Javad Marandi, the British financier, has formally signed a deed marking the start of his project to transform the former Monnet Cognac cellars into a world-class five star hotel. Also present at the ceremony in the mayor of the city of Cognac, Michel Gourindas, his first deputy Patrick Sedlacek, as well as Didier Poignant, the architect of the project. The hotel, which together with its top-end restaurants and retail offering, will offer a modern take on traditional French luxe and transform the town of Cognac into an international gourmet hospitality destination, and is scheduled to open in 2018.
This follows the building permit issued in February to restore this former industrial site of 2.4 ha located at Avenue Paul Firino Martell in the heart of the city of Cognac.
This heritage site – the birthplace of EU-architect Jean Monnet – will experience a second life by being transformed into a 15,000m2 hotel and retail building complex inspired by the concept of “French” luxury and is anticipated to become the benchmark of top-end hospitality in Cognac. It will appeal in particular to tourists who come to Cognac to visit the Martell, Hennessy, Courvoisier, Rémy Martin and Camus distilleries. The project will include:
- Five-star hotel : 100 bedrooms and suites, 14 apartments, two restaurants, jazz bar and lounge, 400m2 conference room, four meeting rooms, and a pool and spa.
- Six stores which will be rented to French brand retailers
- A cultural meeting place
The €60 million investment will be financed personally by Javad Marandi who has a track record of bringing hotels to market in Europe.
Works are due to commence during the first half of September 2016 for an opening in spring 2018 – 130 years after the birth, in Cognac, of Jean Monnet, one of the founding fathers of Europe, whose family owned the cellars.
Speaking about the project, Javad Marandi said: “The Cognac region has a rich history and it is fantastic to be able to give this cultural landmark, the home of Jean Monnet, a new lease of life. This is an exceptionally picturesque and vibrant part of France that is already popular with French and international visitors and has the potential to be even more so in the coming years. I’m really pleased to have finalised the project with the mayor of Cognac today and look forward to welcoming guests in 2018.”
The tourist and business interest of the project has been confirmed by a feasibility study carried out in December 2014 by the MKG Group, an expert with an experience of more than 30 years in the hospitality and tourism industry. Some 120 new jobs will be directly generated at the hotel complex.