Virgin Hotels Glasgow building put on the market after shock closure

The joint administrators of Lloyds Developments Ltd, the owners of Virgin Hotel Glasgow, have put the building on the market. Savills will be handling the sale of the freehold interest of the building at 264 Clyde Street. You can read about the closure of the hotel and the reaction of workers here.

The announcement states: "The luxury hotel comprises a 17 storey-building overlooking the River Clyde in the heart of Glasgow city centre. Features include 165 completed bedrooms, with capacity for up to 242, a ground floor restaurant and bar, a mezzanine bar and lounge, a flexible terrace area and conference and meeting space for up to 60 delegates."

"The hotel also provides the potential for further development, with the opportunity to complete the remaining 77 bedrooms, along with public spaces such as a proposed gym, function suite, whisky bar and coffee shop."

Permission was granted for the 17-storey building on Clyde Street to be used as a 290-bedroom hotel instead of student accommodation in 2018. Plans were then submitted for the neighbouring premises - Riverside House at 260 Clyde Street, currently operating as student accommodation - to provide a gym, cafe and meeting rooms for the hotel with a whisky bar and links between the two buildings at ground floor level.

This section of the hotel, alongside suites and the upper floors, was not completed before Virgin Hotels Glasgow closed. The land registry shows that Richard Diamond and Rishipal Singh, the directors behind Lloyds Developments own Riverside House.

The new freehold owner of the building will also have new neighbours next door as the same two company directors responsible for the opening and sudden closure of Virgin Hotels Glasgow are building Motto by Hilton Glasgow at an adjacent gap site. The announced planned opening is autumn 2024. The 186-room hotel is being built by Silk Property Group, one of a series of interconnected companies linked to Richard Diamond and Rishipal Singh that own a strategically important section of Clyde Street.

Steven Fyfe, director in the hotel capital markets team at Savills Scotland, comments: “This is a rare chance for a purchaser to secure a prime asset that has been fitted out to an excellent standard in line with a luxury lifestyle hotel with the possibility of being in an income producing position from day one.

"Situated in a prime location within Glasgow city centre, the hotel is just a short walk from Glasgow Central Station and Buchanan street, as well as being in close proximity to all of Glasgow’s key demand drivers. Given it’s excellent credentials, we anticipate a significant level of interest from a global pool of buyers."