need be.”
He projected a probable completion for late 2020.
